Architects and specifiers alike face significant and continuous challenges when it comes to identifying and validating reliable information about construction products. Using an incorrect product for an application can lead to significant failure, and..
Evaluating Information Sources
by Elias Saltz | Mar 8, 2018 | Code Requirements, contract documents, CSI, Drawings, information sources, Professional Practice, publications, Specifications
Properly Written Specs Can Help You Avoid Awkward Conversations
by Elias Saltz | Jan 29, 2018 | contract documents, Coordination, Drawings, Professional Practice, Quality Assurance, Specifications
Imagine you're a project architect and you're nearing completion of CD's. For half a year, you've been neck-deep in the project meetings, made myriad decisions large and small, and are intimately knowledgeable of the design intention and you know all of..
Linking BIM and Specs with Keynotes
by David Stutzman | Sep 13, 2015 | BIM, Construction Administration, contract documents, Coordination, Design Considerations, Drawings, keynote, Quality Assurance, Specifications
Coordination, coordination, coordination! The better construction documents are coordinated, the better the outcome for the owner - not to mention the design and construction teams. Imagine the perfect set of construction documents: no bidder's..
Front Line Quality Assurance
by David Stutzman | Jul 6, 2015 | contract documents, Design Considerations, Drawings, Professional Practice, QA review, Quality Assurance, Specifications
When does quality assurance begin during the design process for a construction project? Often formal document review may be planned for those last few weeks before the construction documents are completed. Sometimes reviews are planned before each design..
Aren't Specs Contract Documents?
by David Stutzman | Jun 8, 2015 | Budget, contract documents, Drawings, Professional Practice, Quality Assurance, Architect, Specifications
What statements below do you believe to be true?
Evolving Specifications Construct 2014 presentation
by David Stutzman | Mar 30, 2015 | B2010, BIM, contract documents, Contractor, Design Considerations, Division 08, Estimate, PPD, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Quality Assurance, Specifications, subcontractor, UniFormat
Specifiers may be one of the best kept secrets on the design team. Specifiers, especially independent specifiers, typically interact with the architectural team, only. Even then, the interaction may be limited to project architects and project managers...
A Specifier's Christmas Wish
by David Stutzman | Dec 22, 2014 | contract documents, Professional Practice, Quality Assurance, Specifications, Specifier
Just what would a specifier wish for Christmas? Peace? Goodwill? Perhaps, but there are some more mundane wishes to help improve every construction project. And if they all come true, the entire design team, contractor, and especially the owner will..
Feeding Your Specifier (and Project Team)
by David Stutzman | Oct 6, 2014 | contract documents, Design, Design Considerations, Professional Practice, Progress Documents, Specifications
What is it that your specifier really needs? There was, once upon a time, an easy explanation. Just give me a set of drawings that you would turn in for your architectural licensing exam. For anyone that took the exam when it included a 12-hour design..
Specifying Design-Assist - How?
by David Stutzman | Sep 15, 2014 | B2010, bidding, contract documents, Design Considerations, Division 08, Drawings, MasterFormat, PPD, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Professional Practice, Specifications, UniFormat
It's a process, not just technical requirements. During design-assist, the architect of record, asks the contractor (usually a specialty subcontractor) to help develop system details and confirm system performance to meet project requirements. Typically..
Do Relationships Matter?
by David Stutzman | Aug 18, 2014 | contract documents, Coordination, Professional Practice, Schedules, Specifications
August 4, Bloomberg News published an article about a way that the six largest US automakers could improve profits by $1.4 billion last year. No matter how the money would be split among them that should be enough to make the auto execs and the..