We hope you’re off to a healthy 2011! As we bid farewell to our 2010 wellness program and goals, we can’t help but be very excited about what’s in store for the 2011 wellness program. Taking a look back, we have some pretty big shoes to fill. In 2010 and for the second consecutive year, Kahn snagged the American Heart Association (AHA) Start! Fit Friendly Companies Gold Level Award by recognizing the importance of its employees’ health and promoting wellness by creating changes in the workplace environment. The program recognizes employers who champion the health and wellness of their employees to implement at least nine criteria outlined by the AHA, including offering physical activity support, increasing healthy eating options at the worksite, and promoting a wellness culture. In October 2010, Chef Paul Penney hosted a healthy cooking demonstration courtesy of HAP. Kahn also participated in National Start! Walking Day in April, National Start! Eating Healthy Day in November and the American Heart Association Start! Heart Walk in May.



Here’s a sneak peak at what’s ahead for Kahn’s 2011 wellness program: Getting the walking group back together and hitting the skywalks and tunnels for a mid-afternoon breather, wellness lunchtime presentations, participation in National Start! Walking Day and National Start! Eating Healthy Day, and of course our big celebration in May, the Heart Walk at its new location in Downtown Detroit at Ford Field!

Our goal for 2011? We want to encourage our Kahn family to be able to make more informed food choices and adopt healthier lifestyle habits. By knowing their numbers, understanding the importance of diet and exercise and various other efforts, our Kahn employees can live happier, healthier and more productive lives.

What are your health and fitness goals for 2011? What kind of support would you like to see from employers to help you achieve these goals?

Alan Cobb recently shared some exciting news with you about Kahn’s work with the Detroit Public Schools. As a Detroit-headquartered business, Kahn has proudly worked with DPS on past school improvement efforts. Not only are we excited about the Finney Crocket project, but we are eager to work with DPS on additional improvement projects, too. With security and information technology (IT) connectivity being of very high priority in the DPS school system, DPS has turned to us for the design of the information technology, security, and audio-video systems for the 18 bond schools, their new Security Command Center (SCC) as well as security upgrades to their existing schools. Kahn’s IT specialists got right to work on designing a unique system for the district. For example, the Main Control Room at the SCC will feature a video wall where operators can call up and display live camera feeds and recorded video from any school in the district, display alarms from the intrusion detection system at any school, as well as monitor local, national and world news and events. Talk about technology for the 21st century!

Not only has Kahn been hard at work providing architectural and engineering services to DPS, we were also able to offer up our expertise in the form of mentorship to three DPS co-op’s this past summer. These students received training in AutoCAD computer systems and learned the workings of a multi-discipline architecture and engineering services provider. The students rotated through our four primary technical disciplines of architectural design & development, mechanical and electrical engineering, and project management where they assisted Kahn architects and engineers in performing their daily tasks.

Working with the students in this way while also designing their learning centers of the future has been a rewarding experience for the Kahn team. It will be equally fulfilling to see the students enjoy their new facilities once they are completed.

While most kids were on summer break this year, Kahn was hard at work in the schools…the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) that is. In November of 2009, Detroit voters approved the Proposal S Bond Program which freed up $500.5 million federal stimulus dollars to be used for building and renovating the district schools. This opportunity is giving DPS the chance to rebuild or renovate 18 of their PK-12 schools and provide security system upgrades to an additional 121 existing schools in the district. What an exciting endeavor indeed!

As part of the Tooles Clark design/build project team, Kahn was also awarded the Finney Crocket new High School project. This new $46.3 million, 221,000 sq. ft. high school will accommodate up to 1,200 students in a move that will consolidate Finney and Crocket High School campuses with the new school opening for the 2012-2013 academic year. This is a very exciting project as it will be one of the new LEED Gold Certified schools in the district.

Kahn is so honored and excited to be part of such a thrilling endeavor with the Detroit Public Schools to build safer, state-of-the-art facilities to help students achieve success.

To keep up with the latest construction news on this project, visit the DPS Construction Project website: http://dpsschoolconstruction.org

It all started with a dream and an idea. The dream was that no one should go hungry while food was going to waste. The idea was to create a distribution network that would provide local non-profit agencies with a low cost, reliable source of food for hungry people. Thus, Gleaners Community Food Bank was formed and the dream became reality.

Gleaners has been nourishing local communities by feeding hungry people for more than 33 years.  Last year alone, Gleaners distributed more than 36 million pounds of food to over 484 partner soup kitchens, shelters and pantries in Southeast Michigan.  As a result of their efforts 356,769 people in need were fed. 

Furthermore, you’ll be happy to know that 95 cents of every dollar is dedicated to food distribution and nutrition programs.  This distinction has earned Gleaners the highest rating (four-stars) from Charity Navigator (an independent evaluator of the nation’s largest non-profit organizations).

For the past four years, Gleaners Community Food Bank has accomplished their mission with help from Kahn. Through the tremendous generosity of Kahn employees, we’ve collected 4,128 pounds of food, 2,828 dollars and purchased 119 loaves of bread from Bona-Venture L3C , whose proceeds go directly to Gleaners.

Why do we do it?  It’s simple. Because it’s our duty to make our city and region a better place to live, work and play. It’s a sad truth to know in the richest, most developed country in the world there are men, women and children who can’t afford a decent meal. Gleaners gives us a means to change the situation. The opportunity to make a difference is there for everyone.  We just have to seize it.

Donate. Volunteer. Advocate. Make a difference today!

Environmentally friendly. Green. Sustainable. These concepts have become ingrained in our everyday vocabulary. Recognizing the impact we have on our environment is easy, now we must all do our part to sustain a better world. Whether you are an individual or a corporation, we all can make a difference.

By measuring the amount of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases we produce in our everyday activities, we are able to calculate our own carbon footprint. There are many ways in which we can decrease our footprint on the environment, such as utilizing renewable energy sources in place of fossil fuels, taking advantage of public transportation or carpooling, being knowledgeable about the products we are buying or purchasing carbon credits to offset the footprints we have already made.

For corporations, considering carbon neutrality is becoming increasingly important and popular. Many companies are reducing their footprint by understanding the value of their waste, utilizing alternative energy sources, selecting green energy providers or purchasing credits for emissions that cannot be eliminated. What are we doing? Kahn has taken on the challenge of Architecture2030 for a carbon neutral footprint by the year 2030. With a goal to achieve a dramatic reduction in the greenhouse gas emissions causing global warming, we are changing the way we plan, design and construct projects. What does that mean for you? We are passionate about producing healthful, productive and efficient environments for you in which to live, work and play.

Any Facility Manager will tell you that power for their building is very important, and that the quality of that power is critical in many of their buildings. In fact, concern for clean reliable power is at the forefront of worry for FMs.

In late October, President Barack Obama announced the release of $3.4 billion in grants under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act to spur the growth of the smart grid. The grants, which are matched by another $4.6 billion in private investment, will be enough to fund the deployment of 18 million smart meters, among other projects. That's 10 percent of all the meters in the country. With those meters, the nation will come one step closer to transforming its electricity grid into a smart grid.

The term "smart grid" is a simple phrase used to describe a complex idea. The easiest way for facility executives to think of Smart Grid is to consider it as an upgrade to the nation's electric generation and distribution infrastructure that sends power and data on the grid in two directions instead of just one.

The goal is to improve the metering and control of the power flow.

Smart Grid has several goals, among them better security, better support for renewable energy, and of course, real time communication. One goal that can help facility executives understand Smart Grid is the push to improve the efficiency of the nation's power grid.

As many facility executives know, the electrical grid is actually becoming less reliable even as demands for clean, reliable power increase. Digital equipment is significantly more sensitive to voltage disruptions than the equipment used in commercial and industrial facilities 30 years ago. Reliability problems crop up not only in the form of interruptions but also as poor power quality. Presently, the existing grid is 99.97 percent reliable but interruptions cost the economy $150 billion annually, according to a 2008 estimate from the Galvin Electricity Initiative.

The Northeast blackout of 2003 illustrated just how costly the current approach to power delivery can be. The four-day blackout in August affected more than 50 million people in the Eastern United States and Canada, according to the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, causing $4.5 billion in economic losses.

On a business level, Galvin estimated in 2008 that one hour of downtime can cost a cellular communications company $41,000. A brokerage operation stands to lose $6.5 million per hour.

While facility executives often have backup systems in place in mission critical systems, such systems aren't always failsafe either. As the 2003 blackout illustrated, not all facilities are designed to operate for days off the grid during a severe outage.

Reposted from Chairman’s message, Kahn Update newsletter, Issue 3 2009. To see the complete issue, click here.

This is my final message as the leader of this wonderful organization. It’s been an honor to be associated with this great firm founded by Albert Kahn. The firm’s legacy and more importantly, its people, are what set this special place apart from all others.

Unfortunately, it is the nature of our business to be seriously impacted by business cycles. Like many others, Kahn faces huge challenges in the upcoming year, but at the same time, is poised to capitalize on huge opportunities too.

When I joined Kahn a little over 30 years ago, the firm was coming back from a very serious period. While there have been several strong and weak periods since, the current recession is posing a major test of all design firms’ stamina and resourcefulness. However, I have every confidence that Kahn will emerge from these difficult times even stronger.

Under Chuck Robinson’s leadership, the new executive team is ready to hit the ground running on January 1, 2010. For that very important reason, I have accelerated my timeframe for stepping down. While I will be retiring from the firm’s leadership at the end of 2009, I anticipate working with the firm in a continuing client support capacity.

This is the right decision and move for me, my family, but more importantly for Kahn. However, I am leaving with no regrets, as it’s been a good ride and the firm has been good to me. Plus, this is not goodbye, but rather we’ll see each other soon. Best wishes to each of you this holiday season and beyond. May 2010 be everything that we all hope and need it to be!