St. Louis Chapter - Specification Sem...

Log Out | Topics | Search Moderators | Register | Edit Profile

Author Message George A. Everding, AIA, CSI, CCS, CCCA Senior Member Username: geverding Post Number: 358 Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Wednesday, October 03, 2007 - 12:13 pm:    The Greater St. Louis Chapter of CSI presents a day long seminar on specifications, October 16, 2007: “The Fundamentals of Specwriting: Improving Your Practice by Improving Your Written Documents”. Further information is available by contacting execsecretary@stlcsi.org It may be of interest to readers of this forum that our seminar is part of a joint effort by our local AIA and CSI chapters. Tonight’s regularly scheduled AIA continuing education workshop series, is “Specification Writer: Endangered Species?” and we’re pleased to welcome architect, specification writer, and consultant Ken Crocco, FAIA FCSI, who is also a frequent contributor here. We’ve burdened Ken with the task of stirring up interest at the AIA workshop for our CSI seminar. As this is written, we are about half way to our goal of 75-90 attendees. Both these seminars reach out to the “non-full-timers.” Recently Colin Gilboy shared with us his educated guess that half of the specifications in this country are written not by us guys who frequent this website and forum – the full timers at firms and the independents in private practice – but by project architects, engineers, and project managers who do specifying as one of many other tasks in putting together a project. So our approach will be to address the fundamentals in a focused nine hours, two at AIA and seven at CSI, based on CDT and CCS principles and stated in a series of real life examples. Wish us luck. Ralph Liebing, RA, CSI Senior Member Username: rliebing Post Number: 712 Registered: 02-2003 Posted on Wednesday, October 03, 2007 - 12:23 pm:    Keep your notes, agendas/synopsis and all pertinent details handy, George-- this sounds like a great opportuntiy and undertaking for EVERY CSI/AIA combine in the country. Lynn Javoroski CSI CCS LEED™ AP SCIP Affiliate Senior Member Username: lynn_javoroski Post Number: 655 Registered: 07-2002 Posted on Wednesday, October 03, 2007 - 04:51 pm:    George, please continue to post here about this. I am very interested! Ralph is absolutely correct. George A. Everding, AIA, CSI, CCS, CCCA Senior Member Username: geverding Post Number: 361 Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Thursday, October 04, 2007 - 11:37 am:    Lynn and Ralph, thanks for your kind words of support. I will follow-up here after our CSI seminar in two weeks, and speaking unofficially but I am sure with the full support of my fellow St. Louis AIA and CSI chapter members, we of course will be happy to share whatever information comes out of this process with other chapters who are interested. Today, I can report that Ken Crocco did a wonderful job last night at our AIA chapter continuing ed workshop in an almost two hour presentation, "Specification Writer: Endangered Species?". I am pleased that, at least as Ken views our profession of architecture and our specialty of specifications, we most assuredly are NOT dinosaurs. WHEW! For the few professional specifiers in the crowd, the presentation was a succinct summary of many of the topics discussed over the last few years here on 4specs, at the conventions, and I am sure informally among ourselves whenever we get together and look into the future: BIM and automated specifications, sustainability, the next generation of specifiers, collaboration and teamwork. For the many architects in the crowd who were non-specifiers, or only occasional specifiers, Ken’s talk opened some eyes about the incredible and often understated value we bring currently to the process of crafting the built environment. He also generated a noticeable enthusiasm about the roles specification writers could play in the increasingly automated future. Wearing only my CSI hat for a moment, the AIA meeting did all we expected and more. We had printed about 100 flyers for our day long CSI seminar, and not one was left at the end of the evening: that’s about a 1 to 1 ratio for the size of the crowd. I don’t know how many additional attendees we will pick up thanks to last night, but judging from the overheard comments and direct questions we received, a capacity crowd on October 16 wouldn’t surprise me in the least. And metaphorically wearing both hats, thanks to Ken Crocco for an enlightening presentation and a pleasant dinner conversation afterwards. You represented the highest standards of both the AIA and CSI, and showed what’s best about both organizations: “It’s the people”. It’s obvious why you have earned the right to hang both FAIA and FCSI after your name. George A. Everding, AIA, CSI, CCS, CCCA Senior Member Username: geverding Post Number: 366 Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Wednesday, October 17, 2007 - 03:43 pm:    Yesterday’s Specification Writing Seminar was a great success, I’m pleased to report. We ended up with 77 attendees, four sponsors, and a whole pile of positive comments. We had mostly architects, but a fair representation from engineering, product representatives, and facility ownership. Seven hours was way too short, of course, to do anything but overview the techniques for improving specification writing, but we feel there was enough enthusiasm and interest generated yesterday for our Chapter to commit to having one or two day long seminars each year on specification related topics. Next year, we are probably doing Division 00 and Division 01. Credit and praise are due to fellow Greater St. Louis Chapter officers Russ Wick and Steve Gantner who carried most of the presentation load, and to longtime CSI stalwarts Tom Smith and Bob Teller, who helped fill out our panel discussion by playing to perfection the roles of “crotchety product representative” and “surly building owner”, joining Steve Gantner as “grumpy contractor”, to critique my specification examples. In the spirit of acting-the-role-you-know, I played the role of “lousy specifier”. Among the comments we heard from participants was this one: “It was good to see AIA and CSI cooperate on a topic like this. We need more of these programs.” So I think we accomplished most of what we set out to do. It drew a good crowd from our target group, it generated interest in CSI, it fulfilled our educational mission, and it was great fun for those of us involved. Feel free to contact me if you have further questions or interest in this program of ours, we’d love to share it with other chapters. Kenneth C. Crocco Senior Member Username: kcrocco Post Number: 112 Registered: 04-2003 Posted on Friday, October 19, 2007 - 12:54 pm:    George, I'm very pleased the presentation turned out to be good for your program, and thank you for your kind comments. I very much enjoyed doing the research and making the presentation. You have a great group coming to your seminars. Great dinner afterwards! I have received a lot of assistance from many people over the years and in particular, lots of good direction from this group on this site. Thanks to all of you who participate and willingly offer so much assistance, and also to those who just stop by here to ask questions. I would like to continue to work further on the ideas we've been able to generate on such issues as BIM and automated specifications, sustainability, the next generation of specifiers, collaboration and teamwork. Speaking of collaboration, has everyone seen what is going on with the new AIA documents and the other professional and AGC's ConcensusDocs? ken hercenberg Senior Member Username: khercenberg Post Number: 6 Registered: 12-2006 Posted on Friday, October 19, 2007 - 05:52 pm:    George. This is a wonderful service you have provided the industry. At the risk of speaking for Baltimore CSI, I hope that we can learn from your experience and perhaps offer a similar program with our local AIA Chapter. Now if we can just find a local introductory speaker of the caliber of Ken Crocco. Any chance to steal a copy of your content? All the best, Ken Hercenberg Kenneth C. Crocco Senior Member Username: kcrocco Post Number: 115 Registered: 04-2003 Posted on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 - 11:56 am:    Caliber: the diameter of the gun barrel or "bore" I don't know more than a lot of individuals out there and much less than many. I have, however, several ideas and issues as they pertain to integrated project delivery and preparation of specifications writing. (I don't like the term BIM, but it is useful and widely used. BIM is one of the tools to use for integrated project delivery.) Please contact me directly and see if I have anything I can offer you or your chapter. kcrocco@architechspec.com John Regener, AIA, CCS, CCCA, CSI, SCIP Senior Member Username: john_regener Post Number: 349 Registered: 04-2002 Posted on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 - 01:05 pm:    Does it bother anyone else that it is now noteworthy that a CSI chapter presents specification writing seminars? Lynn Javoroski CSI CCS LEED™ AP SCIP Affiliate Senior Member Username: lynn_javoroski Post Number: 668 Registered: 07-2002 Posted on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 - 02:28 pm:    I don't think the noteworthy part is the presentation, I think it is the attendees! Architects, engineers, product reps, and owners - all wanting to know something about specifications! Amazing! Mitch Miller, AIA ,CSI, CCS, MAI Senior Member Username: m2architek Post Number: 126 Registered: 02-2004 Posted on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 - 02:39 pm:    I second Ken's request above. can we get copies of the program? Ralph Liebing, RA, CSI Senior Member Username: rliebing Post Number: 734 Registered: 02-2003 Posted on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 - 03:27 pm:    I heartily agree with Lynn. It is the mere effort to try and to also engage and collaborate with the AIA chapter And all, we can assume, that St. Louis did not attract that audience by someone [Chippendale or Playmate} coming out of a cake! Steve Gantner, CSI, CCCA Junior Member Username: sgantner Post Number: 2 Registered: 08-2007 Posted on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 - 04:09 pm:    To answer the questions, George and I are working towards the goal of putting the entire days presentation on our chapter website. There was an overwhelming request for copies of the presentation the day of. In response to Ralph, everyone was sworn to secrecy in regard to the lunch time cake....business meeting.