New Construction Envelope Design
The most cost-effective time to prevent a building envelope failure is during design — before a single foundation is poured or wall panel is erected. Every dollar invested in proactive envelope design, peer review, and specification development during preconstruction returns multiples in avoided repairs, litigation, warranty claims, and occupant disruption. Yet many development teams still treat envelope consulting as an afterthought, engaging specialists only after problems emerge during construction or occupancy.
ACE Building Envelope Design provides new construction envelope consulting from the earliest design phases through construction completion and closeout. Our approach is built on a simple principle: the team that understands how buildings fail is uniquely qualified to design buildings that don't. Every specification we write, every detail we review, and every test we perform is informed by decades of forensic investigation experience — real-world knowledge of what works, what fails, and why.
Specification Development
ACE develops building envelope specifications that are specific, constructable, and enforceable. We don't produce generic specifications adapted from manufacturer templates — we write performance-based specifications tailored to your project's specific climate conditions, structural system, building use, and performance requirements. Every material and assembly we specify has been verified through our forensic experience to perform in real-world conditions.
Peer Review & Constructability Analysis
ACE reviews architect and engineer envelope details, shop drawings, and specifications to identify vulnerabilities before they're built. Our peer review process examines not just code compliance, but constructability — whether the details shown on drawings can actually be built correctly by field crews. We've investigated enough construction failures to know that a beautiful detail on paper means nothing if it can't be installed properly in the field.
Construction Administration & Testing
ACE provides on-site construction administration and FGIA/AAMA-accredited testing throughout the construction phase. Our field presence ensures that design intent is maintained through installation, testing verifies actual performance, and documentation creates a defensible record that the envelope was built as specified.
Frequently Asked Questions
The ideal time is during schematic design or early design development — before envelope assemblies and details are locked into construction documents. Engaging ACE early allows us to influence material selection, assembly design, and detailing strategy when changes are inexpensive. Engaging after construction documents are complete — or worse, after construction has begun — limits options and increases costs exponentially.
Peer review is an independent evaluation of the architect's and engineer's envelope design by a specialist who can identify vulnerabilities, code compliance gaps, and constructability issues before construction begins. ACE reviews wall assemblies, roofing details, flashing transitions, fenestration specifications, and waterproofing systems with the forensic perspective needed to catch the design oversights that frequently cause post-construction failures.
ACE has investigated hundreds of building envelope failures across the Western United States. This forensic experience provides direct knowledge of which details fail, which materials underperform, and which installation practices cause problems — knowledge that is impossible to gain through design experience alone. Every specification and detail we produce for new construction is informed by this real-world failure data.
Yes. ACE provides on-site construction administration including submittal and shop drawing review, RFI response, field observation during envelope installation, mock-up evaluation, and testing coordination. Our field presence ensures that the design intent behind every envelope detail is maintained through installation — bridging the critical gap between drawings and built reality.
ACE provides FGIA/AAMA-accredited testing during and after construction, including water penetration testing (ASTM E1105), air leakage testing (ASTM E783), fenestration performance testing (AAMA 501/502/503), infrared thermography, and flood testing. Testing verifies actual performance before the building is accepted, creating defensible documentation of envelope quality.
ACE provides new construction envelope consulting for multifamily, commercial, institutional, healthcare, hospitality, government, high-rise, mixed-use, industrial, and specialized facilities across the Western United States. Our experience spans wood-frame, steel, concrete, and mass timber construction systems.
Contact ACE at (866) 389-8883 or schedule a consultation online. For new construction, we recommend a scoping meeting with the design team to define the appropriate level of envelope consulting — from focused peer review to comprehensive specification development and full-project construction administration. Early engagement delivers the greatest value.