IPD, UBP, CIPO, PI, CAM’s and the BCE
The title of this blog post may sound like bureaucratic acronym speak, but I promise you each capital letter is meaningful. IPD or Integrated Project Delivery, UBP or […]
Common Data Environments (CDE’s), and the BCE
Collaboration, Lean Construction, Six Sigma have been industry buzz words for some time now. Each implies a certain approach to team building, data structure and sharing, work flows, decision making, and […]
White Paper One: Building is Changing Are You?
One of our greatest public works yet, White Paper 1, will uncover all the current problems in the building world […]
What Is the Meaning of Optimized Building?
Both industry professionals and members of the general public often have a hard time describing what constitutes a great building. Typically, people cite a cool exterior and/or interior […]
Successful Innovation Is Always a Zero-Sum Game
When I was a kid, bringing home a new toy, piece of sports equipment, or gadget always gave me a special feeling of excitement. I have vivid memories […]
The White Papers Are Here
Click Here To View (Est. read time: 5 mins) The white papers are coming! Check out this introduction for a […]
DYK: Set Course for Tatooine
Did you know that according to astrophysicists and Einsteins theory of relativity, a warp drive is physically possible? Now we […]
Food and Building Got it Wrong!!
In an earlier blog post I tried to establish parameters around what the definitions of quality for Building might look like. In looking at this issue for […]
The Borg vs. Kirk vs. Spock
What does Building’s future decision-making look like? Star Trek offers us three models, each embodied in a specific character. Will it be based on intuitive insight drawn from rich and […]
DYK: Android Ate the Apple
Did you know Apple’s iPad retina display is actually manufactured by Samsung!?
Systems, Standards, Templates, Workflows & Modules
Music, mathematics, language, computer coding are all highly formulated and structured, yet at the same time, recognized as some of our most creative systems. […]
Ignorance is Not Bliss
At any given point in time there is a ratio of Knowledge, Resources, Skill-Sets and Customs (KRSC) that combine to provide a potential optimum for […]
Change is Tectonic
CHANGE IS TECTONIC The current group of blog posts are being written in a very uncertain environment. Testing has just begun […]
DYK: Construction Industry’s Place in the Market
Did you know the construction industry has an average unlevered beta of about 1.33? This means that if the market […]
DYK: The Healthcare Budget
Did you know that the U.S. spends 3.5 trillion on healthcare per year? This is more than every other country and about […]
VICIOUS vs. VIRTUOUS CYCLES
VICIOUS VERSUS VIRTUOUS CYCLES I would argue that all of our activity, both in business and in everyday life, can be organized into one of two cycles: […]
Back To The Future
Back to the Future A brief look backward into Building’s history and an even briefer glimpse into Building’s future A […]
They Don’t Build Them Like They Used To
Growing up I would often hear the phrase “they don’t build them like they used to.” The saying implies that […]
Does Technology Make Life Better?
I made my first big tech purchase in the early 1980’s. At the time, it felt like a rite of […]
The Thrill of Victory (Winning) and the Agony of Defeat (Losing)
If you ever played on a seesaw in your younger years, you know that it helps to have a partner […]
Money, Money, Money!!
One evening in 1983, I was drinking beers with a friend and discussing how I was going to turn my […]
Expressways, Expectations, Happiness
Expressway Syndrome Do any of you remember living through the creation of a new expressway? In the Chicago area, there […]
Good Questions Can Answer Themselves
Eureka! Have you ever found yourself driving down the highway obsessing over a seemingly impossible problem Then, all of a […]
Good vs. Bad Just Makes No Cents
Team Building and Successful Decision Making Good vs. Bad Just Makes No Cents When I am sitting with friends, clients […]
Work Self Worth
Technology, Work and Self Worth Some of the best, smartest and most self-confident people I know are in Building. […]
Building Ain’t Brain Surgery
“It’s not brain surgery.” The saying implies that the activity in question is relatively simple in comparison with the difficulty […]
The New Order
When you look at the image that introduces this blog post, do you the think the modular structure of the […]
Just The Facts
IN THE IMMORTAL WORDS OF JOE FRIDAY: “Just the Facts Ma’am, Just the Facts” What are Data, Facts and Knowledge? Who […]
Regulate Schmegulate
It was 1983, in Lincoln Park, and I was three months into my first Design/Build/Development project. My partner and I […]
My Story
I’ve been interested in building and buildings since I was a little kid. I have many childhood memories that involve […]
DYK: Sandy Times Two…
Did you know that if global warming continues, floods storms and Hurricanes will become stronger and more destructive to coastal […]
DYK: Do You Hear Something?
Did you know there has been a 239 percent growth of drone use in the construction industry in the past […]
DYK: Tower of Terror
Did you know that the world’s fastest elevator located in Shanghai Tower and goes 40 feet per minute!
DYK: Dreidel Dreidel
Did you know Hanukkah commemorates the triumph of a band of rebel Jews known as the Maccabees in reclaiming their […]
DYK: Rollo The Rednose Reality
Did you know, Rudolph, who now resides at the North Pole, was born in Chicago in 1939? The Montgomery Ward […]
DYK: The Newborn King
Did you know that although Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, there is no mention of December 25 in the Bible.!? […]
DYK: Rise & Shine
Did you know that Space missions have been using solar energy to power spaceships since 1958, including the International Space […]
DYK: Letting The Bubble Pop
Did you know in 2009 after the housing market crash a small business filed for bankruptcy every eight minutes?