NORTHBROOK, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 17, 2024--
UL Solutions (NYSE: ULS), a global leader in applied safety science, today announced that Mr. C Residences Jumeirah in Dubai has achieved a Gold UL Verified SPIRE Smart Buildings™ Rating, marking the first all-residential building in the world to receive this comprehensive smart building performance rating.
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The rating is also the highest verified SPIRE™ rating received to date for any property type category. The Mr. C Residences Jumeirah Gold-level rating was attributed to consistently high marks across multiple categories, with the building receiving the highest scores in health and well-being, life and property safety and connectivity — considered top priorities for residential building occupants.
“Mr. C Residences Jumeirah has made a substantial stride in validating and demonstrating smart building innovation in the residential development industry,” said Frederick Sy, vice president of Strategy and Portfolio Innovation at UL Solutions. “Residential properties are complex ecosystems to manage, often balancing multiple priorities. By rigorously assessing, validating and rating key building elements that encompass the entire scope of a smart building, the UL Verified SPIRE Smart Buildings Rating provides guidance for enhancing safety, health and well-being while improving the overall resident experience.”
Mr. C Residences Jumeirah is a luxury waterfront development in Dubai. Developed by Alta Real Estate Development in partnership with the Cipriani brothers, founders of the Mr. C luxury hospitality and residential brand, this six-story building includes 27 units of apartments and penthouses. Bernardo Fort Brescia of Miami-based Arquitectonica led the architectural design, while Will Meyer of New York City-based Meyer Davis oversaw the interiors.
“The achievement of the Gold SPIRE Smart Buildings Rating for Mr. C Residences Jumeirah marks a significant milestone as the first residential development globally to attain this recognition,” said Abdulla Al Tayer, managing partner of Alta Real Estate Development. “I am deeply impressed by the dedication of our entire Alta Real Estate Development team, which has been instrumental in driving excellence in luxury design and smart building performance. The UL Verified SPIRE Smart Buildings Rating has been invaluable in demonstrating how we have seamlessly built a high level of residential connectivity, safety, health and well-being elements into this project. We are thrilled to continue delivering luxury residential experiences within a framework grounded in science-based best practices for smart buildings.”
The SPIRE Smart Buildings program is the first independent assessment program that measures the actual performance of buildings. It uses a comprehensive framework created with input from over 60 leading organizations in the building industry.
The program focuses on six key areas that define a smart building’s performance: connectivity, cybersecurity, health and well-being, life and property safety, power and energy, and sustainability. By evaluating and rating buildings based on these factors, SPIRE helps building operators improve their buildings’ performance, return on investment and occupant satisfaction.
The UL Verified SPIRE Smart Buildings Rating helps empower building operators as they consider smart building needs in the face of new and evolving influences. These include physical assets decarbonization, business and building mission alignment, occupant experiences, cybersecurity concerns, artificial intelligence, image perception and the introduction of robotics into the built environment.
Learn more about the SPIRE Smart Buildings program.
About UL Solutions
A global leader in applied safety science, UL Solutions (NYSE: ULS) transforms safety, security and sustainability challenges into opportunities for customers in more than 110 countries. UL Solutions delivers testing, inspection and certification services, together with software products and advisory offerings, that support our customers’ product innovation and business growth. The UL Mark serves as a recognized symbol of trust in our customers’ products and reflects an unwavering commitment to advancing our safety mission. We help our customers innovate, launch new products and services, navigate global markets and complex supply chains, and grow sustainably and responsibly into the future. Our science is your advantage.
Pictured above (left to right): Deepak Haridas Nair, manager, Group Health, Safety, Security and Environment & Logistics, ALTA Real Estate Development, Veronika Guity, director, Marketing and Partnerships, ALTA Real Estate Development, Giuseppe Noto, general manager, Development and Sales, ALTA Real Estate Development, Patrick Abgrall, director and regional general manager, EMEA in the Built Environment group, UL Solutions, and Junaid Mohioddin, program lead for SPIRE Smart Buildings, MEA, UL Solutions. (Photo: Business Wire)
Mr. C Residences Jumeirah, a luxury waterfront development in Dubai, developed by Alta Real Estate Development in partnership with the Cipriani brothers, has achieved a Gold UL Verified SPIRE Smart Buildings™ Rating, marking the first all-residential building in the world to receive this comprehensive smart building performance rating (Photo: Business Wire)
A blast of snow, ice, wind and plunging temperatures stirred up dangerous travel conditions in parts of the central U.S. on Sunday, as a disruptive winter storm brought the possibility of the “heaviest snowfall in a decade” to some areas.
Snow and ice blanketed major roadways in nearly all of Kansas, western Nebraska and parts of Indiana, where the state's National Guard was activated to help any motorists who were stuck. At least 8 inches of snow were expected, particularly north of Interstate 70, as the National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings for Kansas and Missouri, where blizzard conditions were reported. The warning extended to New Jersey for Monday and into early Tuesday.
“For locations in this region that receive the highest snow totals, it may be the heaviest snowfall in at least a decade,” the weather service said early Sunday.
About 63 million people in the U.S. were under some kind of winter weather advisory, watch or warning on Sunday, according to Bob Oravec with the National Weather Service.
The polar vortex of ultra-cold air usually spins around the North Pole. People in the U.S., Europe and Asia experience its intense cold when the vortex escapes and stretches south.
Studies show a fast-warming Arctic is partly to blame for the increasing frequency of the polar vortex extending its icy grip.
In Indiana, snow fully covered portions of Interstate 64, Interstate 69 and U.S. Route 41, prompting Indiana State Police to plead with motorists to stay off the roads as plows worked to keep up with the pace of the precipitation.
“It’s snowing so hard, the snow plows go through and then within a half hour the roadways are completely covered again,” Sgt. Todd Ringle said.
Part of I-70 was closed in central Kansas by Saturday afternoon. Roughly 10 inches (25 centimeters) of snow had fallen in parts of the state, with snow and sleet totals predicted to top 14 inches for parts of Kansas and northern Missouri.
Parts of upstate New York saw 3 feet (0.9 meters) or more of snow from a lake effect event expected to last until late Sunday afternoon.
The storm was then forecast to move into the Ohio Valley and reach the Mid-Atlantic states on Sunday and Monday, with a hard freeze expected as far south as Florida.
The National Weather Service warned that travel in numerous states, including Kansas and Missouri, could be “very difficult to impossible.”
Indiana State Police reported a handful of spinouts and crashes Sunday.
A day earlier a fire truck, several tractor-trailers and passenger vehicles overturned west of Salina. Rigs also jackknifed and went into ditches, state Highway Patrol Trooper Ben Gardner said. He posted a video showing his boots sliding across the highway blacktop like he was on ice skates. He begged people to stay off the roads.
Governors in neighboring Missouri and nearby Arkansas declared states of emergency.
The storms also caused havoc for the nation’s railways, leading to numerous cancelations. More than 20 cancelations were planned on Sunday, 40 for Monday and at least two for Tuesday.
“If local authorities are telling people not to travel, it’s counterintuitive to try to run a full slate of services when people are being told to stay home,” Amtrak spokesperson Marc Magliari said. “Likewise, we know our people are going to have trouble getting in to work.”
The Midwest was hit especially hard. A train between Chicago and New York and several regional trains between Chicago and St. Louis were among those canceled Sunday.
Nearly 200 flights in and out of St. Louis Lambert International Airport were canceled, according to tracking platform FlightAware.
Starting Monday, the eastern two-thirds of the country will experience dangerous, bone-chilling cold and wind chills, forecasters said. Temperatures could be 12 to 25 degrees (7 to 14 degrees Celsius) below normal.
In Chicago on Sunday, temperatures hovered in the teens (minus 7 to 10 Celsius) and around zero in Minneapolis, while dropping to 11 below in International Falls, Minnesota, on the Canadian border.
The Northeastern states are more likely to experience several days of cold following what has mostly been a mild start to winter, said Jon Palmer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine. A plume of cold air coming down from Canada is likely to result in a cold but dry week, he said.
The cold air will likely grip the eastern half of the country as far south as Georgia, Palmer said, with parts of the East Coast experiencing freezing temperatures and lows dipping into the single digits in some areas.
Wind might also pick up as the week gets going, making for potentially dangerous conditions for people exposed to the elements for long periods of time, Palmer said.
The National Weather Service predicted 8 to 12 inches (about 20 to 30 centimeters) of snow for the Annapolis, Maryland, area, with temperatures remaining below freezing throughout the weekend.
In a statement on X, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency Friday evening ahead of the storm and encouraged residents to vote before the state's special elections on Tuesday.
Similar declarations were issued in Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, West Virginia and in central Illinois cities.
School closings were likely to be widespread Monday. Districts in Indiana, Maryland, Virginia and Kentucky were already announcing cancelations and delays on Sunday afternoon.
Kentucky’s Jefferson County Public Schools canceled classes, extracurricular activities and athletics Monday for its nearly 100,000 students. The day would have been students' first one back after winter break.
“This is a traditional snow day with no online learning,” the district announced.
Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment
Associated Press journalists Julie Walker in New York, Sophia Tareen in Chicago and Summer Ballentine in Columbia, Missouri, contributed. Witte reported from Annapolis, Maryland. Whittle reported from Portland, Maine.
Brenden Campbell makes his way through downtown Wichita, Kan., on a one-wheel electric scooter during a severe winter storm on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (Travis Heying/The Wichita Eagle via AP)
A group of cyclists make way through downtown Wichita, Kan., during a severe winter storm on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (Travis Heying/The Wichita Eagle via AP)
Paul Cullmann clears snow from steps outside his home Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Andre Dresino uses a snow blower to clear a sidewalk Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
A person crosses a street as heavy snow falls Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
A person who declined to be identified jogs down a snow-covered street Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Workers clear snow from a walkway Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Enrique Davila crosses the street with his dog, Chula, as heavy snow falls Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
A car slowly navigates a snow-covered interstate Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
A group of people jog in the distance as heavy snow falls Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Snow falls in St. Joseph, Mo., Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Nick Ingram)
More snow falls near the American Legion Post in Lowville, N.Y., Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Cara Anna)
FILE - A leaf is frozen in the ice of a garden pond during cold weather in Buffalo Grove, Ill., Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)
FILE - Steve Beckett with the street department in Owensboro, Ky., sprays a salt brine solution along Hickman Avenue in preparation for predicted snow and ice over the weekend, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, in Owensboro, Ky. (Greg Eans/The Messenger-Inquirer via AP, File)
More winter weather blows into Lowville, New York on Saturday, January 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Cara Anna)
In a photo released by the Kansas Highway Patrol, a car is wedged between two trucks during icy weather Saturday, Jan. 4, 2024, in Salina, Kansas. (Kansas Highway Patrol via AP)
A snowplow passes through Lowville, New York, on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Cara Anna)
