Michael Horman, associate professor of architectural engineering at Pennsylvania State University, State College, who also specialized in research on building efficiency and use of lean construction in green buildings, died Sept. 15 while teaching a graduate course, says the school. He was 38 and suffered a fatal heart attack, according to published reports.

HORMAN

Horman was director of the university's Lean and Green Research Initiative, a research effort focused on high-performance and sustainable building design and construction, and co-editor of its Journal of Green Building. He also served as assistant specialty editor for the American Society of Civil Engineers' Journal of Construction Engineering and Management.

The Australia native, who previously lectured at the University of Melbourne from 1995 to 1998, was also a former project engineer with Bovis Lend Lease. At Penn State, he also served as faculty adviser for the student chapter of the Design-Build Institute of America. Horman "was a very well-liked teacher and mentor to his students and a highly respected researcher," says Chimay Anumba, head of the university's architectural engineering department.

At this death, Horman was involved in research funded by the National Science Foundation and the Charles Pankow Foundation, that included case studies of the Pentagon renovation and facilities built by Toyota Motor Corp., says David Riley, a faculty colleague in architectural engineering. "Our hope is find ways to continue this important work to ensure the lasting impact that Dr. Horman made on the Architectural Engineering program and in the construction research community," he says.