BSA By Design

Explore how one of the most energy-intensive building types become Notre Dame’s first LEED Platinum project. The team behind McCourtney Hall East discusses the ambitious goals, collaborative problem-solving and sustainable design strategies that created a high-performance research facility—and established a new benchmark for the university’s campus.

Host: Brian Moore

Guests: Mike Daly, Geoff Lisle, Brian Hoagland & Kevin McNutt

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Scientific breakthroughs require more than technically sound laboratories—they require spaces shaped around the people, processes and possibilities of science. In this episode, BSA’s laboratory planning experts discuss how listening, right-sizing and true client partnership lead to more adaptable and intuitive research environments, while exploring how AI, automation, quantum computing and other emerging technologies are reshaping the laboratories of tomorrow.

Host: Scott Allen

Guests: Derek West, Alan Gnani, Tim Stratton & Kelvin Patel

bsadesign.com

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BSA’s Jeff Saad talks with Chang-Yeon Cho of Synthetic Studio AI about cognitive agent simulation—a technology that models how real people behave, move and make decisions within a space. Together, they explore how architects and healthcare leaders can use these virtual “what ifs” to uncover risks, challenge assumptions and design more adaptable, efficient and human-centered environments.

Host: Jeff Saad

Guest: Chang-Yeon Cho

bsadesign.com

syntheticstudio.ai

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Dr. Cedra Goldman and Drew Husstedde join the show to discuss how sustainability, resilience, and public health are converging to transform the future of architecture and engineering. And they look at why the most successful buildings don't just perform efficiently—they actively support human health, adapt to changing conditions, and challenge the industry to design with people at the center of every decision.

Guests: Dr. Cedra Goldman and Drew Husstedde

Host: Brian Moore

bsadesign.com

Feedback? E-mail [email protected]

Mark Abbey and Tom Bahr discuss rural healthcare, challenges and opportunities in the space, working with leadership at rural healthcare systems, flexible space design, along with telehealth and more.

In this episode, Dr. April Agee Carroll from Bayer Crop Science R&D, Scott Allen and Kay Townsend discuss how research facilities are designed and used to feed the world, phenotyping, food security, plant science, genetics, data analysis and what new insights are leading to breakthroughs – and how collaboration is a key driver to these breakthroughs.

This episode features a conversation with engineers around different types of boilers, pros and cons, backup fuel options and decarbonization, including what healthcare organizations should be thinking about when it comes to these options.

Host: Brian Moore

Guests: Rick Wilkins & George Stefanovici

Learn more: bsadesign.com

Podcast Library: https://fast.wistia.com/embed/channel/aiy7rea6t7

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In this episode of BSA by Design podcast, host Brian Moore interviews Kevin McNutt, an engineering planning principal at BSA, about designing mechanical systems for resilient and sustainable healthcare facilities. McNutt, who has nearly twenty years of experience as a licensed PE, discusses how engineering for healthcare isn't just technical but also an art that requires balancing multiple stakeholder needs and opinions. He shares insights from a complex patient tower project that involved untangling existing systems while expanding campus utilities and coordinating around immense structural challenges. The conversation covers key industry challenges including labor shortages, retiring workforce knowledge, cost pressures, and the balance between sustainability and resiliency. McNutt emphasizes the importance of prefabrication strategies, true collaboration across disciplines, and the need to look beyond immediate costs to lifecycle considerations. He also discusses how AI and technology will likely help address workforce gaps while maintaining the irreplaceable value of human experience and historical knowledge in healthcare facility design.

Kevin McNutt discusses his new article, "The Art of Balance: Designing Mechanical Systems for Resilient and Sustainable Healthcare" including underestimated constraints, cost-saving measures that sound good but can hurt a project long-term, AI and the gaps in the trades.

Host: Brian Moore

Guest: Kevin McNutt

Want to learn more about BSA? Visit bsadesign.com.

Feedback? Email [email protected].

Drew Hustedde joins the show to talk about sustainability, and BSA's Sustainability Action Plan, with focus on future goals, alignment, the shift in conversation around sustainability and how good design is at the heart of it all.

Host: Brian Moore

Guests: Drew Hustedde

Want to learn more about BSA? Visit bsadesign.com.

Feedback? Email [email protected].