{"id":6934,"date":"2012-10-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2012-10-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/"},"modified":"2012-10-01T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2012-10-01T00:00:00","slug":"construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;line-height:120%;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'>The<br \/>\nconstruction of a new building is a major financial undertaking for owners. For<br \/>\nthat reason, owners need to make sure that they get the most for their<br \/>\nconstruction dollar not just during the bidding\/negotiation and construction<br \/>\nphases, but also during the design process. Every decision made during design<br \/>\nhas some impact on a project&#8217;s bottom line. Therefore, it is prudent for owners<br \/>\nto select design teams with experience and qualifications appropriate to the<br \/>\nspecific project.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%'>When selecting a design team, owners consider many factors.<br \/>\nHowever, frequently overlooked during this selection process is the<br \/>\nconstruction specifier?the individual responsible for establishing the<br \/>\nqualitative requirements of a construction project. Before exploring the<br \/>\ndetails of how the construction specifier benefits a project, discussion of<br \/>\nquality and construction documents (particularly, specifications) is necessary<br \/>\nto set the stage.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-top:13.5pt;line-height:13.0pt;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><b><span style='-size:10.0pt'>Quality<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;line-height:120%;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'>Every<br \/>\nowner wants a quality project, but what is quality? In 1979, consultant Philip<br \/>\nB. Crosby defined quality as &#8220;conformance to requirements.&#8221;\u00b9 Determining<br \/>\nrequirements and getting something that satisfies those requirements is the<br \/>\nessence of achieving quality. However, in the design and construction business,<br \/>\nestablishing requirements is not as easily accomplished as many would think.<br \/>\nOwners and users have expectations for their construction projects. Many will<br \/>\ntransform those expectations into design requirements in the form of a<br \/>\nprogramming document that will guide the design team in developing the design.<br \/>\nThus, a design team&#8217;s ability to satisfy the requirements in the programming<br \/>\ndocument is at the center of achieving a quality project.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-top:13.5pt;line-height:13.0pt;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><b><span style='-size:10.0pt'>Construction<br \/>\nDocuments and the Role of Specifications<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;line-height:120%;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%;\n:-.05pt'>Developing eye-catching renderings and plans are only<br \/>\nthe first steps in achieving a quality project. The design team must develop a<br \/>\ncoordinated set of construction documents. At the center of these documents are<br \/>\nthe drawings and specifications, of which the drawings usually elicit the most<br \/>\nattention from the owner. The specifications, although acknowledged, are often<br \/>\nignored as technical, legal documents to be used by the architect and<br \/>\ncontractor during the course of construction.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%;:-.05pt'>In reality, the specifications are<br \/>\nequal to the drawings if construction contracts are based on the American<br \/>\nInstitute of Architects (AIA) documents. AIA Document A201-2007, General<br \/>\nConditions of the Contract for Construction, states that the drawings and specifications,<br \/>\nas well as other contract documents, are &#8220;complementary, and what is required<br \/>\nby one shall be as binding as if required by all.&#8221; Some owners do not rely on<br \/>\nthis equality and have established some level of precedence among the contract<br \/>\ndocuments?namely, the placement of specifications over drawings in case of conflict.<br \/>\nThus, the importance of specifications increases while the attention to their<br \/>\npreparation remains the same. Even if owners take no interest in the content?or<br \/>\nthe precedence?of the specifications for their projects, they should take<br \/>\ninterest in the individuals who are tasked to prepare them.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%;:.1pt'>Although the drawings provide graphic<br \/>\ninformation that is needed to construct a building, such as indicating<br \/>\nlocations and types of doors, there is a lot of information about those doors<br \/>\nthat is not indicated, such as fire ratings, fabrication quality, finishes, and<br \/>\nacceptable manufacturers. This is where the specifications become critical.<br \/>\nThey provide specific information about a project&#8217;s products and materials, and<br \/>\nthe requirements for installation. Owners who are concerned about the type and<br \/>\nquality of materials that go into their projects should be equally concerned<br \/>\nabout the specifications?including their contents and how they are prepared.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-top:13.5pt;line-height:13.0pt;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><b><span style='-size:10.0pt'>Who Prepares<br \/>\nSpecifications?<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;line-height:120%;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'>According<br \/>\nto the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI), the person or persons<br \/>\nresponsible for the preparation of specifications will vary depending on the<br \/>\nsize of the firm. For small firms, the principal is likely to assume the job of<br \/>\npreparing specifications. Medium-sized firms may have a full-time specifier on<br \/>\nstaff, while large firms may have an entire department dedicated to the<br \/>\nproduction of specifications. In most cases, collaborating design consultants?such<br \/>\nas mechanical, electrical, structural, and civil engineers?will prepare the<br \/>\nspecifications applicable to their discipline, with one specifier (usually the<br \/>\narchitect&#8217;s) acting as coordinator.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%;:-.15pt'>For some design professionals, the<br \/>\npreparation of specifications is a secondary concern, with specifications<br \/>\nusually prepared close to or following the completion of the drawings as the<br \/>\ndeadline draws near. This regrettable<br \/>\ntiming likely will create coordination errors. Additionally, preparing<br \/>\nspecifications involves more than just the ability to use a word processor to<br \/>\nedit specification masters. Individuals assigned to specifying duties should<br \/>\nhave experience in and an understanding of construction materials and methods,<br \/>\nconstruction law, building codes, and the specification standards developed by<br \/>\nCSI. Individuals with this level of experience can be considered true<br \/>\nspecifiers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%'>Unlike design professionals who prepare specifications as an<br \/>\nadditional task (i.e., &#8220;specification preparers&#8221;), specifiers make specifying<br \/>\ntheir profession. The difference between specifiers and specification preparers<br \/>\nis that specifiers possess an expertise that allows them to effectively and<br \/>\nefficiently translate a project&#8217;s quality requirements into correct, concise<br \/>\nform for the specifications. The availability of commercial guide<br \/>\nspecifications makes specifying easier for the specification preparer, but it<br \/>\ntakes skill and knowledge to properly use them. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%'>How does an owner know that an experienced person is specifying<br \/>\na project? In 1978, CSI introduced the<br \/>\nCertified Construction Specifier (CCS) program. Besides the minimum 5-year<br \/>\nexperience requirement, a candidate must pass a 200-question exam that tests<br \/>\nthe candidate&#8217;s ability to apply specifying principles to certain situations.<br \/>\nOf the several thousand specifiers in the United States, only 1,229 have earned<br \/>\nthis credential to date.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-top:13.5pt;line-height:13.0pt;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><b><span style='-size:10.0pt'>Setting a<br \/>\nStandard<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;line-height:120%;text-autospace:\nnone;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'>The<br \/>\nowner&#8217;s best defense against poorly prepared construction documents is<br \/>\nrequiring experienced and credentialed professionals on the design team. State<br \/>\nlaws require that most projects have a licensed professional prepare the<br \/>\nconstruction documents. But if being a licensed professional was sufficient to<br \/>\nensure properly prepared construction documents, why is there such a concern<br \/>\nfrom owners about the quality of<br \/>\nconstruction documents?<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%;:.1pt'>The licensed professional is similar to a<br \/>\nlicensed driver?just having a license does not make you a good driver. Experience<br \/>\nmakes a better driver, and specialty training qualifies a driver to operate<br \/>\ncertain types of vehicles. The CCS is the design profession&#8217;s version of an<br \/>\nexperienced driver with specialty training.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%;:-.05pt'>When selecting design teams for<br \/>\nprojects, owners justifiably seek design teams with experience in the owners&#8217;<br \/>\nbuilding types. However, experience with a building type only proves that the<br \/>\ndesign team can address the<br \/>\nspecific needs of the project?it says little about their ability to produce a<br \/>\nquality set of construction documents.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%;:-.2pt'>Each owner wants a quality project?one<br \/>\nthat is designed to meet the owner&#8217;s program and aesthetic goal. Owners also<br \/>\nwant their projects within budget, completed on schedule, and constructed with<br \/>\nas few problems as possible?all affected by the quality of construction<br \/>\ndocuments. Owners can set a new standard by requiring qualified construction<br \/>\nspecifiers on the design team.<\/span><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:\n120%'> <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:120%;text-autospace:none;:\nmiddle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':.25in;:justify;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%'>REFERENCE<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst style=':justify;:-.25in;\nline-height:120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><span\nstyle='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'><\/span><span style='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'><LI>Crosby, Philip B.<br \/>\n<i>Quality is Free: The Art of Making Quality Certain.<\/i> New York:<br \/>\nMcGraw-Hill, 1979.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoListParagraphCxSpLast style=':justify;line-height:120%;\ntext-autospace:none;:middle'><a name=\"_GoBack\"><\/a><span\nstyle='-size:10.0pt;line-height:120%'>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=MsoNormal style=':justify;:13.5pt;line-height:\n120%;text-autospace:none;:middle'><i><span style='-size:10.0pt;\nline-height:120%;:.05pt'>Opinions reflected in this article are<br \/>\nnot necessarily those of NIA. Reprinted with permission from The Voice,<br \/>\npublished by the Construction Users Roundtable.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The construction of a new building is a major financial undertaking for owners. For that reason, owners need to make sure that they get the most for their construction dollar not just during the bidding\/negotiation and construction phases, but also during the design process. Every decision made during design has some impact on a project&#8217;s<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":[],"featured_media":0,"template":"","categories":[38,298,34,301,21,28],"class_list":["post-6934","articles","type-articles","status-publish","hentry","category-material-selection","category-installation","category-industrial","category-design","category-business-managment","category-energy-savings"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.0 (Yoast SEO v24.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects? - Insulation Outlook Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The construction of a new building is a major financial undertaking for owners. For that reason, owners need to make sure that they get the most for their construction dollar not just during the bidding\/negotiation and construction phases, but also during the design process. Every decision made during design has some impact on a project&#8217;s\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Insulation Outlook Magazine\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/\",\"name\":\"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects? - Insulation Outlook Magazine\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2012-10-01T00:00:00+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/\",\"name\":\"Insulation Outlook Magazine\",\"description\":\"The only global magazine dedicated to insulation.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#organization\",\"name\":\"National Insulation Association\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/10\/insulation-outlook-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/10\/insulation-outlook-logo.png\",\"width\":229,\"height\":90,\"caption\":\"National Insulation Association\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects? - Insulation Outlook Magazine","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects?","og_description":"The construction of a new building is a major financial undertaking for owners. For that reason, owners need to make sure that they get the most for their construction dollar not just during the bidding\/negotiation and construction phases, but also during the design process. Every decision made during design has some impact on a project&#8217;s","og_url":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/","og_site_name":"Insulation Outlook Magazine","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/","url":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/","name":"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects? - Insulation Outlook Magazine","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#website"},"datePublished":"2012-10-01T00:00:00+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/articles\/construction-owners-do-you-know-whos-specifying-your-projects\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Construction Owners: Do You Know Who\u2019s Specifying Your Projects?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#website","url":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/","name":"Insulation Outlook Magazine","description":"The only global magazine dedicated to insulation.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#organization","name":"National Insulation Association","url":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/10\/insulation-outlook-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/10\/insulation-outlook-logo.png","width":229,"height":90,"caption":"National Insulation Association"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/6934","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6934"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insulation.org\/io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/author?post=6934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}