December 2009 Archives

CSI's Specifying Practice Group will hold its inaugural meeting January 7, 2010 at 3:00 PM eastern time. To attend the meetings, just join the group. The group is intended for those that read and write specifications and everyone affected by specifications. The range of topics will include:

• How technology influences content, production, and delivery
• Disasters and responses to practical experience
• Tools, techniques, and tips worth sharing
• Just what drives product selection, exactly
• Exponential marketplace advancements
• Learning to forget what no longer applies

While thinking about specific topics to bring to the group I shared some ideas with CSI staff. To be sure the ideas were on target with the goals of the group. The two ideas were of immediate interest: MasterFormat™ 2004 and the impact it has made; and a Photo Log to learn from built examples of the good, the bad, and the ugly. I intended the Photo Log to involve contribution by group member, so it is not really appropriate for the inaugural meeting. Initially we will explore MasterFormat's impact.

Here are some of the other ideas that may appear in the months ahead. I would like to know what your thoughts about these may be and what other topics you would like to suggest.

Outline Specs - Useful or Not: How are outline specs developed and used and are there alternatives?

Managing Design and Spec Data: What data are needed and how is the information best collected and communicated?

Implementing SectionFormat™ 2008: What is the impact and must it be universal?

Seismic Requirements - Beyond the Building Frame: What does the code affect besides the building frame?

Out with the Old; In with the New: What standard, code, product, or method has changed significantly?

How to get Spec'd - A Peek Behind the Architect's Curtain: What mysterious methods are used to specify products?

It May be Green, But is It Durable: How do you balance the choices?

What Can You Expect of a Specifier: Is it more than a technical spec or project manual?

And the Goal Is...Satisfy the Owner: What does it take for repeat business for the entire team?

Where are the Manufacturers: What happens after visiting the website, filling out the form and leaving a message?

That is a year's worth of topics, all subject to change, pending your opinions. So let me know what you think.

I hope to meet you on-line to share our thoughts and experiences and learn from each other to better the industry. If you haven't already, just join the group, and then, join the meeting.

Last week I attended the Ecobuild America conference held in Washington DC. As you might expect from the name, the conference focus is on sustainable design. However there is also a strong emphasis on BIM and specifications because of the influence of National Institute of Building Science (NIBS), buildingSMART alliance, and Specifications Consultants in Independent Practice (SCIP).

The prominent specifications discussion centered on SPie, the Specifier's Properties Information Exchange. This is a product of a joint effort led by the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) and SCIP. The project was funded through a grant from the US Army Corps of Engineers. The goal of the project was to define the minimum property sets for building model objects with consistent defined materials, products, equipment, and assemblies.

The project resulted in an extensive list of properties for over 400 specification sections. The properties represent the common applications, sustainability requirements, basic materials, and options that are required to specify products for construction projects. The hope is that manufacturers will use the property sets to organize their product data so the data can be transformed into an IFC (industry foundation class) file capable of being used by modeling software to describe the product as a BIM object.

The property sets are available in an on-line searchable database. The searches can be completed by MasterFormat™ 2004 specification section number, UniFormat™ assembly number, title, or property. The property sets for each specification section number offer a good list of the common choices that designers must make and that specifiers must incorporate into construction specifications.

Good luck trying to find the Specifier's Properties Information Exchange on the NIBS Whole Building Design Guide (WBDG) website. The page is not available from the navigation menu or site map. However, it is available on WBDG's site at http://www.wbdg.org/references/pg_spt.php, found through search engines using "specifiers property set" as the search term. Let's hope that NIBS corrects the website navigation menus and site map to show the links to the ProductGuide page.

Here is an example of the property sets. This set is for flush wood doors specified in Section 081416. The properties listed are not the complete set needed to describe factors affecting wood door specifications. Veneer cut, veneer leaf matching, and door face matching can greatly affect material waste and consequently door cost. Additionally, the door core construction may be implied by fire resistance ratings and certified materials, but options are still available that will affect durability and cost. Not shown in the example values are two common values included for each property: "Other" and "Not Defined." These additional values are available choices when manufacturers complete the property sets for their products.

As these property sets are used, I expect they will be refined as the manufacturers begin to identify the salient properties of each class of product. I believe the intent will be to avoid properties that are entirely proprietary due to the open nature of the buildingSMART alliance projects. Meanwhile, I applaud all the participants that contributed to creating the property sets. And I encourage manufacturers to begin developing their input for the property sets to generate the industry needed IFC files supporting BIM objects.

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