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Member Spotlight: Being a Specifier Defines What I Do, Not What I Am (Pt. 1)

By CSI HQ posted 06-11-2018 11:23 AM

  
CSI Member Spotlights are all about supporting a robust community where construction professionals get together to trade insights for amazing results. Today’s Spotlight is on DIALOG’s Keith Robinson. You can fill out your own Spotlight to be featured here at this link.

Today, in the first spotlight in this new series, we present the first of a two-part interview with DIALOG’s Keith Robinson.

Keith-Robinson.jpgKeith Robinson
Research and Development | Specifications
Company: DIALOG
Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta Canada

How long have you been a member of CSI?
I have been a member of CSI since 2005. I was involved with CSI prior to joining as a technical liaison with Construction Specifications Canada, and had participated on a number of SectionFormat/PageFormat discussions—one of the many documents on which CSI and CSC share development. Sharing with other CSI members helped with my decision to join CSI.

How has CSI impacted you, both personally and professionally?
Initially I joined to get a different point-of-view on contracts and contract administration. The legal aspects between Canada and the U.S. vary, typically with an issue being identified and resolved sooner in the U.S. Being on the leading edge of developing trends allowed our specifications to adapt using predictive outcomes for issues that we were starting to encounter.

Later in my membership, I found that the Seattle Share Group I participated in were open to questions and sharing opportunities to solve common specification issues. I also saw the opportunity to contribute at a national level and volunteered for a number of initiatives including in the development of OmniClass and MasterFormat.

What was your first industry job?
My first job was as a junior drafting technologist. My handwriting skills were so poor one of the senior partners of that company thought I could do less damage editing specifications… ironic in many ways, since my technical abilities are still used to help others with their ‘drawing’ detailing.

That architect became a very good friend and mentor. He encouraged me to take courses in construction law and architectural practice. His guidance allowed me to grow in my career to the position I now occupy – senior associate in one of the largest private architectural/engineering professional practices in Canada.

How would you describe your profession?
Challenging. Being a specifier defines what I do, not what I am…my background education was in industrial design and later architectural technology. Most people see specifiers and their written works as a complete mystery. Many see specifications as disconnected from the more visual aspects of project documents, not deserving of as much attention as the drawings—until something goes wrong. At which point the specification is seen as a lifeline.

My background allows the specification to be modified to interpret design language and connect more effectively to the graphical documentation. I understand design and how to interpret that language in a way that is more effectively communicated to the constructor (most of the time). Those who don’t know me will classify me by standard perceptions of specification writing—dull, boring and unimaginative. The people I work with know that specifiers having a design background are valued team members and appreciate the knowledge that ‘people like us’ bring to the design.

Why does your profession matter to you?
I see specifiers as educators. Once we have described a difficult design element, completed some component of research, or overcome a challenging contract administration event, there are the opportunities to share that experience.

Specifiers capture the historical knowledge of architectural/engineering firms. They are in a position of trust. We have the ability to influence outcomes and create positive experiences.

There is also the danger of inattention – where a lapse in attention to detail, or perhaps the phone rang at the wrong time, and some element of the design was missed in the assembly of the project manual resulting in ‘unfortunate’ delivery of a key building component on site.

It is a reminder of the great responsibility placed on the specification, and the reason why so many specifiers make their roles in professional practice matter to those who employ us and understand the benefits of having us around.

What is your favorite aspect of working with others in this field?
I really enjoy sharing; working with others either as a part of a mixed discipline group looking for project solutions, or sitting at a bar somewhere and comparing our stories and approaches to writing. We have a great and supportive community, willing to give and receive ideas freely.

What opportunities does CSI have to grow?
CSI has been in a state of existential reflection for many years now. The economic downturn in 2008 hit us particularly hard. Being non-design related team members, specifiers were often some of the first to be dropped from payroll. The importance of the specification was put to the side as traditional roles between designer and documents necessitated a sense of preservation of self.

We lost a lot of members during that time, and struggle to regain those lost members. If value is not seen in the specification, by extension, value in the specifier is gone.

This sounds a bit post-apocalyptic, but the way I see it there is opportunity in understanding the changed dynamic. In many ways, a process similar to ‘truth and reconciliation’ can work to revive the perception of value of the specifier and the documents they prepare to the project. The practitioners and design professionals are being challenged by constructors about the quality of the documents we all produce.

We are undergoing a ground up shift in the way we exchange information and communicate. There has never been as large a potential for change since the modern roles of architect/engineer and contractor were established in the early to mid-1800’s. Almost 200 years since the invention of our profession, we have an opportunity to re invent the perception of specifications and the written content in the emerging BIM oriented project delivery methods.

CSI has a special relationship with its members, and the influence the association can bring to support growth into these new technologies. CSI is unique in that its membership includes all contributors to the built environment – architects, engineers, constructors, lawyers, owners and legislators. CSI is not a single interest association, it represents many facets of our industry… meaning that the opportunity to initiate growth and understanding of the specification is there, we just need to act on it.

What is CSI’s biggest challenge?
Old attitudes and approaches to documentation and perceptions of what we are. Holding to outdated ideals is a challenge – dinosaurs had dinosaur brains, and we do not see very many dinosaurs these days.

I will admit that is a bit of an allegory. Just a bit. The intent of that statement is that no significant change can happen if we as members do not adjust the perceptions of how we see ourselves. How we see ourselves will reflect the way those outside of our membership perceive what we do.
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