Risk is inherent in the design and construction industry. Successful project outcomes are dependent on unbiased understanding of project risks. Resources to assist in understand potential risks: Summary of common risks between an Owner, Architect, Engineer, Construction Manager and Trade Contractor, an outcome from Cogence Alliance, January 2016 (PDF) Analysis of how, when and to …
Design Build
The “Design Build” delivery method is often confused with “Design Assist”. The primary difference being the Design Build contactor is responsible for providing or hiring the engineer and therefore has responsibility and liability for the function of the systems being designed, implemented and installed for a project. The Design Build contractor is responsible for the …
Design Assist
The “Design Assist” delivery method is much different than the traditional Design-Bid-Build and Design Build delivery methods. The Design Assist method allows the owner to hire a design assist contractor for pre-construction services. This usually takes place around the schematic design phase. The design assist contractor does not have any liability for the design. The …
No-Surprise Construction
In 2004, Ava Abramowitz, Esq., wrote an article for The Construction Lawyer called “Implementing New Contracting Relationships to Create Successful Projects for All Parties in the Construction Process.” In it, Abramowitz called for a change in the way the industry approaches construction contracting. She termed the approach “No Surprise Construction.” This resonated deeply with our …
Commitment-based Project Delivery: Effective New Strategies for Building Team Cohesion
November 3, 2016 • Robert Lewis Bostwick AIA & Pamela J. Neckar MBA present at Texas Society of Architect’s 2016 Convention & Design Expo
What Is Lean Design & Construction?
Lean Design and Construction is a respect- and relationship-oriented production management approach to project delivery. The Lean Construction Institute (LCI) defines five cornerstones of Lean Design and Construction: Respect for people Focus on customer defined value Delivering value and eliminating waste Continuous improvement of processes Optimization of the whole While collaborative project delivery does not …
The Discipline of Teams
The industry has used the term “project team” forever to describe any group of people assembled to deliver a project, regardless of how these people work with each other (or don’t) or how successful they were at delivering a project. It seems obvious that an owner would want high-performing teams on their projects, yet historically …
Design Assist Delivery for Prefabricated Building Components
Prefabrication of building systems is being used on many building projects. The extent of prefabrication, including the types of systems and the number of different building systems, is expanding. Reasons include better quality of construction, reduced waste/LEED objectives, increased efficiency/reduced construction cost, worker safety, and project schedule. For the projects I have been involved with, …
Design Assist White Paper – Ohio Construction Transformation Council
This white paper discusses key aspects of design assist. In it, the authors: Provide an overview of the design assist process Talk about the benefits of design assist, which include design efficiency, pricing accuracy, speed to market, and constructability Address some of the challenges of design assist and offer potential solutions The authors include three …
COGENCE Partners Presenting at 2016 LCI Congress
October 5-6, 2016 • COGENCE Partners presenting in four sessions at 2016 Lean Construction Institute Congress