What
is CSI?
The Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) is a professional
association of construction specifiers, architects, engineers, suppliers,
contractors, owners, and other involved in construction. CSI is
organized into nine regions with a total of 143 chapters, and approximately
18,000 individual members. There are chapters in every state except
Montana, South Dakota, Wyoming, and West Virginia. There is also
one chapter in Juarez, Mexico.
The North Central Region is CSI's largest, with over 2,500 members
in twenty-two chapters, in nine states. The Mpls.-St. Paul Chapter,
with over four hundred members, is the the largest chapter, followed
in the Region by the Chicago and the St. Louis Chapters. The North
Central Region also has two of the newest chapters - La Crosse and
Twin Ports.
Join CSI now!
History
In 1947, a small group of government specifiers began meeting to
discuss the need for uniform specifications. In March of the next
year, the Construction Specifications Institute was founded. The
organization's goals were better specification writing, simpler
specifications, standardization of specifications for public works,
standardization of building codes, and the study of new materials
and construction processes to achieve greater efficiency and cost
effectiveness throughout the industry.
The first chapter was formed in New York City in 1951. At its first
annual convention, in 1957, CSI had twelve chapters and nearly 1,500
members. Membership exceeded 5,000 in 1961, and passed the 15,000
mark in 1981.
During its first twenty years CSI members produced countless studies,
proposals, and dissertations on construction products and procedures.
In the late '60's, CSI established a research foundation to study
information formats and use of computers for preparing specificaitons.
The foundation, which later became the Construction Sciences Research
Foundation (CSRF), developed SPEC-DATA, a standard format for product
information, and COMSPEC, a computer program that automated some
aspects of specification writing.
The first Manual of Practice was published in 1967, and 1978 saw
the introduction of MasterFormat, the current standard for organizing
construction information. Further standardization was made possible
by SectionFormat, which governs the content of specification sections,
and PageFormat, which provides guidelines for the way section content
is arranged in print.
The first certification program appeared in 1985; there are now
four courses of study for those who wish to demonstrate their expertise
in preparing and interpreting construction documents. (See the Certification
Page for more information.)
CSI's most recent products are PerSpective, a computer program for
soliciting and responding to owner requests for proposals, and the
Uniform Drawing System (UDS), which is a key part of the newly adopted
National CAD Standard.
In 1984, a Corresponding Committee was initiated, made up of member
volunteers. The committee is used as a resource for technical expertise
for reviewing documents prior to publication. In 1992, a Personal
Data Form was created to help organize and select members to help
with CSI programs. Members may volunteer by contacting their Region
Technical Chair or the Institute.
CSI Member Statistics
Miscellaneous
- men: 90.4%
- leadership roles: 16% occupied by women
- members with no chapter affiliation: 12%
- with more than one chapter affiliation: 6.4%
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