Developing “What Is Special About Place”

Going to Convention? Make a Federal Agency Connection!
The federal government spends more than $3 billion a year on design and construction services, with properties from coast to coast and around the globe. It can be a challenging marketplace to enter with a complex array of rules, procedures, and forms. To help you navigate through the federal marketplace, the AIA is offering the “Federal Agency Connection” at the 2007 National Convention and Design Exposition in San Antonio, May 3–5. The Federal Agency Connection offers AIA members 20-minute, one-on-one information sessions with key personnel from federal government agencies and—new this year—educational sessions that offer AIA CES credits for hour-long classes with government and private-sector experts on federal design procurement.

best practices
The Power of One: The Effective Owner-Architect Contractor Team
When was the last time that you worked with a contractor who was genuinely interested in your success on the project? Moreover, when was the last time that you were genuinely interested in the contractor’s success on the project? Projects these days often have players with opposing agendas, note Jim Atkins, FAIA, and Grant Simpson, FAIA, in this month’s risk management article, reflecting a polarity spawned by decades of legal jousting and advantage seeking. Yet in the midst of such wrangling, now and then a project goes smoothly with few disputes or claims, and it is viewed as rewarding to those who participated. The authors explain how that might happen.