Practice Management Member Conversations

Slippery slope and getting steeper. Every down economic cycle the pressure increases to walk into an interview with opportunity specific design work, based on hard earned knowledge, in hand. The increase in the design build industry, particularly in the federal market place furthers architectural service commoditiazion and the "opportunity" to design at risk. The qualifications based selection process continues to dwindle and is becoming the exception rather than the norm. .

Years ago, when asked in an interview how would "he do it?" my old boss, Jack Quinlivan responded "that's why you hire us."   
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David McNeil AIA
QPK Design Architecture Engineering Site & Planning
QPK Design Architecture
Syracuse NY
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I concur with this sentiment.  I drafted a petition on "We the People" last night and we need 150 signatures for it to surface in public view and 25,000 signatures for the Obama administration to address it.  Please sign it!  The link is below.






 
Here's some more information about this petition:
 
 
We request the Obama administration 
require agencies that procure A/E/C services through the use of  
Design-Build procurement pay a stipend to losing teams

 

The design & construction industry has been the hardest hit sector of 

the economic recession.  During the last several years, fedeeral agencies 

have been procuring Design-Build services which can require teams to spend 

hundreds of thosounds or millions of dollars in the pursuit of major projects 

only to lose the entire investment.  Other countries (Canada) have laws 

making it illegal to force architects and engineers deliver free services for 

government procurement.  This petition request that all federal agencies pay 

a stipend to the losing firms (the winning firm wins the contract) in order 

to foster greater participation by an industry still recovering from the 

recession and reward the intensive work effort that benefits the government.

You can view and sign the petition here:

http://wh.gov/RMhz

 

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James Draheim AIA
Sr. VP - National Director - Facilities
URS Corporation
Washington DC
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I drafted a petition on "We the People" last night and we need 150 signatures for it to surface in public view and 25,000 signatures for the Obama administration to address it.  Please sign it!  The link is below.

Here's some more information about this petition:

We request the Obama administration 

require agencies that procure A/E/C services through the use of 

Design-Build procurement pay a stipend to losing teams

The design & construction industry has been the hardest hit sector of 

the economic recession.  During the last several years, federal agencies 

have been procuring Design-Build services which can require teams to spend 

hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars in the pursuit of major projects 

only to lose the entire investment.  Other countries (Canada) have laws 

making it illegal to force architects and engineers deliver free services for 

government procurement.  This petition request that all federal agencies pay 

a stipend to the losing firms (the winning firm wins the contract) in order 

to foster greater participation by an industry still recovering from the 

recession and reward the intensive work effort that benefits the government.

You can view and sign the petition here:

http://wh.gov/RMhz

-------------------------------------------
James Draheim AIA
Sr. VP - National Director - Facilities
URS Corporation
Washington DC
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