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. You can fill out your own Spotlight to be featured here at this link.
Today’s Spotlight is on TruexCullins’ Cam Featherstonhaugh, AIA, CSI
Are you a member of CSI and if so, for how long?
Yes, since 2009 (9 years).
How has CSI impacted you, both personally and professionally?
I have learned so much about how to communicate with others, how to be a leader, how to ask the right questions, and most critically, CSI has helped me build a network of trusted so that when I have a question, I know who to call for help.
What was your first industry job?
I was a laborer on a heavy construction crew for five years while going through architecture school. I stayed with that company as a foreman for two years after graduating while I looked for a job in architecture.
How would you describe your profession?
I am an architect. We are the glue that holds together a large and diverse team of subject matter experts. We must be conversant in virtually all aspects of the construction industry, from finance to excavation, with an understanding of human issues and personality. We have to be leaders and managers at the same time, and these are two very different skills.
Why does your profession matter to you?
I get to make a difference in the world by improving the built environment.
What is your favorite aspect of working with others in this field?
I have a lifetime of learning opportunities. For instance, just based on how much time I have in my life, I can never know as much about masonry as the folks that actually build the work (the masons). Multiply that times all the various trades-persons and engineers on each job, and there is a veritable tsunami of opportunity for learning. I learn many things each job.
What opportunities does CSI have to grow?
Unlimited. Every person in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has something to learn or some benefit to gain from CSI. With construction making up 4.3 percent of the GDP, that represents nearly $860 billion worth of work for more than 10 million employees annually. The sky is the limit.
What is CSI’s biggest challenge?
Internal workings and nostalgia. The old way of doing things is dead and gone. It is never coming back. Unfortunately, our association structure has contributed to this. With local-, regional-, and national-level volunteerism, we have burned out many of our greatest assets, our volunteers. We need to re-examine whether it makes sense to keep asking folks to participate at all three levels, or if there is another way. With the advent and maturation of the Internet and remote learning, we don’t necessarily need to physically get together all the time.
What is the construction industry’s biggest challenge?
Contracts for getting work done create adversarial relationships between designers and builders. In this environment, the owners lose and the lawyers win. We need a better system of working together to guarantee acceptable outcomes that don’t create adversarial relationships among partners that are, ostensibly, both working on the behalf.
Why are specifications important?
It is impossible to clearly communicate the required quality of a given material on the drawings. Also, it is more efficient to use drawings for just quantity and location, and let quality requirements be separate, where they can be updated more easily.
How has the process of creating specifications changed in the last five years, and how do you see this process changing within the next five years?
It hasn’t changed for me. I am hopeful the next five years will bring better integration of specifications into building information modeling (BIM).
From your perspective, how has the role of the specifier changed over the last 10 years, and how do you see that role changing during the next five years?
I am not a specifier, but I have seen the exodus of dedicated spec writers from architectural firms over the past 15 years. This means that in many circumstances, the person writing the specifications is not an experienced spec writer, and may not have the best understanding of best practices.
What’s the one piece of advice you wish someone had given you?
Join an organization. Meet people. Volunteer for that organization. Be a leader.
What’s the one piece of advice for individuals preparing for an upcoming exam?
Relax. is over-rated. The more important aspect of being prepared is being focused, rested, and understanding basic test-taking techniques. If you don’t know the subject matter, cramming isn’t going to help; it’s just going to make you exhausted.
What are you passionate about outside of the industry?
I am an organist at Saint Mary’s Episcopal Church in Northfield Vermont. I practice the organ every day. I also like to garden and I have had some success with growing tomatoes.
What’s the coolest project you’ve ever worked on, or are working on now? How might that relate to knowledge you gained via CSI?
The Downtown Transit Center in Burlington Vermont is the best project I’ve ever worked on. It is a jewel, and the execution reflected the concept so clearly and cleanly that it really stands out as a piece of exquisite architecture. I learned that making things look simple is actually way harder and more complicated.