ABSTRACT
In all states, Registered Architects (RAs) and Professional Engineers are licensed professionals, who sign and stamp (certify) construction documents for "code compliance". Codes and regulations (as contrasted with standards) are laws and there can be real legal consequences for violating them. Structural engineers perform most structural engineering, but RAs are also licensed to do this work in most states. Everyone has experienced poor architectural acoustics, usually in the form of hearing a neighbor when one would prefer not to, not being able to understand speech, or maybe just due to excessive loudness. Like codes, mechanical systems—really Heating, Ventilating, and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) systems—could easily be a topic in themselves. On a day-to-day basis, interior designers will not design these systems, but it is necessary to understand the basic types of systems and how it is possible to modify such systems for renovation projects.
