The second half of our Structural Exam Review went very well. Good Luck to the test takers. Email me for an electronic copy of the sample questions and answers for more practice. The graphic portion of this division and all other divisions will be covered by a separate LearnSHOP program at a later date. Keep checking back for more ARE Shop updates. NEXT A.R.E. SHOP: Sep. 26 covering Construction Documents and Services. Hope to see you there.
LEED Tiers:
Tier I: LEED Green Associate
To be eligible, you must “Be employed in a sustainable field of work or engaged in an education program in green building principals and LEED.” A biannual education maintenance of 15 hours is required to maintain this status.
Tier II: LEED Accredited Professional
To be eligible, you must “Document work on a LEED project, within the last two–three years.” A biannual education of 30 hours is required to maintain this status.
LEED APs at this level will be distinguished by a specialty, including:
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ID+C (interiors)
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BD+C (new construction)
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O+M (operations & maintenance)
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HOMES (um, homes)
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ND (neighborhood development)
Tier III: LEED AP Fellow
To be eligible, you must demonstrate “Major contributions to the standards of practice and body of knowledge for achieving continuous improvement in the green building field.” Applicants obtain this credential via peer review.
Helpful Websites:
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US Green Building Council – www.usgbc.org
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Green Building Certification Institute – www.gbci.org
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LEED Visual – a pictograph of some LEED credits – www.leedvisual.com
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Athena Institute EcoCalculator – www.athenasmi.org/tools/ecoCalculator/index.html
1) Responsibility for Disposal of Hazardous waste
2) Project Closeout, know who initiates
3) When the contractor is entitled to final payment
4) Understand punch list (i.e. A punch list is initated before final payment, and the items listed therein can be completed after substantial completion)
5) Understand what “time” means in A201
6) Know the differences between and purposes of the following:
-change order (substantial change to cost/construction time)
-architect’s supplemental instructions(minor change, no money, no time extension)
-construction change directives (a change order that is not agreed to by contractor)
7) Responsibility of consultant to the architect (C141)
8 ) Know Who is responsible for coordination of work or lack thereof on construction site, and who has to pay as
a result of the latter (the contractor)
9) Know how contractor communicates with the owner (A201)
10) Know how contractor communicates with other contractors/subcontractors directly hired by the owner (A201)
11) Know the logical order of the drawings (how the disciplines are ordered, as well as how the architectural drawings could be ordered etc.)
12) How bids are awarded (the process), and how bids are awarded on public projects
13) Know bidding/negotiation (i.e., architect conducts bidding or negotiation….not both)
14) Some Acoustics questions, Know how to control sound through the use of partitions
15) ADA – ramps, headroom under stairs, guardrails, hallways, wheelchair access
16) Maximum length of a dead end corridor is typically 20ft.
17) Codes – purpose of a building code vs. a zoning ordinace, and what each affects
18) NFPA 101 is for life safety
19) Know purposes of drawings (i.e., the structural framing plan and architectural sections are good for determining necessary plenum heights)
20) What information is typically shown in a a site plan
21) Know What kind of information is shown on electrical site plan
22) Know purpose of and difference between bonds and insurance
23) Know when a subcontractor will need to claim against a performance bond (public project) and when they will file mechanic’s lien (typical if not paid)
25) How each engineer contributes (i.e., The civil engineer can devise a stormwater management plan (site specific), while the plumbing engineer deals with the roof drains (building specific))
Also read the B141 and A201 contracts
Building Section Vignette:
1) All about Practicing the software.
2) All about Norman Dorf. Use his solutions book. it is invaluable
3) Try at least two solutions for each vignette on the NCARB practice software, then ask questions on the ARE forum
Today at The LearnShop, I hosted a great brand building workshop and met some awesome LearnShoppers trying to build their personal brands. Digging deep into your brand is an exciting task and if you don’t do it no one will.
Know that you must believe your brand is king in all arenas, so don’t forget the online world. If you are reading this post, you know how to turn a computer on and what “www” means. So if you are not googleable (is that a word?), there’s no excuse. You must have an online presence in this day and age, so get ready to ask the web “who’s your daddy.”
Here are two tips on great ways to build your personal brand via the web.
1. Take a niche and start a blog – Take a look around web and see what people in your field are chatting about. Now it’s time to strike, carve out a niche of a popular category or trend. Go to WordPress and start blogging.
2. Podcast – If you have a microphone you could create an audio podcast of your voice or maybe even an interview. Put it up on iTunes or PodBean. Got a camera or webcam? Well, get to recording a video, it’s a great way to interact with your audience and for people to get a great taste of your groovy personality and charisma that I know is oozing out of your pores. Check out TubeMogul it will put your video on You Tube, Vimeo, Viddler, and many more.
Happy Brand Building!!
