The commercial and institutional building industry comprises many disciplines, from architects and contractors to product manufacturers and facility managers.
Clear and accurate communication between these disciplines is absolutely essential for a project to be successful. For more than fifty years, the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) has provided the standards and formats that help the industry's professionals work together more effectively. In recent years, CSI has updated its flagship products, and this year is introducing some new tools.
A group of government architects and specifiers joined together to form CSI in 1948 to address the post-World War II building boom. During that period, the federal government commissioned numerous projects. Unfortunately, the specifications used varied as much as the buildings themselves. To improve the process, CSI's founders created standard formats and procedures for communicating project information.
CSI is an individual, professional membership organization that represents the entire building team. As an independent, national association, CSI draws members from all parts of the country involved in every segment of a facility's lifecycle.
With more than 15,000 members committed to exchanging knowledge and developing uniform standards and formats, CSI works to improve construction documents and the project delivery process, because better technical documents reduce errors and save money.
CSI members meet monthly at 146 chapters around the nation. The multidisciplinary organization offers members the opportunity to network with professionals from other disciplines and to share best practices and lessons learned with colleagues. CSI meetings and conferences also provide a place to learn about new project opportunities and help members stay current on industry trends.
CSI also provides education opportunities for all sectors, including programs that address technical topics important to contractors.
- In March, an expanded webinar series focused on leadership training and business growth topics. The interactive telephone/Internet sessions, open to members and non-members, featured expert instructors who addressed business and communications subjects of interest to executives and professionals.
- The CSI Construction Academies offer an education opportunity for construction contract administrators. The multi-day Contract Administration Academy is designed to help intermediate and advanced professionals improve their skills and capabilities.
- The online audiocast series "How Not to Screw Up" discusses construction mistakes and lessons learned each week. A related forum on the CSI website gives users the opportunity to share their experiences and ask questions.
- CSI offers recognized certification programs for construction professionals including the Certified Construction Contract Administrator (CCCA) designation. CCCA provides builders the opportunity to demonstrate proven knowledge and skill in construction process and contract administration.
Refining Standards and Formats
CSI provides standards and formats so that every sector of the design and construction industry can communicate project information to each other. Flagship documents include MasterFormat and the Project Resource Manual-CSI Manual of Practice.
Since 1963, MasterFormat has served as a standard system for organizing textual information in project manuals, using a uniform list of numbers and subject titles to classify work results and construction practices. In the United States and Canada, nearly three-quarters of commercial and institutional projects use MasterFormat.
The latest version, MasterFormat 2004 Edition, includes the most significant updates to the standard since its introduction. CSI and Construction Specifications Canada (CSC) updated and expanded MasterFormat to meet the industry's changing needs in recent years, as building systems became more complex and materials and processes advanced. All disciplines in the industry were consulted to ensure that it addressed the entire lifecycle of a project.
CSI and CSC expanded MasterFormat's structure from sixteen divisions to fifty divisions, reserving some of them for future expansion. MasterFormat 2004 Edition now covers areas of engineering-heavy civil and process-not addressed in its predecessor, MasterFormat 95.
MasterFormat 2004 Edition is organized into five new subgroups:
- General Requirements
- Facility Construction
- Facility Services
- Site and Infrastructure
- Process Equipment
This new structure provides a clearer format for organizing information-helping users classify specifications in the designated divisions.
CSI also expanded the numbering system from five digits to six digits, which
