Deliberate Words

What A Week! Efficiency Without Assumption

Season 2 Episode 30

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0:00 | 16:12

This week on What a Week, Dave Stutzman, Steve Gantner, and Elias Saltz explore how specification teams can create efficiencies when working on multiple projects for the same architect or owner. When projects share standards, assemblies, and delivery methods, there is an opportunity to build from common information rather than starting from scratch each time.

But efficiency comes with a warning: reused information can easily be mistaken for finished information. When a specification already looks complete, project-specific differences may receive less scrutiny, allowing outdated or incorrect requirements to slip through and potentially lead to conflicts or RFIs.

The conversation looks beyond simply copying projects and considers a more intentional approach: developing common requirements once, then using tools such as tagging to manage the differences between individual projects. Done well, that shared source can support multiple projects and potentially evolve into an owner guide specification. But it still requires ongoing review and maintenance as codes, materials, products, and project needs change.

The takeaway: efficiency comes from building on what you know, not assuming what worked before will work again.