The Architect's Role with Means and Methods

The activities of the contractor during construction are often referred to as the means and methods. 

Scenario: The architect comes to the site for construction observation and notices that there are subcontractors that are working in a dangerous area without protection. The architect tells the subcontractors that they should remedy the situation and tells them how. 

What may seem like a situation of common courtesy can actually have dire consequences with the contractual structure of the relationships during a construction project. 

Only the contractor is responsible for the means and methods of the construction project, including the safety of those on site. In this scenario, the architect crossed a line. Dangerous situations occur all the time on construction projects, but the architect cannot make that determination or suggest a remedy. That is the sole responsibility of the contractor. The architect, in doing so, assumes risk. The issue is not so much about taking a chance and saying something so people don't get hurt; the issue comes with the correlation of risk and insurance. The architect, contractually, is not required to carry the insurance for the workers on the construction site. That is the responsibility of the contractor. If the architect starts to control the means and methods, he/she assumes that risk. If something goes wrong, the architect does not have the insurance to cover that liability. Therefore, the architect should avoid saying anything that would be misconstrued as controlling the means and methods or giving direction. That does not mean the architect must remain silent. The line is situated between saying something that sounds like giving an order and saying something that sounds like communicating a concern. The architect should be concerned with staying contractually compliant or risks getting into trouble.

Architect's Role in the Bidding Process

Per the AIA B101, the architect supplies certain basic services. Bidding and negotiation are two of those services.

During bidding and negotiation, it is important to remember that the architect is not the one who is responsible for contracting with a contractor for building a project-that is the owner's responsibility. The architect simply assists the owner in the process.

An owner is not expected to be well versed in the process of construction, as well as in bidding and negotiating. Owners are typically not up to date on pricing and the like because they are not as exposed to it, which is why the architect assists them in the process.

The architect assists in issuing documents for bid, soliciting bids, holding pre-bid conferences, providing clarifications, and so on.

Through all of these services, it is important to have a mindset of fairness. In conducting the process of bidding and negotiating, the architect should be fair to all parties and all prospective contractors regardless of their relationship and/or prior work history. 

If one prospective contractor asks a question (usually through a request for information, or RFI), that question should be answered with a reply to all prospective contractors (without identifying who raised the question). If there is an approved substitution request, that should be circulated to all prospective contractors through the issuance of addenda. 

While the bids received back from prospective contractors may not be equal, it is important that each bidder is treated equally during the bidding process. It not only makes for a fairer process, but it keeps liability at bay for the owner.

Integrated Project Delivery

The project delivery method determines the relationships, risks, and roles parties take in the contractual structure of how a project is going to be built. There is not one way to construct a building; it can be done through many different models. What determines those models is a set of factors typically in relation to budget, schedule, and roles of the parties involved. What has happened throughout time is the want for those parties to come together in collaboration as opposed to acrimony. This has been the reason for developing the design-build (DB) project delivery method where the architect and contractor are on a team as a single entity to be contracted with the owner. Where DB has started that relationship, the development of integrated project delivery (IPD) is taking it further. 

At its core, the modus operandi for IPD is for everyone involved in the project to share in the successes and failures. This is set up through some incentive (typically financial). However, IPD pushes these relationships beyond owner, architect, and contractor to include banks, citizens, municipalities, businesses and business structures, insurance, and so on. The benefits of IPD are reducing waste by maximizing the relationships and efficiencies of those involved, optimizing results, increasing value to the owner (and possibly community), and creating a more seamless process through collaboration. This process necessitates that team members be aware of the process and roles of other members. 

This process has many benefits, but it has been slow to take root with the process of allocating risk-and thus, insurance coverage. This remains the largest roadblock, currently, in attaining pure IPD. Where pure IPD models remain to be seen, IPD-like or IPD-lite are becoming much more common within the building industry; there is a supporting push within educational communities to explore this process through interdisciplinary design.

Benefits of Architect Licensing: Salary, Career Advancement, And More

As an ARE 5.0 exam prep provider, we often get asked what the benefits are of becoming a licensed architect. Becoming a licensed architect may seem like a daunting task, so whether licensure is worth it or not is often questioned. We get it-becoming licensed through the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) is a rigorous task, as licensure is achieved after taking and passing the following exams: 

• Practice Management
• Project Management
• Programming and Analysis
• Project Planning and Design
• Project Development and Documentation
• Construction and Evaluation

The whole process of becoming licensed seems like a lot of effort, and it is. But, becoming license can significantly help you in your career. Learn how below: 

Table of Contents

1. Increase Your Salary

2. Advance your career!

3. Open Your Own Firm

4. Help Your Company Grow

1. Increase Your Salary

This reason may seem obvious, but surprisingly is overlooked by many in the architecture field. Those who go above and beyond to get their architect license from NCARB are statistically benefitted by having a higher salary than those who don't. In fact, unlicensed architects earn an average of $58,000ⁱ, whereas a licensed architect can typically make between $79,000 and $138,000ⁱⁱ. If you're struggling among the idea of paying NCARB exam fees, dedicating a large amount of time to prepare for the six different exam divisions and avoiding the exam stress all together, taking the licensure exams and becoming a licensed architect will pay off in the long run.

2. Advance your career! 

Job searching is hard enough as it is, but trying to find a job as an unlicensed architect can be really difficult as there are only a few positions unlicensed architects can be employed in (such as a building designer). There are also restrictions to what jobs unlicensed architects can partake in. For example, unlicensed architects are typically restrained to work on buildings that are under 3 stories tall. https://archinect.com/news/article/150003646/five-reasons-why-you-should-get-your-architecture-license

3. Open Your Own Firm

This one is for those who dream big and want to be their own bosses.

On a similar note as advancing one's career, architects can neither open their own firms without a license nor become a principal architect. 

4. Help Your Company Grow

Throughout this article, we've focused on how to obtain an architect license that can help you as an individual professional. However, becoming licensed can also help the company or firm that you work for. When you, as an employee, become a licensed architect, you are also helping your firm look more valuable to prospective clients. The more licensed architects a firm employs, the more impressive it looks. And, as a bonus: the more clients a firm gets, the chance of getting a higher salary increases!

Convinced? We hope so! If you're wondering how to begin the journey of becoming a licensed architect, check out our ARE 5.0 exam review courses. Prepare, practice, pass!

References

i. How to Earn a Six Figure Architect Salary. Retrieved from: https://www.thearchitectsguide.com/blog/six-figure-architecture-salary

ii. Architects: Occupational Outlook Handbook. Retrieved from: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-engineering/architects.htm

iii. Five Reasons Why You Should Get Your Architecture License. Retrieved from: https://archinect.com/news/article/150003646/five-reasons-why-you-should-get-your-architecture-license

Top 10 Most Impressive Structures Ever Built

During the designing and construction of a structure, such as a building or bridge, both architectural engineers and structural engineers work together to not only design the structure but to make sure it is practical and safe. When looking at skyscrapers or obscurely shaped buildings, it is sometimes surprising how designers and builders pulled something that advanced off (maybe it's from the knowledge they obtained in a PE Architectural or Structural Engineering review course)! 

Interested in seeing what structural and architectural engineers are capable of? Check out these ten impressive structures below:

Table of Contents

1. Burj Khalifa

2. The Shard

3. The Cadet Chapel

4. Petronas Towers

5. Niteroi Contemporary Art Museum

6. Magdeburg Water Bridge

7. Helix Bridge

8. Hangzhou Bay Bridge

9. Jiaozhou Bay Bridge

10. Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burj_Khalifa 

1. Burj Khalifa

The Burj Khalifa, located in Dubai, is considered impressive because of its extreme height. This tall building is 163 stories high and includes 57 elevators! The building's height reaches 829.8 meters (2,722 feet). The Burj Khalifa actually currently holds 16 records including the world's highest elevator installation, the world's highest observation deck (the deck being on the 124th floor), and of course, the tallest structure ever built.

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shard 

2. The Shard

The Shard towers over the city of London with the height of 95-stories. In 2012, the building was recorded as the tallest completed European building with its highest point being at an impressive 309.6 meters high. The total time of construction lasted for 3 years, beginning March 2009 and ending in November 2012. Other than its impressive height and overall design, one other factor that makes this building so impressive is that 95% of the construction supplies used were made from recycled materials. 

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Air_Force_Academy_Cadet_Chapel 

3. The Cadet Chapel 

The Cadet Chapel in Colorado Springs, Colorado, was constructed in 1962 for the United States Air Force Academy and includes 6 different sections: the Protestant chapel, the Catholic chapel, the Jewish chapel, the Buddhist chapel, the Falcon Circle, and an all-faiths rooms for smaller religious congregations. The seventeen spires that top the chapel are the most impressive feature the building has to offer. Each spear pierces the Colorado sky at 150 feet in height.

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petronas_Towers 

4. Petronas Towers 

If you ever travel to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the Petronas Towers are a must-see. These twin towers stand over the city at 452 meters (1,483 feet) tall. The two sky scrapers are considered the world's tallest twin buildings. Inside the towers feature luxurious shopping centers and office suites. The towers are also connected via a sky bridge on the 41st and 42nd floors. Because of the extreme height and the window-heavy design of the structures, it actually would take a total of two months to clean all of the windows!

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niter%C3%B3i_Contemporary_Art_Museum 

5. Niteroi Contemporary Art Museum 

Talk about a balancing act! The Niteroi Contemporary Art Museum located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, sits on cliffside offering tourists and locals not only a modernized-designed building to look at, but also beautiful art displays. The building was built to hover over a pool of water, which creates an illusion that the building is a flying saucer.

Images retrieved from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wasserstra%C3%9Fenkreuz_Magdeburg_Jun_2012_9.JPG

6. Magdeburg Water Bridge 

Bridges are usually used for vehicles to travel over water, right? Well, the Magdeburg Water Bridge, located in Germany, actually provides a way to travel over the Elbe-Havel canal via water. This structure is an aqueduct for commercial ships and boats to travel between Berlin and Rhineland without having to travel through the canal itself. The sides of the aqueduct also provide walking and biking paths for pedestrians.

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helix_Bridge 

7. Helix Bridge 

Singapore is known for its impressive structures and architecture. The Helix Bridge is a magnificent structure in Singapore that was designed to mimic DNA. The stainless-steel pedestrian bridge has earned numerous awards and recognition over the years, including the "World's Best Transport" award.

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hangzhou_Bay_Bridge 

8. Hangzhou Bay Bridge 

The Hangzhou Bay Bridge, which opened in 2008, connects the Zhejiang Chinese provinces Jiaxing and Ningbo. This stayed-cable bridge may look like an ordinary bridge from afar, but what makes it so impressive is that it is 22 miles long. Branching over the Hangzhou Bay, the bridge has immensely helped with travel times. For example, instead of traveling four hours from Ningbo to Shanghai, the bridge offers a decreased travel time of two hours.

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiaozhou_Bay_Bridge

9. Jiaozhou Bay Bridge 

Similar to the Hangzhou bridge, this bridge stretches across a bay to significantly decrease travel time. The bridge stands over the Jiaozhou Bay and connects Quingdao and Huangdao. The Jiaozhou Bay Bridge currently holds the Guinness World Record for the world's longest bridge over water with the total length being 16.6 miles long.

Image retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong%E2%80%93Zhuhai%E2%80%93Macao_Bridge 

10. Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge

Part bridge and part under-sea tunnel, the Hong-Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is the recorded as the longest cross-sea bridge in the world. The bridge section stretches over 18.4 miles before diving into 4.2 miles of tunnel. This bridge provides easy access between China, Macau, and Hong Kong. Currently, the bridge and tunnel system have not officially opened to the public yet as construction is still being finalized, but it will take the Guinness World Record from the Jiaozhou Bay Bridge for the longest bridge over water record when construction is completed.

Architectural Engineering: The Field of Multiple Trades

Why is architecture so difficult yet such a rewarding field to get into? Architectural engineering is a vast and diverse field that requires knowledge of various other field-specific engineering subjects. Those who go into the field of architectural engineering utilize both technology and science to design buildings to improve overall living conditions, accessibility, and quality of life.

When comparing architectural engineers to other professional engineers in differing specialties, architects really do stand out considering the amount of knowledge that is needed to become licensed. For instance, the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) Professional Engineering (PE) Architectural license exam includes multiple subjects that can be found on other professional engineering exams. 

Below are the architecture engineering subjects that are found on NCEES' architectural licensing exam:

1. Building Systems Integration
2. Electrical Systems
3. Mechanical Systems
4. Structural Systems 
5. Project Management and Construction Administration

NCEES administers individual exams for a majority of the subjects above. For example, PE Civil, PE Mechanical, PE Electrical, and Structural Engineering (SE) exams are offered as licensing exams through the organization.

Why do architectural engineers need to master so many subjects? The answer is relatively simple. When designing a building, it is necessary to consider not only the structure but also the mechanical and electrical aspects of the building. 

If you have an interest in designing buildings and love a challenge, obtaining a PE Architectural license may be right for you. As a professional architectural engineer, you will have bragging rights to say that you are knowledgeable in multiple trades.