The construction industry in general and the architectural profession specifically, seem to enjoy the same challenge on every project. You would think the challenge is about the design - trying to optimize the response to the owner's program and the..

Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD) are a formal method of presenting construction project data in a consistent, organized fashion. PPDs are arranged by element name, functional requirements, and system components - using the same organization as..

Technology provides a means to connect data. Standards provide the organizations that make the data connections meaningful.

Construction specifications contain data, lots of data. These data must be easily found by the hundreds of individuals involved in any construction project - not just the architect and contractor, but the subcontractors, materials distributors,..

It's linear - just like design! Start at the beginning and finish at the end. Straight line. No sidesteps. No circling back. No changed minds. Smooth sailing start to finish.

As a consultant to architects, primarily, we must react to schedules set by someone else. It may be the owner, architect, construction manager, or contractor. We never have any say in the project schedule, but are responsible for meeting all the..

Building design starts with a concept, a sketch at a macro scale. At the first stroke of the designer's hand, there is no concern for concrete strength, nor concrete as a building material. The initial sketch may be a simple massing study to determine..

A very good question. By searches on this blog, it is one question that definitely wants to be answered. Something must be necessary, but is it really an outline specification?

What documents are architects obligated to produce? The obvious answer may be drawings, of course, to show what design must be constructed. Under AIA Owner-Architect Agreement documents, in addition to drawings, the architect must produce outline..