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School of Construction: Construction Resources
This guide provides recommended resources for research in this discipline.
Resources
These databases are great for any topic in engineering (and related disciplines)! Keep in mind each has their strengths and weaknesses - Google Scholar is great for niche topics that you already know what you are looking for, while Engineering Village can be great for exploring topics with it's extensive thesaurus and ebooks.
- Dimensions PlusDimensions Plus indexes more than 100 million publications, ranging from articles published in scholarly journals, books and book chapters, to preprints and conference proceedings. Dimensions Plus is an extensive and fully interlinked database with publications, grants, patents, clinical trials, datasets and policy documents. 1600s to present.
- Engineering VillageEngineering Village is the search interface to three engineering databases: Compendex, Inspec, and Knovel. Compendex (1884-present) indexes citations and abstracts from over 5,000 engineering journals, conference papers, books, patents, dissertations, and technical reports. Inspec (1898-present) indexes citations and abstracts from journal articles, conference proceedings, books, and dissertations in engineering and physical sciences. Knovel provides ebooks on engineering and related subjects.
- SciTech Premium Collection from ProQuestThe SciTech Collections indexes citations, abstracts, and full text from journal articles, books, conference papers, trade publications and more. Some full text provided in HTML and PDF.
- ScopusScopus indexes citations of journal articles, conference papers, and books in the sciences, medicine, social sciences, arts, and humanities. You can perform cited reference searches. You can compare authors, institutions, and journals using various metrics. 1800s-present
- Web of Science from Clarivate AnalyticsThe three Web of Science databases index citations from journal articles and conference proceedings in the sciences, social sciences, and arts and humanities. You can perform cited reference searches, analyze trends and patterns, and create visual representations of citation relationships. 1900-present
- Google ScholarTo show VText links that will connect you to full-text content through the VT Libraries' subscriptions or follow these directions to manually make those links appear.
The resources here are organized by type - be sure to check them all out! This tab has specialized databases for construction and more that are useful for finding articles, conference proceedings and more. Looking for even more databases? Check out our full Engineering & Physical Sciences list!
- ASCE LibraryThe ASCE Library contains the full text of journals (from 1983), conference papers (from 2000), standards (current and historical), and ebooks.
- Building GreenBuildingGreen includes online versions of GreenSpec, "Environmental Building News", a database of green products (product descriptions and articles about the products), and a database of more than 160 high-performance building case studies (all in HTML). This information is searchable and cross-referenced by CSI MasterFormat division, LEED credit, or green building topic. 1992-present.
- Building Types OnlineBuilding Types Online provides information on buildings and structures around the world. Maps, architectural drawings, photos, and bibliographies are included.
- Construction Criteria Base (CCB) from the National Institute of Building SciencesCCB is an extensive electronic library of construction guide specifications, manuals, standards, and other essential criteria documents. Published and updated continuously, CCB contains the complete unabridged, approved, current electronic equivalents of over 10,000 documents direct from participating federal agencies
- DETAIL InspirationDETAIL provides reports on construction solutions, including photos and architectural plans.
- FIMo Fire Insurance Maps OnlineLarge-scale maps of towns and cities in Virginia and Washington, D.C., useful to urban specialists, social historians, architects, geographers, genealogists, local historians, planners, and environmentalists. Data contained includes the outline of each building; size, shape, and construction materials; functions of structures; locations of windows and doors; street names, street and sidewalk widths, property boundaries, and house and block numbers.
- GreenFILE from EBSCOhostGreenFILE indexes citations, abstracts, and full-text articles, books, case studies, conference papers, speeches and interviews, letters, and reports covering all aspects of human impact to the environment including agricultural, architectural, engineering, education, and the social sciences. Full text is available in HTML and PDF. You can limit to peer-reviewed sources. Free access version is also available. 1913-present.
- IEEE XploreIEEE Xplore contains full text documents from IEEE and IEE journals, transactions, magazines, ebooks, letters, conference proceedings, standards, and IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology) publications. Full text content is provided as PDFs.Full-text journals back to 1884, conference proceedings back to 1951.
- Material ConneXionMaterial ConneXion provides full-text data on materials used in architecture, interior and industrial design, fashion and apparel, and landscaping. Materials include polymers, ceramics, glass, metals, cements, and natural materials. Processing and sustainability information, physical and usage properties, and manufacturers are listed.
- SmartBuilding Index from Reed Construction DataSmartBuilding Index provides architects, spec writers, engineers and contractors with in-depth information on commercial building products - including technical data, sourcing, cost data, project use examples, and downloadable specs, CAD and BIM objects.
Also checkout these two free web databases:
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Building Data Tools from energy.gov: DOE developed and provides a comprehensive collection of tools for accessing, managing, analyzing and sharing building energy data
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ICONDA CIBlibrary: database for CIB and related publications, compiled and hosted by Fraunhofer IRB
Looking for alternatives to your textbooks? Or handbooks? Or just getting up to speed on a new topic? These resources are for you to help learn everything from standard engineering courses to coding languages and more! (Be sure use Discovery Search too with the book filter - we have many, many ebooks!)
- AccessEngineering from McGraw-HillAccessEngineering provides engineering handbooks and textbooks, plus instructional videos.
- ASM Handbooks OnlineASM Handbooks Online features the complete content of all ASM Handbook volumes plus two ASM Desk Editions (the Engineered Materials Handbook and the Metals Handbook). The ASM Handbook Online contains peer-reviewed, trusted information in every area of materials engineering and is the industry's best known and most comprehensive source of information on metals and materials technology.
- Engineering Case Studies OnlineEngineering Case Studies Online provides full text reports, videos, event timelines, maps, audio footage and transcripts, blueprints, and other archival content on engineering failures and successes.
- IEEE Online CoursesVirginia Tech users have access to four sets of courses through our subscription, plus a handful of free courses. You can create a free profile on the IEEE site to track your courses and receive Continuing Education Units credit and certifications.
- JoVE UnlimitedThis package is JoVE’s complete video library. It includes all research journals−Behavior, Biochemistry, Bioengineering, Biology, Chemistry, Developmental Biology, Engineering, Genetics, Immunology & Infection, Medicine and Neuroscience−and all sections of Encyclopedia of Experiments (Biology and Cancer Research). JoVE Education collections, such as JoVE Core, Lab Manuals, and all Science Education subjects−Biology, Chemistry, Clinical Skills, Environmental Sciences, Engineering, Physics and Psychology−is also included.
- Knovel LibraryKnovel provides a large collection of ebooks on engineering and related subjects. Each chapter is presented as a separate PDF. The entire collection is full-text searchable, and many results include interactive tables. Includes tables of properties for over 13,000 chemical compounds. Knovel is also searchable through the Engineering Village interface.
- O’Reilly Safari Learning Platform: Academic EditionO’Reilly Safari Learning Platform: Academic Edition provides over 38,000 full-text ebooks (HTML) and 30,000 hours of videos in computer science, information technology, and business. You must use your vt.edu email address to access ebooks. Please remember to log out when you're done so others may use the ebooks; use is limited by number of users.
- Wolfram MathWorldWolfram MathWorld provides full-text reference articles (with bibliographic citations), a glossary of mathematical terms, downloadable Mathematica notebooks, and a guide to Mathematica.
Here you will find some options for intellectual property and standards. We also have detailed information on some of these on other pages if seeking more:
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Patents & Trademarks: guides.lib.vt.edu/ptrc/quick
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Copyright: guides.lib.vt.edu/oa/copyright
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Standards: guides.lib.vt.edu/find/byformat/engineering-standards (note purchasing policy)
Looking for other types of materials? Check out all the types in our Resources by Format Guide!
- Dimensions PlusDimensions Plus indexes more than 100 million publications, ranging from articles published in scholarly journals, books and book chapters, to preprints and conference proceedings. Dimensions Plus is an extensive and fully interlinked database with publications, grants, patents, clinical trials, datasets and policy documents. 1600s to present.
- Lens.orgSearches patent and scholarly publication data, with over 100 million patent records across 95 jurisdictions world-wide, and over 200 million scholarly records from PubMed, Crossref, and more. Many filtering and search options with advanced boolean functions, structured searches, classification searches and more. Lens.org also includes options for searching biological sequences included in patents.
- MADCADMADCAD indexes full-text building codes, evaluation standards, design standards, and technical bulletins from ASCE, ASHRAE, ASME, ASTM, FEMA, NFPA, and SMACNA, plus state codes from Virginia in HTML and PDF. 1981-present
- ASTM CompassASTM Compass is the portal for the ASTM full-text standards, technical engineering reports, journals, manuals, ebooks, and data series. These materials cover a wide range of engineering disciples: aerospace, biomedical, chemical, civil, environmental, geological, health and safety, industrial, materials science, mechanical, nuclear, petroleum, soil science, and solar engineering. The site includes all current issues and backfiles of all ASTM journals, all symposia papers (published in book format as Special Technical Publications), and all ASTM manuals and monographs. The library also includes current and historical ASTM standards. 1931-present.
- IEEE XploreIEEE Xplore contains full text documents from IEEE and IEE journals, transactions, magazines, ebooks, letters, conference proceedings, standards, and IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology) publications. Full text content is provided as PDFs.Full-text journals back to 1884, conference proceedings back to 1951.
This tab has resources for researching industry such as looking up companies specialized in manufacturing specific technologies or market assessments. See the business guides for more options - these are just to get you started!
- Business Source Complete from EBSCOhostBusiness Source Complete is a citation, abstracts, and full-text database that indexes journals; books; financial data; reference works; conference proceedings; company, industry, investment, marketing, and country reports; SWOT analyses; and case studies. Full text is provides as HTML and PDF. You can limit to peer-reviewed sources. 1886-present; most content is 1980s-present.
- FactivaFactiva provides full-text news articles and business/industry information from newswires, newspapers, business and industry magazines, television and radio transcripts, financial reports, and photos from news services. Most content is HTML, though other formats are available for export. News sources 1979-present; financial data 1960s-present.
- IBISWorldIBISWorld provides 3 types of business reports: Industry Market Research: Reports (PDF) on over 700 US industries arranged by 5-digit NAICS code, typically 25-50 pages in length with executive summaries, updated regularly; Business Environment: Data and analysis (PDF and Word) on 200+ economic and demographic statistics, around 300 key business environment indicators; and Specialized Industry Reports of over 600 titles also arranged by NAICS code that contain the same chapters and format as the Core US Industry Reports, but encompass niche and emerging industries with a focus on technology, healthcare, consumer goods, and other fast-growing sectors.
- MarketResearch.comMarketResearch.com provides market intelligence reports on consumer demographics, market size and growth trends, industry forces and structure, product trends, competitive environment analysis, and company profiles.
- Mergent OnlineProvides company, industry, and country reports for active and inactive, public and some private companies. Reports provided in PDF and can be exported as Word or Excel files. It includes 15 years of financial statements.
Interlibrary Loan Services
All current Virginia Tech students, faculty, and staff, regardless of your location, may request through ILLiad for materials:
- not owned by Virginia Tech (books, articles from journals and conference proceedings, book chapters, standards, and technical papers)
- owned by Virginia Tech but are unavailable for use (print books)
- owned by Virginia Tech and available in print (scans of articles from journals and conference proceedings, book chapters, standards, and technical papers)
We ship requests via UPS to users outside the immediate Blacksburg area (Montgomery, Giles and Pulaski counties).
Articles, book chapters, and many technical papers are delivered in PDF format to your ILLiad account. Occasionally, due to copyright restrictions, a paper copy of an article or standard is held for your at the Newman User Services Desk or sent o the mailing address listed on your account.
Engineering reference sheets
Some engineering material can be difficult to locate. These reference sheets give general information about the resource as well as instructions on how to retrieve the material from the Virginia Tech library collection.
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AIAA: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
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ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers
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ASME: American Society of Mechanical Engineers
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ASTM: American Society for Testing and Materials
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NACA & NASA: National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics & National Aeronautics and Space Administration
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SAE: Society of Automotive Engineers
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Engineering standards
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Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)
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Patents and Trademarks
RSMeans Online
The Art & Architecture Library provides access to RSMeans Online. Email Sarah Over, sover05@vt.edu, for login information.
Print copies of the most recent editions are available on Reserve in the Art & Architecture Library.
- Building Construction Cost Data by Get the confidence and knowhow you need to deliver more accurate cost estimates and improve profitability. The 76th edition of this bestselling cost guide has been updated and expanded to provide you with the information you need to estimate projects with confidence and accuracy, improve project planning and budgeting, and reduce risk.ISBN: 9781946872012Publication Date: 2018
Engineering Librarian
Sarah Over
she/her/Dr.
Contact:
Newman Library
Rm 3013
560 Drillfield Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24061
Rm 3013
560 Drillfield Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24061
540-231-8693
Subjects: Engineering and physical sciences
Head, Art & Architecture Library
Sarah Stanley
Contact:
Art & Architecture Library
100A Cowgill Hall
sarahstanley@vt.edu
100A Cowgill Hall
sarahstanley@vt.edu
540-231-2559
Subjects: Architecture, art, and design