Save September 27 - 29, 2007, on your calendar and pack your bags for London. To educate construction users and design-build teams on the international market in the US and UK, DBIA has teamed up with AIA to present a line up of world-class speakers in London.
Why London?
Design-build is growing world-wide. In 2005, The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) asked its members to rank Drivers for Change in the Last Decade. The number one factor reported was, “new procurement methods — Design & Build.” RIBA’s recent report, Constructive Change, recommends that if architects are committed to giving the best value to their clients (owners and future users), they “must improve greatly the coherence of the industry — to build more effective teams, which will require better interfaces between members of the whole supply chain, and very probably some fusion of its parts.” The report continued, “The key improvement to pursue at present lies in the interface between designers and constructors.” This conference addresses that interface and these issues internationally in improving communication between designer and contractor, including technological advances, such as Building Information Modeling (BIM).
The UK Market
In the UK as in the US, there has been increased use of design-build — identified as EPC (Engineer Procure Construct), design and build, or PFI (Private Finance Initiative). A 2005 RIBA report found that alternative project delivery was more than 60 percent of the UK market. The University of Reading reported that design-build emerged within the UK building industry during the 1970s and early 80s to provide a greater degree of certainty for clients who wanted an integrated form of project delivery to overcome cost and time overruns and reduce costly claims and possible litigation — the same concerns that have driven design-build in the US. By 1998, less than 40 percent of construction in the UK was procured by the traditional method, a sharp decline from the 70 percent in the mid-80s. RIBA found that, “The use of these alternative methods, in particular design and build, has now consolidated and is almost universal in some sections.” RIBA asks the question, “What Can I Do?” Their answer, “Get Involved!” RIBA Position Statement, Architects and the Changing Construction Industry.
“Alternative methods are growing in importance,” says Harold Adams, FAIA, RIBA, JIA, a past chair of DBIA. “The AIA/DBIA program will explore methods being used in the UK and Europe.”
“With design-build burgeoning in Europe it seems appropriate — almost obligatory — for both our organizations to prepare to take an active role in leading this effort,” adds Lee Evey, DBIA president. “Given that our collaborations in recent years have proven to bring mutual benefit, we look forward to an open dialogue with regards to the future of this event and how we could join these efforts.”
Conference Agenda
The conference will be held at RIBA offices and will include a day-and-a-half of great speakers and breakout sessions, followed by tours of two top design-build projects in London. Two evening receptions will provide an opportunity to network and meet conference speakers. This conference will include presentations by two Pritzker Prize winning architects, Zaha Hadid and Thom Mayne, as well as a panel discussion by the current presidents and chairs of AIA, DBIA, and RIBA. Lee Evey, president, DBIA, and Rebekah Gladson, chair, DBIA, will speak as well as Architectural Record editor-in-chief Bob Ivy, FAIA, and other top architects, owners, and design-builders from both sides of the pond. Topics include private finance initiatives, design-build competitions, the architect’s changing role, international alliance for interoperability, how to lead design-build, education, and comparing design-build between the US and UK.
Members of DBIA, AIA, and RIBA receive discounted registration fees. Seating is limited and early registration is recommended. You won’t want to miss this conference, so register today and we’ll see you in jolly old London this September!
G. William Quatman, FAIA, DBIA
INFO: American Institute of Architects (www.aia.org/db)