CONSTRUCT2009 CSI Student Competition

This year’s Student Competition at CONSTRUCT2009 & The CSI Annual Convention was conducted in full view of the attendees on the exhibit floor. The students assembled their designs in a 3-hour session on Wednesday and a 2.5-hour dash on Thursday. Judging of the projects drew quite a crowd on Thursday afternoon, and the students seemed to enjoy being in the spotlight. Awards were given out Friday afternoon at the conclusion of the annual meeting, where all of the participating students received recognition.

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CONSTRUCT2009 & The CSI Annual Convention a Success!

Thousands of CSI members gathered in Indianapolis last week for CONSTRUCT2009 & The CSI Annual Convention. Many participants remarked on the upbeat feel of the event.

“Despite the economy, the attitude at CONSTRUCT2009 is optimistic,” reported  Michael Chusid, RA, FCSI, CCS, SCIP, on Twitter. “CSI members are reaching out to support each other."

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CSI Sustainability Practice Group Notes: How Do We Get Sustainable Product Information Online?

During their most recent meeting, CSI’s Sustainability Practice Group continued discussing the application of GreenFormat and possibly supplementing it with downloadable forms to help manufacturers communicate product information to the design team.

"GreenFormat has already boiled down the questions for carpet, but for LEED the vendor has to drill down just a little further,” said Melissa Vernon of InterFaceFLOR.

Her comment prompted Lee Orosco to ask, “But if GreenFormat has already developed detailed questions, do we really need another form?”

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PRELIMINARY PROJECT DESCRIPTION AS DOCUMENTOR OF DESIGN PROCESS

A Preliminary Project Description (PPD) is usually thought of as the written document to supplement schematic drawings (or BIM model) that is provided as a formal submittal at the end of the schematic design phase.  It helps document the status of the design at the completion of schematic design.  That is certainly a very common and valid use of a PPD, but it is not the only potential use of a PPD.

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Our First and Foremost Obligation

This Blog is about the basic idea that Construction Documents exist for the purpose of communication and the more efficient your communication, the more successful you will be. Design Professionals are tasked with developing solutions to their Owners problems and then communicating them via the medium of Construction Documents. Plans and Specifications are the bridge between the idea in the Architect’s head and the reality that comes from the skilled hands of the Contractor. The Documents communicate design intent and serve as the basis by which the Contractor earns his pay. They are the instruction set for the building. Too often we forget these basics and waste time and effort providing trivial and even useless information in the documents.

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CSI Strategic Plan Draft: You Have To Know What's Important to Members to Figure Out Where To Go

CSI is now updating its strategic plan, which will guide the Institute for the next five years. For the past year, the Strategic Plan Task Team has been collecting information from members and other industry sources to determine the visions and key objectives that will lead CSI where members they want to go.

Earlier this month, CSI released a draft strategic plan for members to read. This 4-page, easy-to-read plan is available for download at www.csinet.org in the Membership area. CSI members must log in to access it.

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What We Need is a Standard -- So Whats Yours?

BIM, like every technology that came before it, is facing a number of obstacles. Interoperability – the passing of BIM data and structures from one system to another – is at the top of the list.

The key to solving that problem is developing a standard, according to BIM Practice Group Leader Robert S. Weygant, CSI, CDT, SCIP.

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The Future of Construction Documentation and Delivery

CSI’s Strategic Planning Task Team is defining a vision and key objectives for the Institute through a year-long project. The plan is organized around two themes we’ve already discussed: Communications Excellence and Building Team Diversity. This week I’ll explore the third theme, The Future of Project Documentation.

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Smells Like Team Spirit

Team building is the essence of the construction documentation process. An owner’s or agency’s desire to build leads to the engagement of an A/E firm’s involvement to design. Through the process of developing an architectural drawing set to capture the visual essence of the “building,” specifiers and technical consultants are brought in to prepare the construction documents that qualify the standards of constructability and the products and systems by which to do so.

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Mazria's 14X Plan

Ed Mazria is out there with an interesting proposal that can leverage federal money through cities to the tune of 14 times the initial investment. See the full article at: http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2009/05/what-one-stimulus-buck-could-do

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Do you SELL?


Very early in my education, I heard a lecturer tell a class full of budding architects that “you will all be in the sales profession, one way or another”. The ripple of murmuring that went through that auditorium was fairly significant. I even remember thinking to my self, “no, I’m not going to sell ANYTHING...I’m going to design amazing structures”.

So much for that thought. I’m a product rep. A (gasp) SALESMAN.

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Frank Gehry on Charlie Rose Program

Frank Gehry was on Charlie Rose television program (PBS) on May 20, 2009 (see it here). In the first two minutes he discusses the importance of Construction Documents and it is very interesting to hear,

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CSI Member Comments on NAAB to Eliminate References to Specs

J. Peter Jordan, CSI, AIA, CCS, LEED AP, shares the comments he sent to the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) in response to a draft of the 2009 Conditions for Accreditation that has eliminated references to specifications in the criteria. (Learn more about the draft here.)

CSI members have until June 1, 2009 to voice their opinion on this issue. Individual comments can be submitted at forum@naab.org.

Here are Jordan's comments:

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No Specs? CSI Comments on NAAB’s Decision (And So Can You)

CSI has sent the following comments to the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) in response to a draft of the 2009 Conditions for Accreditation that has eliminated references to specifications in the criteria. (Learn more about the draft here.) CSI believes specifications are and will remain a key component in transmitting construction information. We have recommended inserting language back into two sections of the document to address our concern.

CSI members have until June 1, 2009 to voice their opinion on this issue. Individual comments can be submitted at forum@naab.org.

CSI’s comments are as follows:

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Virtual Reality Platforms

Many have heard this from me over the past year, but its really happening. But here now is an example of what could bring new life to the student chapter competitions that used to be hosted at the CSI Show. Put yourself in that frame of mind as you read the article.

Oh, yes ... and set up a free account in Second Life and participate in the jury!

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Theme One - Communications Excellence

CSI's Strategic Planning Task Team is charged with defining a vision and key objectives for the Institute through a year-long, strategic planning project. The plan is organized around three themes: Communications Excellence, Building Team Diversity, and The Future of Project Documentation. This week, the task team will introduce the first theme, Communications Excellence. Stay tuned for the other two themes on May 19th and 26th.
 
When we look at CSI through the lens of Communications Excellence, we see the ongoing challenge of communicating effectively. We also see the growing challenge of communicating in an era of information overload. This plan upholds the very high value we place on communication, both inside and outside the Institute.

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USGlass News Network Report: "CSI Explains Subcontractor's Role in Integrated Project Delivery"

The USGlass News Network covered CSI's May 14 webinar, "Integrated Project Delivery: Theory and Reality." The education session focused on IPD and its links to BIM.

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BIM Update from San Francisco

The AIA Technology in Architectural Practice (TAP) Knowledge Community had its annual gathering at the AIA Annual Meeting recently in San Francisco. The session opened at the Moscone Center with a presentation on the California Academy of Sciences Building by Jim Bedrick of Webcor Builders. This iconic building with a striking living roof was extensively modeled by Webcor for construction planning.

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Comments By Monica Ponce de Leon

A friend sent me a interesting article by Monica Ponce de Leon, who is a thought leader in Architecture. She has some very interesting comments on the profession's future and if you read between the lines it really involved CSI. See the article.

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The new CSI Strategic Plan


This weekend I had the opportunity to look over the first draft of CSI next Strategic Plan (which may be viewed here), intended to give guidance for the next five years of our future as an Institute.

To say that it was an interesting document would have been a huge understatement. To say that I found it to be somewhat underwhelming would be more of an understatement. Now that it’s posted, we need to be reviewing it as an Institute and getting some dialogue going over on the CSI Forums.

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