AIA Forum on Integrated Project Delivery and Lean Construction

I'm not sure about you but things can get pretty slow around here during the holidays. If you're slowing down already, or if you are interested in an exciting winter event to jumpstart your green holiday season, check out the Integrated Project Delivery and Lean Construction program Dec. 13 and 14.

The event Dec. 13 is on IPD and runs from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The event Dec. 14 is on lean

construction basics. Both are at the Mountaineers Program Center. The AIA, AGC of Washington and Lean Construction Institute are putting on the program.

If you haven't heard of IPD at this point, I'm guessing you live under a rock. It contractually links the owner, architect and contractor with shared financial risk and reward on a project. The text of the program flier words it perfectly: "For some, IPD is just the latest buzzword for collaboration, the latest nuance to evolving project delivery; for others IPD heralds a transformation of the A/E/C industry, leading to new professional roles, collaboration techniques, design and construction process, and final product."

I wrote about "true integrated project delivery" last December in this DJC article on Children's Bellevue, an IPD collaboration between Seattle Children's Hospital, NBBJ, Sellen Construction and Seneca Real Estate Group. It's a fascinating project and a great read.

Sustainably, IPD has the potential to really change the game. Often a problem cited in green development is that teams are brought on too late. But with IPD, all team members are brought on from the very beginning and allowed to flesh problems out on the front end. From a green perspective, this means more efficient or cutting edge systems can be added in holistically and potentially more successfully.

Speakers at the event include AP Hurd of Touchstone, Eric Smith of the University of Washington Capital Projects Office, Jay Halleran of NBBJ, Ken Sanders of Gensler, Scott Redman of Sellen, Ted Sive of Ted Sive Consulting and more.  It costs $195 for AIA members and will be worth your time.

However, IPD is intrinsically connected to lean construction principles. The event on Dec. 14 will focus on lean construction basics. Registration for that is $525.