| Author |
Message |
anonymous spec writer (Unregistered Guest)
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Friday, March 16, 2012 - 06:11 pm: |    |
Anyone already done this? Something called "SpecWave" which promises to be "the world's first spec modeling system."
http://www.teecspecs.com/ldSpecWave2012_PR.cshtml?utm_source=Simplycast&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=SpecWave2012Announcement
I was about to fill out the online info to have my 30 minute "Discovery Session" scheduled, but then thought better of it.
If anyone has any knowledge about this, and any opinion(s) pros and/or cons, I would appreciate you sharing.
Our firm is struggling to implement both BSD Linkman and eSpecs for Revit - tools still not truly ready for large-firm use, and always on the lookout for something better. |
J. Peter Jordan, FCSI, AIA, CCS, LEED AP (Unregistered Guest)
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Saturday, March 17, 2012 - 11:01 am: | |
I am going to have one or more discussions with them next week. Although their website does not indicate to me that they know construction specifications (including CSI formats), they claim "We do indeed support MasterFormat(s) for architects and civil engineers. In fact, we have a contract with ARCOM who will be distributing SpecWave with SpecText (the ex CSRF Master Guide specifications)."
This is a Bentley company (although it is not clear how they are related) so I am curious how they support BIM. |
Sheldon Wolfe
Senior Member
Username: sheldon_wolfe
Post Number: 550
Registered: 01-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, March 17, 2012 - 12:24 pm: | |
YouTube has the CSI Specifying Practice Group: Future Specifications - Specification Automation and Interoperability from January 2012. Louis Medcalf and David Stutzman were the hosts; Leon Gobarty was the speaker for TEEC. Unfortunately, the interesting part that shows how the interface works is blanked out.
I saved some screen captures from the part that now is blanked out. I did not take notes, but, as I recall, it didn't look ready for prime time.
If you listen to the presentation you will hear questions that weren't answered very well. Louis Medcalf asked Gobarty to show how a typical spec section would be edited at about 45:50.
The proposed interface is powerful and complex. The information is in a database with many links, but to make it work, it appears the user must add more. |
Sheldon Wolfe
Senior Member
Username: sheldon_wolfe
Post Number: 551
Registered: 01-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, March 17, 2012 - 01:34 pm: | |
The YouTube presentation is just over an hour. Below are times when the presenter responds to questions.
46:10 Louis: Look at 06-1000. Leon: These master guide libraries have not had tags defined. Go to cast-in-place concrete.
47:57 03-3000. Louis: Under portland cement, how do I delete paragraphs C and D for specific project. Leon: Apply tag "applicable to project" or "not applicable to project". What you see depends on view you're in.
053:10 Louis: If you delete a paragraph, are related paragraphs deleted? Leon: As long as you establish links. You would have to establish links and rules for your needs.
56:00 Louis: Can commercial master specifications be used? Leon: Can import anything from MS Word. At release 1.0 we need to set up styling and paragraph numbering scheme so translation is 100%. Working on toolkit to allow development of conversion schemes on the fly.
57:00 Louis: How does it compare to eSpecs? Leon: Not familiar with that program.
57:15 Louis: How does it handle updates to commercial master guide specifications? Do you need to recreate metadata and tags? Leon: No. Can use colorized window to see what has changed, decide if you want to accept changes. Also can change all at once.
60:00 Louis: What happens when new text is added? Do we need to create new links? Leon: Depends on suppliers, how much they include. |
Peggy White, CSI, CCS, CCCA, LEED AP
Senior Member
Username: peggy
Post Number: 37
Registered: 07-2007
| | Posted on Saturday, March 17, 2012 - 02:51 pm: | |
Here is the info about the peeps behind the curtain: http://www.teecspecs.com/about.cshtml |
G. Wade Bevier, CCS, LEED-AP BD+C, CSI, SCIPa, USGBC
Senior Member
Username: wbevier
Post Number: 33
Registered: 07-2004
| | Posted on Saturday, March 17, 2012 - 04:29 pm: | |
There is one PE and the rest seem to either have a corporate administrative or software background; at least so far as how they are presenting themselves on this web site.
The examples I saw on the site seem to be either engineering or process system in nature with very little mention of architectural or contractural/frontend capabilities.
They are also very Bentley centric and do not mention any level of interface with the REVIT or any other BIM tools. |
Sheldon Wolfe
Senior Member
Username: sheldon_wolfe
Post Number: 552
Registered: 01-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, March 18, 2012 - 12:20 pm: | |
Info from TEEC below. I'm going to see the demo this week.
SpecWave creates structured and manageable representations of specifications - a spec model - that are independent of final deliverable.
SpecWave is independent of content. You can use commercial guide specs such as MasterSpec or SpecText that support all CSI formats; or your own word processor based office masters. And you can begin building your new specs or libraries within SpecWave using its already familiar word processor like user interface.
SpecWave is completely independent of Bentley products. To leverage already available document management systems, SpecWave is building links to such systems such as SharePoint and ProjectWise. |
Sheldon Wolfe
Senior Member
Username: sheldon_wolfe
Post Number: 553
Registered: 01-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, March 18, 2012 - 12:40 pm: | |
Apologies to Leon Gorbaty, for misspelling his name. |
Alan Mays, AIA
Senior Member
Username: amays
Post Number: 71
Registered: 02-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, March 29, 2012 - 01:03 pm: | |
Sheldon, have you seen the demo of SpecWave and what is your thoughts on it if you did get to see it? |
Sheldon Wolfe
Senior Member
Username: sheldon_wolfe
Post Number: 556
Registered: 01-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, March 29, 2012 - 04:09 pm: | |
We finally had an online demo yesterday. It was much like the one Gorbaty did for the Specifying Practice Group, but more focused on the way architectural specifiers work. It shows promise, though making use of its potential will require much work by the user. In operation, it can be similar to SpecLink, with some editing being automated by selection of options.
As I understand it, each paragraph can have many properties, just as an object in a building model has properties. For example, a given paragraph, used for all hospitals, might be assigned a "hospital" attribute. Through the user interface, one could choose to include all paragraphs with the "hospital" attribute; the results could then be modified as needed for the specific project.
SpecLink has tremendous linking capabilities, but they may be exceeded by those of SpecWave; only a hands-on test will tell. |
Sheldon Wolfe
Senior Member
Username: sheldon_wolfe
Post Number: 557
Registered: 01-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, March 29, 2012 - 04:19 pm: | |
If you're in Miami next week, you could go to Fiatech, where TEEC will have a booth.
According to the press release, 'CH2M HILL Engineers and Constructors will also present a paper entitled “Combining Related Specifications to Create a Consolidated Specification Library” at the conference breakout session on Monday at 4:00pm.' |
Garry C. Zettersten, P.E. (Unregistered Guest)
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Thursday, March 29, 2012 - 07:44 pm: | |
SPECWAVE tehcnology takes a static specification and makes it dynamic. How? Because when paired with software that contains the same underlying programming (schema) the various softwares talk to each other.
When will paired software be available? Pretty soon and Bentley's ProjectWise will likely be first.
What does this really mean? When you execute any discreet task using SPECWAVE it will report to ProjectWise. So, if a spec section is finished, ProjectWise knows automatically. If a specifier is behind on task, ProjectWise will know. When CADD software is linked it means that you will be able to see a data level that automatically feeds your specification. The potential for automatic data sharing and updating across all design documentation and sustainment documentation is nearly unlimited.
In the end, SPECWAVE will form the basis of a true ability to integrate data across all aspects fo a project from inception through facility sustainment and disposal.
In the end, you will no longer need separate, incompatible files of tons of data that no one can comprehend now or 15 years from now. All you will need to do is "data mine".
Data Mining means that you you can access your project file, and for that matter every project file, that used SPECWAVE and find those tid bits of information that drive you looney when you need them and can't remember where they are.
Want to know who decided what in pre-design? Data mine.
Want to know why some material choice was made 10 years later? Data mine.
If you do proposals with SPECWAVE your documents can be data mined later for projects you have forgotten but that are still in your qualification set.
I have sat through red team reviews where people know their firm did some relevant project but can't remember when or from which office. Data mine.
SPECWAVE has an almost unlimited ability to provide comprehensive continuity of memory for your efforts.
The challenge is that the continuity is not instantaneous and so the more you use a SPECWAVE product, the deeper and more meaningful the benefit. This is why CH2 has acted as the test bed and is the first subscribing customer. They see a very high future productivity benefit.
How realistic is this dream? We all have frustration with BIM and the promise of automation that never really seems to come true, right?
NIBS has proposed the schema developed by TEEC as part of the National BIM Standard. This proposal is out for vote now according to Deke Smith. What will likely follow is that this schema will also end up incorporated in the ISO standard.
TEEC has insisted that the schema itself remain "open sourced". That means that all commercial software firms can use it. FIATECH has played a large role in helping push this along.
A major impedeiment to to interoperable software is the desire to create and protect proprietary products. Open sourced schema goes a long way to overcome this challenge. No firm wanted to go to the expense of creating something like SPECWAVE only to find that it got trumped somehow. TEEC was willing to take this on and scraped just enough money together to do the work.
If you buy SPECWAVE now, get familiar with how it works, and use it to build some documents you are investing in your own preparation for a truly integrated design world. We have long thought, dreamed, speculated or absolutely denied that this world would arrive but this world is now right around the corner.
Is there an immediate productivity benefit to you in that this will make your first spec or two go faster? Probably not. The beneift is very much dependent on how much you use the product and rely on past efforts. The benefit depends very much on how fast additional commercial software becomes available that is truly interactive.
TEEC is aligned with Bentley in the hope interoperable products will come to market faster than by other means. Another part of the reason TEEC is linked closely to Bentley is that both Leon and Adam Klatzkin worked for Bentley in the past and it is a natural relationship.
Leon and Adam are programmers, not specifiers. When Leon talks about SPECWAVE he tends to get excited about the programming aspects rather than what we might call the "practical". For this reason I advise you to go to the presentation and/or talk to the folks at the SPECTEXT Support Center.
What Leon and Adam know about the design industry they are learning from the people associated with SPECTEXT and the folks at CH2. Part of the reason that Leon talks about process industries is his association with FIATECH which has some very large industrial firms as members. I am told that TEEC is very close to closing deals with a couple really big industrial firms for SPECWAVE.
CSRF got involved with Leon some years ago and committed resources to help TEEC along. I believe we made the right decisions to help and we wish TEEC all success. |
Sheldon Wolfe
Senior Member
Username: sheldon_wolfe
Post Number: 575
Registered: 01-2003
| | Posted on Monday, June 25, 2012 - 10:47 am: | |
SpecWave update - "TEEC and CSRF Team to Model and Automate Engineering Specifications" |
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