Design Conference 2005……..Rethinking Practice
Summary of Panel Discussions

Continued... from information provided by Hugh Hochberg ( hhochberg@coxegroup.com ) of The Coxe Group, with indebtedness to the organizers, panelists, attendees who contributed to create such a rewarding day.

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How we Do Work

1. This panel addressed the way work is produced within the office.

2. Panelists

Michael Kihn, AIA, Partner, Perkins and Will

· We are often asked to partner with other firms, sometimes local and sometimes national in profile. We often partner with other of our 18 US offices and our two – about to be four – international offices.

· We partner because we are often asked to be the lead designer. In other instances, we bring building type expertise (such as in labs).

· We've found that certain characteristics prevail for the association to succeed: shared values, the firms bring value to each other, and, most importantly, the partnership itself brings added value to the client.

· Additionally, the responsibilities of the participating firms are clearly defined. The work plan needs to be integrated. The technology platforms need to be compatible.

· Continuity of personnel on the project is also important.

 

Dr. Andrew Dent , Material ConneXion

· We bring a resource of innovative materials. We don't sell or buy materials. We provide information about materials.

· We communicate information in an easily understandable way accessible in various ways, including online. The service is subscription-based.

· We're more interested in what's coming next, rather than emphasizing what's in use now.

Campbell Hyers, Control Group

· We've been working to develop clarity about IT “best practices”.

· Whereas the financial industry spends $135,000 per year per employee, architects spend about $5,000 per year [which is not dramatically different from Hugh's data of about $3,100 per year).

· We're excited by the transition that we anticipate of IT as overhead to IT as a service.

Rich Hartman, Thomas J. Sharp & Associates (insurance brokerage services)

· We are interested not in how architects their projects, but rather in how they conduct your businesses. We think it's all about earning and retaining your profits, which means we see our role as how you deliver your projects.

· We think it's important to understand the significance of risk management managers.

· Perhaps project managers should be called “expectation managers”, because most liability issues are not of technical design nature, but rather because of unmet expectations.

· We define “risk” as the probability of a loss. For an architect, this means the expenditure of time and money without return of money (fees).

· “Risk management” is not “risk aversion”.

· Risk management is both external and internal, and in the context of the latter, it helps to run a “self-critical analysis”.

· Risks are okay if they are identifiable and if you get compensated for assuming them.

Harry Gordon, FAIA, LEED AP, Burt Hill Kosar Rittelmann

· Burt Hill serves three major markets: Education, commercial/residential development, healthcare.

· Observation: Kodak's ceasing of production of the Carousel slide projector is a piece of the flattening world to which Thomas Friedman refers in The World Is Flat.

· We look at many things – LEAN construction, LEED, BIM – that we think are significant in how architecture will be practiced.

· Why outsource?

> International pool of talent internationally.
> Availability of H1B visas has diminished.
> 24/7 work force
> 24/7 technical support

· Key outsourcing success factors:

> Business/professional relationship
> Compatible technology
> Mechanisms for rapid feedback
> 24/7 technical support
> Remember “high tech; high touch”

Norm Strong, FAIA, Miller Hull, and AIA National VP

· Recall the PowerPoint presentation Norm made.

· Even with all our firm's success and recognition, we embrace the notion of change, of which building information modeling (BIM) is one aspect.

· GSA will require all projects to be done via BIM.

· 70% of clients cite declining document quality as a problem.

· We produce in two-dimension, but we get sued in three-dimension.

· The cultural change related to BIM will be revolutionary.

 

2. The significance of BIM

· Michael: BIM is extremely important to all of us. We expect in our partners to be of the same mindset. We're ramping up as quickly as we can.

· Campbell: What I see from firm to firm is a tendency to wait until it's perfect to adopt a new technology, which is a luxury [and a risk attitude] that we don't have. Vendors' licensing scenario makes it difficult to turn down the move to BIM on financial grounds.

· The true promise of BIM will be the ability to transcend platforms.

· Harry: Establishing common software platforms, CAD standards, etc., helps. We see a natural affinity between the concepts of outsourcing and of BIM.

· Harry: We've also found that BIM is a very effective approach to urban design.

· Rich: It's important to acknowledge that change is now . BIM is a profit enhancing technology that practitioners can not afford not to learn.

How we Build Work ... Continue ->