In the children's story of "The Big Bad Wolf", he huffs and puffs and blows each house down, except for the brick house. The other houses were built of other materials which were destroyed. However, what if the little pigs worked with a specifier..
The Specifier and The Big Bad Wolf
by David Stutzman | Dec 8, 2020 | UniFormat, System Product Descriptions, SPD
Simplifying Specifications
by Elias Saltz | Oct 21, 2019 | CSI, Drawings, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Professional Practice, Architecture, Specifications, UniFormat
Specifiers often struggle to come up with ways to make specifying simpler, to eliminate unwanted language, and to make specifications more correct. At this year's CONSTRUCT AEC Education and Expo, Beth Stroshane posited that the way we write..
Want to Improve Project Delivery? Communicate!
by David Stutzman | Jun 3, 2019 | COAA, Communication, Conspectus approach, LCI, Professional Practice, Specifications, transparency, UniFormat
Recently, Conspectus participated in two conferences: Construction Owners Association of America (COAA) and Lean Construction Institute's Lean in Design Forum. Both groups are searching for a means to improve construction project delivery with some..
UniFormat is a Design Decision Tool
by David Stutzman | Dec 4, 2018 | MasterFormat, PPDFormat, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Specifications, UniFormat
When starting a new design project, what is actually known? Very little. The relevant design decisions must be made as the project progresses. So how can projects be effectively documented before all decisions are made? UniFormat™!
Eliminate Asymmetric Project Information
by Elias Saltz | Sep 17, 2018 | contract documents, PPD, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Professional Practice, Specifications, UniFormat
Successful construction projects rely on complete, accurate, timely, and understandable communication; maximizing all of these reduces the likelihood for disputes to arise. Unfortunately, many project teams fall short of proper communication, and that's..
Evolving Specifications
by David Stutzman | Jun 18, 2018 | MasterFormat, outline spec, PPD, PPDFormat, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Professional Practice, Specifications, UniFormat
First published at Young Architects Forum Connection 16.01.
Specifier Contractor Connections
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...
Connection: BIM, Spec, Estimate
by David Stutzman | Dec 1, 2014 | BIM, CSI, Estimate, Links, PPD, PPDFormat, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Professional Practice, Specifications, UniFormat
Have you made the connection yourself? Connecting data to make it available and useable for each team will improve efficiency and reduce risk for every construction project. The focus has been on inserting data into BIM to describe the objects the 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..
Evolving Specifications
by David Stutzman | Aug 4, 2014 | BIM, contract documents, CSI, MasterFormat, PPD, Preliminary Project Descriptions (PPD), Specifications, UniFormat
Construction specifications are arranged by MasterFormat's 50 divisions and thousands of section numbers and titles - everyone knows that. There is a recent trend, at least with our architect clients, toward specifying complete systems and assigning..