Engineering Inc. - May/June 2008 - 38

CoAlItIoN UpdAtEs Coalitions address risk ManageMent, gPs MaChine guidanCe, Fee CalCulations The Council of american structural engineers (Case) made progress at its Winter Meeting on several member benefit initiatives: n Developed four new CASE Risk Management Tools to help members minimize risk, including a scope management checklist and a contract keyword scanning tool; n Updated CASE standard contracts and guidelines; n Initiated new claims consultation program to help firms reduce claims costs; and n Formed joint committee on Building Information Modeling (BIM) with the Structural Engineering Institute. CASE is a coalition of structural engineering firms within ACEC. It provides information and business practice products designed to increase profitability, improve quality, reduce liability and enhance management practices of structural engineering firms. Its Annual Summer Meeting will take place Aug. 20–22 in Minneapolis. For more information or to join CASE, visit the website: www. acec.org/coalitions/CASE. The Council of Professional surveyors (CoPs) developed recommended contract language and disclaimer notes to limit firms’ liability relative to the use of Global Positioning Systems machine guidance technology in the heavy equipment industry. COPS also updated standard contract forms and quality control review sheets for various project types and issued guidelines for project kickoff meetings and the release of electronic data. The Coalition joined with ACEC Government Affairs to address industry issues, including how to generate support in Congress for a National Surveyors Week and ensure that surveying graduates are eligible for loan forgiveness benefits under the proposed Higher Education Act. 38 ENGINEERING INC. MAY / JUNE 2008 COPS is a coalition of surveying firms within ACEC. Its goals are to strengthen the business environment and image of Member Firms with an emphasis on providing information about business practices and managing risk, and to be an advocate within ACEC for the interests of surveying firms. For more information or to join COPS, visit the website: www. acec.org/coalitions/COPS. The Council of american Mechanical & electrical engineers (CaMee) finalized free fee calculation spreadsheet for members. New standard contracts and risk management tools for mechanical/ electrical (M/E) firms is slated for release this summer. It also continued to sponsor teleconferences with the National Association of State Facilities Administrators (NASFA). Currently working on several business-related articles on BIM, LEED certification, environmental design, building commissioning and partnering with state agencies for industry magazines and trade publications, including Engineering Inc. and the ASHRAE Journal. In addition, CAMEE worked with ACEC to develop new education course on BIM for mechanical/electrical/plumbing engineers. Release date: June 20, 2008. CAMEE is a coalition of M/E engineering firms within ACEC. Its purpose is to recommend policies and develop programs to serve the needs of Member Firms engaged in M/E practice and to identify business needs of the M/E practitioner. For more information or to join CAMEE, visit the website: www.acec.org/coalitions/ CAMEE. n To obtain contract documents created by CASE, COPS and CAMEE, go to ACEC’s new Contracts Central: www.acec.org/cc.

http://www.acec.org/coalitions/CASE http://www.acec.org/coalitions/COPS http://www.acec.org/CAMEE/index.cfm http://www.acec.org/coalitions/CASE http://www.acec.org/coalitions/COPS http://www.acec.org/cc http://www.acec.org/CAMEE/index.cfm http://www.acec.org/CAMEE/index.cfm http://www.acec.org/cc

Engineering Inc. - May/June 2008

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