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The Best of the Best

Each year different regions throughout the United States are awarded “Best of” awards through McGraw-Hill Construction.  In 2009, 40 projects were awarded in the Mid-Atlantic region for being the very best in one of the nation’s top construction markets.

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Providing Design Skills to Non-Profit Groups

Hours contributed by architecture firms are increasing

Public Architecture is a non-profit organization that addresses the issues involved in the design of public spaces and amenities. One of its programs is The 1% (www.theonepercent.org), which challenges architecture firms to pledge one percent of their billable hours to pro bono services.

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“An added ‘fitness for purpose’ clause is scuppering my PI cover.”

If the statement sounds strange, it is to American ears. But if you are British it makes perfectly good sense. It is part of a question asked of the executive director of the Royal Institute of British Architects Professional Services program.

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Debating Sustainability at the World Economic Forum

It is fairly clear that incorporating sustainability concepts is increasingly part of the normal standard of care expected of design professionals. Whether it’s through the use of third-party certification programs like LEED™, or designing to new codes like ASHRAE 189, design professionals are using fairly new tools to help define and meet sustainability concepts.

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Checking Staff Credentials

The Baltimore Sun recently reported on upcoming trials of individuals who were posing as licensed architects and engineers. Firms should have standard procedures in place to check the credentials of all job applicants before hiring decisions are made. Checking the credentials of job applicants helps reduce the risk of hiring an unlicensed individual.

In light of these recent revelations in Maryland, firms may also want to consider checking the credentials of all current employees if a standard procedure to check credentials has not been in place.

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Avoiding Copyright and Software Infringement

The AIA National Ethics Council hears cases that have been filed against AIA members for breaching the Code of Ethics. The Council’s heaviest caseload comes from architects taking credit for other people’s work. Due to the evolving design technologies, taking credit for other people’s work is much easier now than it used to be.

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