CSI Blog

Everyone at CSI would like to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving this holiday season, good health, and safe travels if you are visiting friends and family. We are grateful for each member of this outstanding professional community and the way you support each other in every endeavor, collectively working to continue to create new opportunities in the years to come. We would love to share the gratitude you are feeling this year, both personally and professionally, and ask what are you most “thankful for” this Thanksgiving and why? As a bonus question, from turkey to cranberry sauce to mashed potatoes, what's your favorite Thanksgiving dish? We have much ...

The 2022 CSI National Conference welcomed the architecture, engineering, construction, and owner (AECO) industry to Denver, Colo., October 12– 14 with a wealth of interactive events, top-level speakers, and an introduction to game-changing new technology. Galvanized by a “Future Ready” theme, the sold-out occasion provided attendees with a firsthand look at the major trends, innovations, and potential pitfalls that in the years to come will have the biggest impact on AECO professionals . A highlight of the conference was industry trailblazer Linda Alvarado’s candid keynote presentation on how to break traditional barriers for success. President ...

When Hurricane Ian made landfall in late September, it became the deadliest hurricane to hit Florida since 1935. The storm devastated Florida’s Lee County, causing significant damage to the Sanibel Causeway, the three-mile-long bridge which connects Sanibel Island to Florida. In response, crews from Florida-based heavy civil contractor Superior Construction worked around the clock to rebuild the Sanibel Causeway. On Wednesday, October 19, they completed temporary repairs allowing the causeway to be reopened to residents more than a week ahead of schedule. In a joint venture with The de Moya Group, Superior worked collaboratively with Florida Department ...

October is Careers in Construction Month, a month-long celebration of the rewarding and well-compensated career paths available in the building trades industry. According to the Construction Careers Foundation, “With a projected one million craft professionals needed by 2023, the construction industry is full of long-term career opportunities for young people interested in learning a skill set.” https://constructioncareers.org/celebrate-careers-in-construction-month/ The foundation reports that this year brings an added urgency to workforce development in the wake of the economic shutdown and adds that in Minnesota alone, the demand ...

The 2022 CSI National Conference welcomed the architecture, engineering, construction, and owner (AECO) industry to Denver, Colo., October 12– 14 with a wealth of interactive events, top-level speakers, and an introduction to game-changing new technology. Galvanized by a “Future Ready” theme, the sold-out occasion provided attendees with a firsthand look at the major trends, innovations, and potential pitfalls that in the years to come will have the biggest impact on AECO professionals. “It was an incredibly rewarding conference because it represented such a large cross section of our industry,” said Mark Dorsey, CSI’s CEO. “The benefit to all the ...

ALEXANDRIA, VA (October 13, 2022) | On October 13, at its national conference in Denver, the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) formally launched its first-ever end-user software, Crosswalk® for Microsoft Word® . The product, a user-friendly add-in for Word, promises to make construction planning more accurate, convenient, and efficient. The product places CSI’s core library of construction standards, MasterFormat®, UniFormat® and OmniClass® directly into Microsoft Word. Using a search tool that appears in Microsoft Word, users can search numbers and titles across each of these standards. By connecting Microsoft Word with CSI’s three primary standards, ...

This is the first in a two-part series on this blog addressing schedules of values in construction, comprised of: (a) Part 1 – Fundamentals (addressing what are schedules of values, standard forms, and contractual requirements); and (b) Part 2 – Construction (addressing development, submittal, and review of schedules of values). Money is the lubrication that makes the wheels turn on capital projects. Many things are part of the progress payment process for construction contracts, but few are as important as the schedule of values. This blog post describes schedules of values and their use in construction contracts. What are Schedules of ...

Gary T. Bergeron, CSI, will be advanced to Fellowship during the "CSI Celebrates" event at the 2022 CSI National Conference Oct. 12–14 in Denver, Colo., becoming the newest member of CSI’s Class of Fellows. Throughout his 14-year membership with CSI, Gary has notably contributed to construction education at the high school, university, and professional development levels, and has been a leader of the Gulf States Region and the Knoxville, Little Rock, and Chattanooga Chapters. Here, he discusses the honor along with some of the highlights of his career in the a rchitecture, engineering, construction, and owner (AECO) industry. What does being recognized ...

Congratulations to Hana Nguyenky, CDT®, of VMDOArchitects, who earned her CCS® and CCCA® during the recent certification window. Here, Hana shares what led her to a career in the architecture, engineering, construction, and owner (AECO) industry, and how she was able to earn two new certifications at once. Please share a little about yourself and why you have chosen to work in the AECO industry? I grew up in a household of immigrants as the eldest child. Neither of my parents finished their schooling career. My mother left high school to work and help provide for her family. She came to America with no knowledge of English and built a career ...