13 October Meeting - Precast Concrete Plant Tour
When the Programs Committee polled our Chapter Members as to what program topics they would like to see in 2003-2004, #1 was a "Ride on the LRT, before it opened to the Public", #2 was a "Tour of a Precast/Prestress Concrete Plant". Our October program provides a combination of both, of a sort.
County Materials Corporation in Roberts, Wisconsin, manufactured nearly 21,000 precast concrete tunnel segments to line the LRT, and more than 200 arched wall and ceiling panels for the Lindbergh LRT Station beneath the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. A tour of County Materials' production facility is being offered to Chapter Members and their guests on October 13, 2003, beginning at 2:00 PM. Attendees will view three primary types of products in the production process, including large diameter concrete pipe and structures, precast hollowcore planks, and prestress bridge beams.
Following the facility tour, a dinner presentation at the Stoneridge Golf Course in Stillwater will highlight County Materials' work on the LRT project. Dave Reneson, County Materials Prestress Division Manager, will present the program.
1:00-1:30
p.m.. Carpooling Assembling - Stoneridge Golf
Course
2:00-4:30 p.m. Rotating Tour of County Materials
Precast/Prestress Plant
5:00-6:00 p.m. Social Hour - Stoneridge Golf Course
6:00-7:00 p.m. Dinner
7:00-8:00 p.m. LRT Tunnel Presentation
Stoneridge Golf Course
(Program Committee Members will be available at Stoneridge from
1-1:30 to assist in coordinating carpooling. Stoneridge is 20min.
from 280/ I-94, just off I-94. County Materials is 15-20 minutes
farther east.
Directions
to StoneRidge
Directions
to County Concrete
Chapter members: No charge
Non-members: $35
Reservations: 763-744-1424
10 November Meeting: Building Codes
Location: Landmark Center, 75 West Fifth Street, St. Paul
Cost: No charge for members, $35 for non-members.
-
11:15 a.m. - Registration
-
11:45 a.m. - Lunch
-
12:30 p.m. - Presentation: "Intent Behind the Codes; Significant Fires That Have Influenced Code Development", Gail Manning, RA, CSI, CDT, Plan Reviewer, City of Minneapolis
10 November: Building Code Seminar
Following the chapter meeting, also at the Landmark Center, there will be a two-part continuing education seminar. Cost: $15 per session, both sessions for $25, no discounts.
"Top Ten Issues Found in Plan Review", Jerry Norman, Building Code Official, Minnesota Building Codes & Standards Division, 2:00-3:15 p.m.
"Future of Code Development"; Issues Behind Revisions, Performance Based Codes", Gordon Bates, fire protection specialist, City of Minneapolis Fire Department, 3:30-4:45 p.m.
September Meeting Report
Construction
Education: Current Trends and Future Expectations, Weisman
Museum
On September 15th the Minneapolis-Saint Paul Chapter of CSI kicked off the 2003-2004 program year with a panel discussion on Construction Education at the Weisman Museum on the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis campus. Three of the four panelists, Steven Weeks, Associate Professor and Co-head of UMN-CALA; Suzanne Nordblom, Team Leader, Architectural Drafting and Estimating Technology, Dunwoody College of Technology; and Hans Timper, Head of the Construction Management Program, University of Wisconsin – Stout, represented regional educational institutions. The fourth panelist, Alana Sunness Griffith, FCSI, VP, Empirehouse, CSI instructor and Institute past-president, represented the industry component.
Tom Fisher, Dean of the College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, as moderator, requested each of the panelists discuss what they considered to be the issues addressing educational institutions today. Mr. Fisher requested they address topics such as how time and fee pressures foster cheaper versus better education; how continuing education affects the careers of professionals, how additional services are being offered by professionals to provide growth opportunities for their companies and where they get these skills, what is the affect of computers on their curriculum, how is building representation affecting how buildings are delivered, and how should education programs address these issues.
Each of the three educational panelists started with a description of their educational curriculum and mission statement. From the description of the three, the consensus was that the current architectural education being provided is excellent. After they each waxed eloquent, though, Alana gave the industry point of view, and noted that many recent grads do not have sufficient experience to be left on their own on projects. Mentoring and on-the-job training is important, but in cut-throat competition, the time of the mentor is usually required in other areas, and the employer must be committed to improving staff for reasons other than immediate financial gain. Many employers don’t spend the time necessary to train the entry-level graduate and have to seek more experienced individuals to fill vacant positions.
Mr. Fisher followed the industry perception with some specific questions aimed at the panelists, and then opened the floor for questions from the audience. The time for the question and answer portion flew by and the panel discussion had to be brought to a close, with many questions left unanswered, and even more left unasked.
The Minneapolis-Saint Paul Chapter of CSI would like
to thank all participants for this educational event.
Chapter Meeting Schedule
09/15 - Construction Education
10/13 - County Concrete Prestressed Concrete Plant Tour
11/10 - Fire/Life Safety Code Seminar; Gail Manning, City of
Minneapolis
12/08 - Retail Marketing, at new Target headquarters
01/12 - Pantages Theater Tour
02/10 - Construction and Facility Showcase
03/08 - Cutting Edge Technology and Building Design
04/12 - Hands-On Masonry, St. Paul Technical Center
05/10 - Awards Banquet
06/07 - Golf Outing
From the President
The president has no comments this month.
Harold Dean Kiewel, CSI, CCS, AIA, NCARB
President, Minneapolis-St. Paul Chapter, CSI
Harold_Kiewel@ellerbebecket.com
Educational Roundup
Not all of the following are co-sponsored by CSI, but many of them are worthy additions to your continuing education portfolio. Please take advantage of those you find interesting and accessible, and let us know your comments (at specifics lite) so that we continue to carry information from those institutions that do a good job of providing service to the construction community.
27-28 October - Minnesota Sustainable Products Training©
Minnesota
Science Museum
Agenda and registration form: www.sustainableproducts.com/upcoming.html
Early bird registration for 20%
discount is available through October 15.
CSI members receive a discount.
Johnson Controls, the world's largest building manager, will talk about economic benefits and its green building projects in the State. Perkins & Will and HGA Architects are covering certified green buildings and sustainable textile in the LEED Green Building Standard.
Join us for exclusive information on 14 Sustainable Products Standards, covering sustainable products, buildings, vehicles, green power, & certified wood, and their increased use in the market. To review the Standards, including the Sustainable Textile Standard incorporated into the US Green Building Council's LEED Standard, click this link: http://mts.sustainableproducts.com/standards.htm. Learn why and how governments recognize these Standards in their purchasing policies.
Obtain AIA, CSI, NSPE continuing education credits and the 700 page Sustainable Products Training Manual© covering the Standards. The Manual was peer-reviewed by 200 co-sponsors comprising governments, environmental groups, publications, and companies. Leading speakers with major corporations will show how they have increased their profitability through purchase of sustainable products and buildings.
Registration: $395 (CSI Members receive a discount – refer to registration form on website)
23 October - Wood for Building Green - Workshop & Vendor Showcase
This event is going to be held at the Park Place/Double Tree Hotel in Minneapolis, 9am to 1:30pm.
AIA Continuing Education Credits Are Available: 3 LU - Health, Safety and Welfare. Co-sponsored by Minneapolis-St. Paul Chapter, CSI.
Please go directly to our workshop website www.woodforbuildinggreen.org to learn more, and to register on line for the event. You may also call me if you have any questions and to register for the workshop over the phone.
Bryan
Ripka - Market Coordinator
Certified Wood & Paper Association
721 NW 9th Avenue, Suite 300
Portland OR 97209
Ph: 503-224-7696
30 October - Designed With You in Mind – Continuing Education for Design Professionals
International Building Code
Thursday,
October 30, 2004 8:30am –
12:00 pm and/or 1:30pm-4:30 pm
3 CEU hours per session
The University of Minnesota invites you to join your colleagues for the first of the 2003-2004 DESIGNED WITH YOU IN MIND CEU series on Thursday, October 30 at International Market Square. The topic for the first seminar will be the IBC… International Building Code.
The morning session with Mike Fricke, state building code specialist, will focus on residential interior design; replacement windows, smoke detectors, guard rails, safety glazing, and other code related issues for remodeling as well as new construction.
In the afternoon session, Roger Lars Larson, code specialist with BWBR Architects, will present design criteria from the outside-in as it relates to the State Building Code/2000 IBC for commercial designers. Specific topics of the discussion will include corridor construction, elevator lobbies, egress components, shaft enclosures, occupancy separations, and many others related to interior space design.
Admission for ASID, IIDA, and AIA members is $105 per session or $150 for the full day. Admission for non-members is $130 per session or $175 for both. Sessions are limited to 100 people, so register NOW!
Detailed information: www.che.umn.edu/conted/designceus/
Register online, by fax or snail mail. The Web site has a registration form you can print.
For more information call 612-624-2709 or email Akarahan@che.umn.edu
UMN-CALA Continuing Professional Studies, Construction Administration Package
Discussion of construction administration procedures and tools from start of construction through the eleven-month inspection. Construction start, changes in the work and substantial and final completion will be reviewed. No prerequisites. Includes lunch. 3 of 4 session remain:
Cost
per session: $30; $25 (discount
for CALA alumni, donors, faculty)
Location: CALA, Rapson Hall, Rm 225
6502
Start of Construction
Tues, Oct 14, noon-1pm
Registration deadline: Oct 10
Presentation of procedures and tools used at the start of construction, including: Notice to Proceed, preconstruction conferences, and required start-up submittals (progress schedule, schedule of values, subcontractor and supplier list, and others). No prerequisites. Includes lunch.
6503
Changes in the Work
Tues, Oct 21, noon-1pm
Registration deadline: Oct 17
Review of procedures and tools for initiating, documenting, and executing changes in a construction project, including: Supplemental Instructions, Requests for Information, Construction Change Directives, Requests for Proposals, Change Orders, and others. No prerequisites. Includes lunch.
6504
Construction Project Completion
Tues, Oct 28, noon-1pm
Registration deadline: Oct 24
Review of project completion procedures and tools including: Certificate of Substantial Completion, Substantial Completion Inspection, Final Completion, required submittals (IC 134, Consent of Surety to Final Payment, Final Application for Payment, O & M manuals, attic stock, record drawings, and others), final inspection, eleven-month inspection, and others. No prerequisites. Includes lunch.
AIA Minnesota Convention - Programs of Interest to the Construction Specification Institute
The 69th AIA Minnesota Convention & Exhibition Hall will take place from Tuesday, November 18 through Friday November 21. The theme of the convention, "Essential Architecture," reflects the idea that architecture is essential to so many facets of life: from preserving our history to sustaining our planet for the future, from ensuring our welfare to fostering economic vitality. Please visit our web site at www.aia-mn.org for a complete listing of seminars and speakers. Convention programs of special interest to CSI members:
Tuesday, November 18
Event 13 - The Revolution of Glass in Design, 8-9:30 a.m.
This program is designed to provide an in-depth analysis of current glass technology and will explain how architectural glass products are brought to market.
Event 19 - Masonry Variations: Re-thinking Stone, 8:45-11 a.m.
This program will look at new directions for the use of masonry and materials. The presentation of this stone project will demonstrate the process of finding, testing and utilizing the material in new ways and will include a discussion of extensive inter and extra-professional collaborations necessary to foster discovery in architectural design and in practice. Co-sponsored by the International Masonry Institute
Wednesday, November 19
Event 27 - Finish Hardware, 2-3:15 p.m.
This program will review a typical CSI three-part format finish hardware specification. Factors included in the discussion will be types, materials, grades, codes and the need to interface with access control systems.
Thursday, November 20
Event 35 - For the Love of Cast Stone, 7:30-8:30 a.m.
This program will review cast stone and other similar building products that are often specified under the Cast Stone section (04720). Attendees will learn about the production methods of these products and compare and contrast their physical properties such as strength, durability, finishes and applications.
Event 42 - The Path to Greater Architectural Freedom with Today’s Structural Steel, 10:30 a.m.-noon
The program will focus on architectural detailing and fire protection and steel coating systems in the use of structural steel in the safest and most cost-effective manner.
Event 44 - Materials ConneXion, 2-3:30 p.m.
Materials, and the manner in which they are assembled, are essential to the understanding of architecture. Material ConneXion is the world's largest resource for advanced materials and processes. This program will focus on the potential of materials influencing design. Attend and observe the possibilities Material ConneXion could bring to your next project.
Event 48 - Total Precast Structures, 2-3:30 p.m.
This program will expose the significant design challenges working with Total Precast systems, followed by practical solutions with explicit guidelines to help architects achieve high quality design objectives efficiently. Co-sponsored by the Minnesota Prestress Association
TechNotes - What's a Committee To Do?
When I first served on an Institute committee, it was as a member of the specifications subcommittee. At that time, the Technical Committee (TechCom) comprised the chairs of its subcommittees. The specifications subcommittee met four times each year to work on SpecGUIDEs and SpecText, and chapter technical committees wrote the SpecGUIDEs that we reviewed. A short time later, CSI's involvement in both SpecGUIDEs and SpecText was terminated. Obviously, this had a significant impact on technical committees at all levels.
TechCom was reorganized, divested of its subcommittees, and given revised charges. No longer in the business of producing documents, the committee's focus shifted to monitoring the industry and task teams, developing a schedule for regular review of CSI documents, and advising the Executive Committee of recommended activities.
After years of contribution to SpecGUIDEs - a major technical activity for many chapters - the termination of those documents left a lot of technical chairs wondering what to do next. The older editions of Administrative References didn't offer much help, as other committees already did most of the suggested activities. Many chapters have standing education, certification, and programs committees, all of them quite capable of ensuring the presence of content that is "technical" in the CSI sense. About all that remained was the writing of technical articles for newsletters. Oddly enough, newsletter editors will tell you that no one seems interested in writing much of anything.
As TechCom began its review of existing documents, participation by chapter technical committees became more difficult. The intensity of work at Institute committee meetings is amazing, and impossible to replicate in daily life, when jobs, families, and other commitments take priority. Even so, TechCom has sought volunteers for its "corresponding member" list, people who are called on to review and comment on various documents and ideas when immediate input is not critical.
In the past year, TechCom has once again tried to find a way to revitalize chapter technical committees. In my opinion, expressed in previous columns, chapters have only to look close to home to find something to do; they do not need to wait for someone else to tell them what to do.
Most of CSI's main documents began as individual attempts to solve a problem or improve communication. The Institute Board of Directors did not say, "We need a way to organize a section, a way to organize words on a page, and a book of rules on how to write specifications!" Instead, local solutions were developed, passed around, and eventually blessed and published as CSI documents.
Unless we have solved all of the problems of communication and coordination of construction documents, there is still work to be done, and our own members are already doing much of it. I suspect there are, in each chapter, people who have found better ways to do the things they do every day. And I believe that many of these solutions would be quickly put to use by others in our industry.
TechCom, in an effort to rekindle the spirit that drove the growth of our organization, has assembled a list of ideas and challenges for technical committees at the chapter and region levels. This list has been sent to all region technical chairs and to all Institute Directors; their comments will be reviewed by TechCom as they are received. Next month we will take a look at some of the ideas, but for now I will leave you with these thoughts:
· Most of CSI's documents deal with organizing information for printed material, a response to the needs that existed when those documents were created.
· Today, or in the very near future, the challenge will be to organize and use electronic databases of information about entire facilities.
Will we meet today's needs as well as our founders met those of thirty or more years ago? Or are we going to let someone else take over as the leader in construction document coordination? Views expressed in this column are the author's.
© 2003 Sheldon Wolfe,
RA, FCSI, CCS, CCCA
on the web at www.CSI-MSP.org