Zonda - Resource Library

Architects have an important role to play in proper surface preparation and coatings selection through project-specific painting specification. It’s important for architects and designers to be actively involved in the specifying process and to understand the limitations, benefits, and features of different paints and coatings.

This course will help the learner to understand the main causes of paint and coating failures, the importance of proper surface preparation for various substrates, and problem-solving primers and other coating technologies that can help improve the longevity of structures.

This course dives into two main areas of residential architectural styles, starting with pre-2008 recession to examine patterns and meaning behind historical trends. The second and core piece of the course moves forward into the road ahead to look at the changing influences on home design. Learners will understand the macro influences currently impacting residential exterior design and how those influences translate to ornamentation and finishing choices, such as colors, materials, and roofing.

This guide provides pro-tips on using the latest design trends to create beautiful and compelling homes.

This course aims to help architects, developers, colorists, and other specifiers understand which current popular exterior colors to continue using, which new colors to begin introducing, and what combinations will ensure successful palettes. The major design shifts in current U.S. regions as well as the cultural and consumer influences behind color trends will be referenced for the purpose of enhancing the knowledge course participants have regarding the color trends for the coming years.

Decorative concrete encompasses everything from overlays, inlays, mosaics, stamped concrete, and cast-in-place concrete amongst others. It can be used for swimming pool decks, as highly durable polished floors, and in a variety of vertical applications. Board-formed cast-in-place concrete can function both structurally and aesthetically, and masters such as Ando, Calatrava, and Kahn have mastered its use.

By understanding and analyzing the form and function of decorative concrete, as well as its benefits, limitations, and legacy, architects and other specifiers, will be better equipped to make innovative design decisions.

Designers have a plethora of options when specifying interior surface materials, but one stands out among the crowd, despite being an age-old material: veneer. This course will explore the evolution of veneering from ancient times to today and how factory-crafted veneer cabinetry remains a handcrafted art. We will also discuss design options and performance benefits that this sustainable material of choice offers.