“Traveling Codes: Exploring American National Building Code from Past to Present” is presented by Nigel Isaacs, Senior Lecturer in the School of Architecture, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

Abstract: A single internationally accepted code governs the design and construction of most modern American buildings. Have you ever thought about where that code came from and who influenced it along the way? A pre-presidential Herbert Hoover is just one in the mix.

Journey back to the “roaring” 1920s, when a U.S. committee for improving the productivity of housing construction inadvertently penned the document that would become the model for other codes the world over.

This presentation, based on research into the archives of the code authors, discusses the development of the first building code and key lessons to be learnt from its drafting. Explore the importance of questioning the obvious, changes in construction systems, as well as finding a (very important!) missing decimal point.

Biography: Dr. Nigel Isaacs is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Architecture, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand and is currently a Fulbright Scholar at the Indoor Climate Research and Training Center. Nigel teaches courses in environmental science, history of building technology and heritage conservation. His research focuses on the interface between buildings, their creators and users. Previous research includes national studies of energy use in houses, offices, shops, schools and hotels; identifying faults in existing houses; the history of the technology of the New Zealand timber house and the international development of sub-floor (crawl space) ventilation requirements. This will be Nigel’s final presentation at the University of Illinois.

Lecture Organizer: Megan Konar