Collaborative Construction Blog

Existing Delivery Mechanisms Failing

2012-01-30T09:53:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Existing mechanisms for delivering planning, design and constrcution services - both in the government and private sectors - are badly broken and need to be replaced. Integrated project delivery, building information models are two innovative delivery mechanisms that should be studied more closely. Though innovative new business processes are required to successfully achieve IPD and BIM the benefits associated with these new delivery mechanisms far out weigh the costs of imlementing them.

Existing mechanisms for governing - both in the government and private sectors - may benefit from an overhaul similar to the one being considered by the AECO industry. The article linked below, from which the following excerpts are taken, expands on this thought.

There were problems with the blue model. It abided systematic discrimination against women and minorities, and a case can be made that it depended on that discrimination to some degree. Consumers had little leverage: If you didn’t like the way the phone company treated you, you were free to do without phone service, and if you didn’t like poorly made Detroit gas guzzlers that fell apart in a few years, you could get a horse. The system slowed innovation, too; AT&T discouraged investments in new telecommunications technologies. Rival companies and upstart firms were barred from controlled markets by explicit laws and regulations intended to stabilize the position of leading companies. By some accounts, too, the quarter century after World War II was a period of stultifying cultural conformity. In this prologue to the end of History, some “last men”, from the Beatniks to Lennie Bruce to Andy Warhol to Lou Reed, were already bored, resenting the pressure to conform that the mass consumption, Fordist era entailed.

The blue model began to decay in the 1970s. Foreign manufacturers recovered from the devastation of World War II and in many cases had more efficient and advanced factories than lazy, sclerotic American firms. German and Japanese goods challenged American automobile and electronic companies. The growth of offshore financial markets forced the U.S. financial services industry to become more flexible as both borrowers and lenders were increasingly able to work around the regulations and the oligopolies of the domestic market. Demand for new communications services created an appetite for competition against Ma Bell. The consumer movement attacked regulations designed to protect big companies. As a sign of the times, Ted Kennedy, of all people, cosponsored a bill to deregulate the airlines. Anti-corporate liberals rebelled at the way government power and regulation allowed corporations to give consumers the shaft. The new environmental movement pointed to the problem of privately caused but publicly paid-for externalities like air and water pollution.

Blue Governance Model Failing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Fracking Technology Evolving

2012-01-23T10:22:00.000-05:00

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With billions of barrels of oil trapped in shale formations around the world - not to mention trillions of cubic fee to natural gas - its no wonder the energy industry has developed innovative new ways to get at those trapped reserves. The latest developments on the fracking front are detailed in the article linked below.

I am presenting at the Western Canadian Construction Superconference this week and I will be in contact with a lot of folks in the energy sector. I will gather information on where these folks are with IPD, BIM and lean processes and report my findings. I anticipate there being some opportunities for advocates of these processes to positively influence the process and the environment. Especially when it comes to water use and re-use. I'll keep everyone posted.

New Fracking Techniques

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Keystone Pipeline Rejected... to protected the environment

2012-01-18T15:12:00.000-05:00

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Jobs? We don't need no stinking JOBS. We're all GREEN now.

Anybody else think a pipeline to the Pacific that ships the oil in tankers to China will be MORE environmentally friendly than a pipeline from Alberta to Gulf Coast?

Obama Rejects Keystone Pipeline

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Drill baby drill.... says Obama's Job Council?

2012-01-18T14:57:00.000-05:00

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Not sure how to square this report with the aggressive effort to strangle oil production in the Gulf, prevent drilling off the east and west coasts, in Alaska and in the mountain west. Maybe the Obama Administration is turning over a new leaf. We shall see.

Drill baby drill

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Oil Refinery on Island of St. Croix Shuttered - More jobs circle the drain

2012-01-18T14:23:00.000-05:00

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Oil refineries? We don't need no stinkin oil refineries. We're all GREEN now.

“This is a blow in the gut,” Senator Terrence Nelson told The Associated Press. “We have to organize an economic plan, and it might involve assistance from the federal government.”
Nelson accused Hovensa of violating a long-term agreement with the government to continue refinery operations on the island. Nelson said it is unclear what Hovensa will need to do to compensate the government for breaching the agreement.
“It’s devastating,” Senator Samuel Sanes said. “It was something I suspected was going to happen, but of course it took me by surprise. On a personal level it affects many people in my family. I have many in my family working for Hovensa.”
In January, Hovensa entered into a consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Justice Department in which the company agreed to invest $700 million on pollution controls after a series of chemical releases affected people living downwind from the refinery. Hovensa also agreed to pay a $5.4 million penalty for violating the Clean Air Act.

I wonder if the need to invest an additional $700 million in the plant could be part of the problem with keeping the enterprise afloat? I wonder, also, why we have 60+ year old oil refining facilities and no permits for construction of new oil refineries have been issued in 30+ years? I wonder if Obama's promise that "electricity prices will necessarily sky rocket" and his assurance that we would be paying higher prices for gasoline were part of a bigger plan?

It's almost as if the Obama Administration WANTS higher energy prices or something isn't it?

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

What if the doers went on strike?

2012-01-17T09:46:00.000-05:00

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Society pays an inordinate amount of attention to whether and to what degree things are "equal". Conservatives clamour for "equal opportunity" while liberals - or is the politically correct term now "proggressives"? - insist the government support "equal distribution" of material things. Both camps ignore a disparity that really matters and is universally present. The disparity, in all societies, between those capable of creating wealth and those who are not. Throughout the centuries risk takers and dreamers have led innovative revolutions and reaped the rewards. I call these folks the "doers".

There are a lot of "doers" among those who advocate the use of IPD, BIM and lean processes in the BUILT environment. And those "doers" exist on every continent, in every racial group and come in every political stripe.

Lately, society has been highly critical of the "doers", with many calling for the "doers" to "pay their fair share" - whatever that means - and generally lamenting the fact that the "doers" have more stuff than others. The article below, by Thomas Sowell, addresses disparities in the ability to create wealth in an insightful way. Sowell says, in part:

It is a phenomenon among particular racial, ethnic or other groups in countries around the world — the Ibos in Nigeria, the Parsees in India, the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Germans in Brazil, Chinese in Malaysia, Lebanese in West Africa, Tamils in Sri Lanka. The list goes on and on.

Gross inequalities in skills and achievements have been the rule, not the exception, on every inhabited continent and for centuries on end. Yet our laws and government policies act as if any significant statistical difference between racial or ethnic groups in employment or income can only be a result of their being treated differently by others.

Read the whole thing.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

IPD & BIM Resources

2012-01-13T14:08:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I've gathered an eclectic pile of IPD and BIM related resources over the past few years. Below are links to a few of the materials available on the web readers may find useful. I'll add more from time to time but this is a good place to start for anyone seeking information.

BIM Execution Plan - PSU - Link to website

BIM Project Execution Guide - PSU - Link to request page for word template

IPD Guide - AIA Publication - Link to AIA download page

IPD Case Studies 2010 - AIA 2010 - Link to AIA download page

IPD Case Studies 2011 - AIA 2011 - Link to AIA download page

IPD A Working Definition AIA/AIACC 2008 - Link to PDF

IPD For Public & Private Owners - COAA, NASFA, APPA, AIA & AGC 2010 - Link to PDF

Project Alliancing Practitioner's Guide - Victoria Government, Australia 2006 - Link to PDF

IPD Docs from AIA and ConsensusDOCS - Collaborative Construction 2008 - Link to AGC presentation

ConsensusDOCS 301 BIM Addendum - Rick Lowe and Jason Muncey - Link to ABA article from 2009

Aligning Data for the Life Cycle - ENR March 7, 2011 - Link to Collaborative Construction Blog Post

Negotiating an Integrated Project Delivery Agreement - Hanson Bridgett 2011

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Hans Rosling is Baaaaaack!

2012-01-13T09:54:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Here's another great video from Hans Rosling discussing data, poverty etc.

Enjoy.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Googlize My Body; Googlize My BIM

2012-01-13T09:34:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Readers familiar with the Functional Digital Asset series and the Wicked Solutions series I authored for AUGIWorld Magazine last year know one mantra in my world is mastery of the information rich data stream that flows through the BUILT environment. BIM enables us to visualize and manage that data more effectively. Below I'm linking to two thought provoking items. The first is what I refer to as the Googlization of our bodies and the second is a link to a blog post by WPS that lists 10 "Truths About BIM."

Virtual design and construction tools are "Googlizing BIM" - hat tip to Gregory Arkin, author of the bimboom blog and the Director of BIM Strategy at ACAI & Associates in Florida for that phrase and apologize to others who may used it before out of earshot - just as scientists are "Googlizing" our bodies. The ramifications of routine and easy access to vast swaths of information rich data are mind boggling.

While not as compelling visually as the video above, the blog post below, by WSP's Bridget Kennerely, is insightful and mentions a study commissioned by WSP that I have ordered and will review upon receipt. Truth No. 10, which proclaims BIM to be the DNA of construction ties the video above to the post title nicely.

10 Truths About BIM

Vote early, vote often vote dead

2012-01-12T00:12:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

For all my liberal friends who insist dead people don't vote in Chicago and other places that don't require voter ID like those evil Republicans do here's a bit of tape from NH which apparently doesn't require voter ID either.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Central Planning Fails

2012-01-11T08:50:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The article linked below strikes another blow to the "urban renewal" myth that permeates the planning community. Given the decay, decadence and decline rampant in our own city centers its hard to imagine planning more of the same, but that's exactly what Vietnam seems to have done. Planning itself is not bad, but there needs to be some recognition of what the folks in the area want.

I'm reminded of the excellent book by Rick Harrison, Preferbia, in which he details the America's love of the suburb. This highlights the theme of loving your monsters and performing a little sustainable ju-jit-su on the processes.

No One Wants to Move to Vietnam's New Cities

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Old Blog Post on VEO-LUX

2012-01-10T17:55:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The 3 minute video introducing VEO's new rendering tool made the rounds on LinkedIn and the blogs today. Thought I would link to the old blog post below that provides a little bit more information. Am looking forward to the coming discussion of the new tool.

VEO News Blog

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

BIM Enabled Firms Enter Strategic Alliance

2012-01-10T17:15:00.000-05:00

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BRICSNET and MABEC join forces to leverage geo-spacial data in the FM world and round trip it to and from the BIM world. It's almost as if they had recently talked to somebody who edits the BUILT - BIM to FM section of AUGIWorld Magazine isn't it? Actually, I've got business cards from BRICSNET's Fuhrman and MABEC's Ghere laying on my desk and I kicked some of ideas around with each of them after the DC BIMStorm.

Glad to see these kind of collaborative efforts taking place.

Below is an excerpt from the press release.

Bricsnet FM America, Inc. and MABEC Group, Inc. today formalized a strategic alliance to create a bi-directional data exchange between cloud-based BIM databases and Bricsnet, the corporate real estate/facilities management tool.

Link to the press release.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

ConXtech Model Coordination.

2012-01-08T02:44:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

A little more from the folks at ConXtech.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

ConXtech Animation

2012-01-08T02:06:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

One of the suppliers in the US that is fully BIM enabled and ready to operate in an IPD environment is ConXtech. The patented collar system increases precision and speeds construction. The video below is an animation that shows how the system works.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

30 Story Hotel Built in China in 15 Days

2012-01-07T20:49:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Can you say IPD, BIM and lean processes? The Chinese got way out in front of us when they leveraged virtual design and construction tools, processes and software to build out infrastructure for the Olympics. And they haven't looked back since. One big difference is the government is, for all practical purposes, the client in China and the government stays out of the way while planners plan, designers design and builders build. Regardless, the results are impressive.

We can continue to shackle our innovators and fall further and further behind in the US or we gain put our innovators back to work. My preference is we put our innovators back to work.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Hank Rearden Lectures Wesley Mouch

2012-01-06T09:02:00.001-05:00

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The EU Innovation Convention in Brussels invited Michael O'Leary, CEO of Ryanair, to their meeting in December to discuss innovation. Ryanair is, essentially, the Southwest Airline of Europe offering no frills flights at low low prices all across Europe. O'Leary explained the basics of a free market economy to his captive audience of Wesley Mouch acolytes

O'Leary struck me as the Hank Reardon of Ireland. The video is linked below for those interested in seeing what he had to say.

Love Your Monsters - Postenvironmentalism and the Anthropocene

2012-01-05T11:54:00.002-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The collection of essays set forth in "Love Your Monsters - Postenvironmentalism and the Anthropocene" by Environmentalists Michael Shellenberger and Ted Nordhaus looks like it will be a great read for those of us seeking to increase the efficiency with which facilities and infrastructure are delivered in the BUILT environment. Nordhaus has taken on traditional environmentalists in the past, arguing against the "humans are the problem" crowd for some time now. The latest collection of essays appears to continue the tradition.

Ron Bailey at Reason.com provides an Excellent Review from which the excerpt below was taken.

A devastating critique of Malthusian environmentalism is offered by Daniel Sarewitz in his essay "Liberalism’s Modest Proposal, Or the Tyranny of Scientific Rationality." He begins by citing Jonathan Swift’s famous satirical essay, "A Modest Proposal," in which Swift suggested that the problem of Irish famine might simply be dealt with by eating Irish babies. Sarewitz argues that Swift’s goal was to show that “pretty much any position, however repulsive, could be advanced on the back of rationality.” Sarewitz argues with regard to the problem of climate change modern environmentalists have adopted a form of scientific rationality in which the fact that burning fossil fuels to produce cheap energy harms the climate suggests that solution is to “make energy more expensive.” Sarewitz then points out that the access to cheap energy is, in fact, “a basic requirement for human development and dignity.” He adds, “This fact is so blindingly obvious that nearly any large developing country has treated the idea of a global agreement to raise the price of energy as a joke of Swiftean character. The difference being, of course, that it was not a joke.”

Sarewitz then identifies the political incoherence that lies at the heart of environmentalism. On the one hand, environmentalists want to avoid the risks of new technologies and on the other Malthusian hand they worry about declining stocks of natural resources. Consequently, environmentalists “find themselves, for reasons of risk, opposing new technologies that could help resolve issues of scarcity.” As an example of this political and scientific incoherence, Sarewitz cites the case of genetically enhanced crops which environmentalists oppose because of their alleged risks to human health although such crops would ameliorate environmentalist concerns about soil and water depletion, pesticide residues, and population growth. Sarewitz cuts through the current incoherence by rejecting the environmentalist scheme to raise energy prices by means of a global cap-and-trade regime on fossil fuels. Sarewitz instead argues for an intensive research effort aimed at developing cheap low-carbon energy sources.

The Swiftean tale advocating the Irish eat their babies during the famine compares favorably with the anology of cinching a tourniquet around our collective necks to stop the nose bleed that is global warming. To the extent global warming is a problem and can be controlled we have many options short of shutting off the flow of blood and oxygen to the world's economies which is exactly what policies that "necessarily cause the cost of electricity [aka energy] to skyrocket" do.

Love Your Monsters invokes the moral hazards Frankenstein cautions against. Frankenstein only went rogue after he was rejected, shunned and abused by his creator. This fits the theme I advocate here which is to embrace cheap energy, the innovatiion and technologies required to exploit it and the development that results from it. If those who favor sustainable development leave the field to others - i.e. reject, shun and abuse shale gas, fracking, nuclear power plants etc. - we will have no positive influnce. Further, the desperate masses of the world, and the governments beholden to them, have ZERO interest in continuing to burn dung, plow with oxen and live hand to mouth. Resources, like the 6.6 Tcf of accessible shale gas reseves mentioned in the earlier post, will be devoloped and used to improve the lives of billions.

It's time to rethink sustainability and the path forward.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Fruits of our Taxes - Venture Socialism Fails Again

2012-01-05T09:48:00.000-05:00

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The government has no business picking winners and losers. Venture capitilists are supposed bet with their own money, not ours. Venture Socialism, on the other hand, is much more attractive to the "investors" because they are betting with other peoples money and buying votes at the same time. Of course, the problem with Venture Socialism - as with old fashion Socialism - is that you eventually run out of other people's money!

The story excerpted and linked below highlights to folley of allowing government beauracrats to stay over night at a Holiday Inn Express. They wake up thinking they are Venture Capitalists when they are not.
Range cost U.S. taxpayers $64 million and Georgia taxpayers another $6.2 million. Tuesday’s sale netted $5.1 million, which will help offset losses suffered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Georgia’s money, which paid for some of the ethanol-making equipment, won’t be recouped outright, but state officials expect LanzaTech to use the machinery.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development InternationalRead the whole thing

Global Energy Chess Board in Flux

2012-01-05T09:18:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Regular readers of this blog will not be surprised to learn that globally there are 6.6 trillion cubic feet of shale gas deemed recoverable by the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

That is in addition to the 6.6 trillion cubic feet of regular proven gas reserves found mostly in Russia. Shale gas resources are widely - and strategically - disbursed. Winners of the shale gas sweepstakes include China, the United States and Argentina along with South Africa, Australia, Poland, France, Chile, Sweden, Paraguay, Pakistan and India.

These vast reserves protend an energy boom of historical proportions. US energy companies are fighing tooth and nail to develop these resources, inspite of the best efforts of the Obama Administration to curtail those efforts. China has partnered with US energy companies to develop shale gas resources in the US with the clear intention of learning the best processes which it will then deploy to develop its own vast reserves. Africa, India, Pakistan, Argentina and Poland sit on large reserves of their own that hold the promise of energy independence.

The development of the technologies required to extract shale gas, and the identification of these vast reserves, have combined to reset the global geo-political chess board. OPEC and Russia will lose a significant amount of leverage if these shale gas reserves are developed. The potential for economic growth, freedom and geo-political leverage in countries sitting on these reseves should not be under estimated.

"The global energy chessboard is changing, and markets will be realigned. Countries that have never had so much available energy will become self-sufficient, and perhaps even exporters," Luis Alberto Terrero, head of the Venezuelan Gas Processors Association (AVPG), told IPS.

As gas supplies grow, "fossil fuels may become cheaper, the growth of alternative energies will slow down, and new alliances, investments and trade networks will be established," Terrero said.

Global proven reserves of conventional gas total 6,608 trillion cubic feet (Tcf), according to statistics from British-based oil giant BP, and the largest deposits are in Russia (1,580 Tcf), Irán (1,045 Tcf), Qatar (894 Tcf) and Saudi Arabia and Turkmenistan (283 Tcf each).

An EIA study published in April 2011 found practically the same volume (6,620 Tcf) of shale gas deemed recoverable in just 32 countries, and the reserves are differently distributed, with China possessing 1,275 Tcf, the United States 862, Argentina 774, Mexico 681, South Africa 485 and Australia 396 Tcf.

Advocates of sustainable development, IPD, BIM and lean processes should embrace the opportunities sure to flow from the energy industries efforts to locate, extract and distribute these resources. The impact of an energy boom flow far beyond the well site and the pipelines. New infrastructure is required, demand for housing spikes, supporting industries thrive and new industries emerge. Opportunities abound for long and short term planning and those who understand IPD, BIM and lean processes will be well positioned to serve the BUILT Professionals who deliver those services and support those efforts.

Link to the Article

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Canada's Economic Growth

2011-12-30T10:58:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Canada has implemented a number of pro-growth policies and has demonstrated a willingness to develop its energy resources. As a result the Canadian economy is growing at a brisk pace. Any chance of the US moving in that direction?

Canada, whose solid growth is the product of tax cuts, fiscal discipline, free trade, and energy development. That's made Canada a roaring puma nation, while its supposedly more powerful southern neighbor stands on the outside looking in.

Canada Soars

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Quality Control Manager Convicted for Defective Materials

2011-12-28T09:28:00.000-05:00

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The article excerpted and linked below provides a cautionary tale to those of us in the BUILT industry. With BIM emerging as the new standard of care in the industry cases like this will be easier to prove, though hopefully less common. Transparency is the best policy and sunlight is the best disinfectant. Clearly there should have been more here. The man was convicted of a felony, fined $131K and sentenced to a year of home detention. Ouch.

Rivas had been the director of quality control for Pennsylvania-based Frederick Precast Concrete, Inc., which produced precast concrete drainage structures for building projects such as the Wilson Bridge project and Interstate 70 near Baltimore.But the materials failed to conform to state-approved specifications, according to a federal investigation. Some structures contained the wrong amounts and types of steel rebar, while others had unapproved wire mesh as the foundation for the concrete instead of stronger steel rebar.

Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/local/dc/2011/12/man-fined-131k-subpar-concrete-wilson-bridge/2038796#ixzz1hq65MXje

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Crony Socialism

2011-12-27T13:56:00.000-05:00

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the Obama administration's green technology program has been, in the words of my teenage daughters, an epic fail. Its the Crony Socialism cooked into the program that bothers me the most. The Washington Post article excerpted and linked below is simply devastating. Especially coming from the Post, a paper that typically publishes DNC talking points.

Meant to create jobs and cut reliance on foreign oil, Obama’s green-technology program was infused with politics at every level, The Washington Post found in an analysis of thousands of memos, company records and internal e-mails. Political considerations were raised repeatedly by company investors, Energy Department bureaucrats and White House officials.

Solyndra: Politics infused Obama Energy Programs

Nothing good happens for the for average American when Big Government, Big Business and Big Labor crawl in bed together.

Another energy article

2011-12-20T17:20:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

We've got to start thinking in terms of bridging the gap between renewable energy resources - i.e. those not ready for prime time - and fossil fuels. Affordable energy is the key to economic success. We have enormous resources in North America and we need to leverage them.

The nonprofit Institute for Energy Research says there are more than 1.7 trillion barrels of recoverable oil in North America, compared with Saudi Arabia's 260 billion barrels.

"This is more than the world has used since the first oil well was drilled over 150 years ago," says the institute's report, North American Energy Inventory. U.S. reserves alone could provide the domestic need of 7 billion barrels a year for about 250 years.

Read the whole thing.

Energy Crisis Created by Government

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Stimulus Failure

2011-12-12T10:37:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The government does not and cannot "create jobs" Many friends and colleagues were excited about the stimulus program and argued the influx of government monies would stimulate the construction industry. I argued it would not and the money would be wasted. The short video linked below highluights a few of the sitmulus failures that occured in Silver Springs, Maryland. The tragedy is the flaws associated with disbursement of stimulus funds in Silver Springs manifested themselves every where stimulus funds were disbursed.

Again, the governement does not create jobs. The govvernment needs to get out of the way.

Jobs are created when demand for products or services, offered at competitive market prices consumers want to pay, exceeds the capacity of providers of such products or services and those providers are forced to hire new workers to produce and or deliver products or services demanded by willing consumers.

The Leviathian that is the federal government, and the large corporate parasites attached to it, expand to consume/waste available resources. The stimulus, all all the other wasteful government spending on trillion dollar + budgets, has been wasted.

Economic success occurs when we have a bigger pie not when we distribute smaller slices of a smaller pie. Government policies that free job creators to make more, better and bigger pies means more success for all.

IPD, BIM and lean business processes provide mechanisms whereby BUILT industry professionals can plan, design, construct, operate and maintain facilities of higher quality at lower prices more quickly than ever. The natrual consequence of increased efficiency and productivity is the ability to build more facilities and supporting infrastructure more quickly. In other words, IPD, BIM and lean processes arm users with the ability to create bigger pies more often at better prices.

In boom times the amount of money to be made is constrained, in large part, by limited resources, both physical and human. Entities that want to make more money when the economy comes back, and it will come back, should learn more about IPD, BIM and lean business processes now so that those innovative tools can be used to leverage finite resources more effectively during the next boom. Don't sit on the sidelines, stand with your nose in the federal trough or wait for others to drop scraps from a government funding trough. Prepare to compete.

Below is a sampling of a few things the stimulus bill funded:

• $2 billion earmark to re-start FutureGen, a near-zero emissions coal power plant in Illinois that the Dept. of Energy defunded last year because the project was inefficient.

Deemed ‘prohibitively expensive’ by the Washington Post and opposed by scientists at MIT
• A $246 million tax break for Hollywood movie producers to buy motion picture film(like Michael Moore).
Hollywood should really pay its own way, don't you think?
• $650 million for the digital television (DTV) converter box coupon program
Boxes for those t.v’.s with “rabbit ears” that receive “free t.v.”

• $88 million for the Coast Guard to design a new polar icebreaker (arctic ship)

Should this be paid for in a defense budget? And is this one of those ships that will run on $16 per gallon bio diesel?
• $448 million for constructing the Dept. of Homeland Security headquarters

What did I say about the government expanding to consuming available resources? We need to be eliminating government agencies NOT creating new ones!

• $248 million for furniture at the new Dept. of Homeland Security headquarters
Why spend MORE than 1/2 as much on furniture as the building costs? Arrrgggh.

• $600 million to buy hybrid vehicles for federal employees

The VAST majority of the 15,000 or so Chevy Volts sold by Government Motors were purchased by either the federal governement or GE - a branch / quasi private arem of the federal governement like Fannie & Freddie/
• $400 million for the CDC to screen and prevent STD’s
Can we get a break down on that? Geez. Does it really cost $400 million to say, " Hey, stupdi, use a condom." If you don't want an STD don’t have bareback sex.

• $1.4 billion for a rural waste disposal programs

That's a lot o money for burn barrels and dumping in caliche pits.

• $150 million for Smithsonian museum facilities

How many jobs did THAT create?
• $1 billion for the 2010 Census, which has a projected cost overrun of $3 billion

The "projected cost overrun" was a lowball estimate. This is an example of your federal government at work for you.... on YOUR DIME!
• $75 million for “smoking cessation activities”

WTF? Again, where are the jobs?

• $200 million for public computer centers at community colleges

A laudable project. What were the cost overurns on THAT program?

• $75 million for salaries of employees at the FBI

WTF? Did the FBI leave that line item out of the budget this year?
• $25 million for tribal alcohol and substance abuse reduction
Sad sad situations on the reservations. But is this REALLY what the stimulus was intended to fund?
• $10 million to inspect canals in urban areas

OK. Can we get an audited report? Did we capture the data authoritatively? Is it in digital form? Can it be re-used?

• $6 billion to turn federal buildings into “green” buildings

IPD, BIM and lean processes would work better and cost less.

• $500 million for state and local fire stations

Can you say UNION PAYBACK?

• $650 million for wildland fire management on Forest Service lands

Again, who forgot to submit their annual budget to congress? Oh, that's right the demcoractic controlled Senates hasn't passed a budget in over 2 YEARS!!!
• $1.2 billion for “youth activities,” including youth summer job programs

What does the audit trail say about how this money was spent? I smell graft and corruption.
• $88 million for renovating the headquarters of the Public Health Service

Another line item left out of another budget.

• $412 million for CDC buildings and property

Same

• $160 million for “paid volunteers” at the Corporation for National and Community Service

Can you say ACORN and SEIU?
• $5.5 million for “energy efficiency initiatives” at the VA “National Cemetery Administration”

Shouldn't "energy efficiency initiatives" REDUCE COSTS?

• $850 million for Amtrak

Isn't Amtrack supposed make its own money? Like the US Post Office? lol

• $100 million for reducing the hazard of lead-based paint

Can we see the audit trail? Jobs created?

• $75M to construct a new “security training” facility for State Dept Security officers

Were they NOT being trainied in the old one? But dad, DHS got a new building AND new furniture!
• $110 million to the Farm Service Agency to upgrade computer systems

Another line item left out of the last FARM SUBSIDY BILL. Geez

• $200 million in funding for the lease of alternative energy vehicles for use on military installations.

Another false market for the Chevy Volt? This is what happens when the federal government and a union own a failed American car company; Governement Motors.
• State Medicaid Bailout: $87.7 billion Through 3 different mechanisms, the bill would provide additional federal funds to state Medicaid programs over the next 3 years.

Was this evenly distributed among the 50 states - or the 57 Obama visited while campaigning - or did the lions share of this graft go to Illinois, New York and California? Were responsible states with balanced budgets screwed?

Social engineering efforts incuded in this “Stimulus” Bill:
• Eliminates fees on loans from the Small Business Administration, thus pushing private capital toward unproductive businesses and away from productive businesses

• Increases the definition of “youth” for certain summer job programs from age 21 to age 24.

• $160 million to the Job Corps program at the Dept. of Labor, but not for job programs – rather, to construct, alter or repair buildings.

• Requires a government study on the impact of minimum wage laws on the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa. (Where Nancy Pelosi's husbands Tuna company is EXEMPTED)
• $79 billion State Fiscal Stabilization (slush) Fund to bailout the States by providing billions of dollars for “education” costs of any kind. (Another ACORN / UNION payoff)
• $47.843 billion is appropriated for a variety of energy programs that are primarily focused on renewable energy development and energy conservation/efficiency. Not one dollar is appropriated to make fossil fuels more affordable in the near future. More than $6 billion of these funds go to environmental clean ups.

(Solyndra, Bright Source, Lightsquared and several other examples of Crony Socialism were funded out of this pot. The adminstration says these programs "created" 3,500 jobs. How many did it COST?)

• Increases eligibility for “weatherization” assistance to households 200 percent above the poverty level.

• The “Making Work Pay” credit of $500 to every individual making less than $75,000 (or $1000 to couples making $150,000 or less) would pay people whether they are productive or not – akin to welfare.
• The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP – food stamps) would temporarily suspend the 3-month limit for non-working adults to receive SNAP benefits, thus giving incentives not to find a job.

• Installs government as the creator of broadband deployment regardless of whether the specific local/regional market can sustain it.

• Funds new “green jobs” job-training program without eliminating inefficient job-training programs or consolidating duplicative job-training programs.
• $890 million to the Social Security Administration without any provisions to reduce improper payments, or any plan to increase solvency of the trust fund.
• Nothing requires the products that are purchased with these funds be here in America. Lithium ion batteries, for instance, are primarily made in Asia.

Please tell me we will not repeat this miserable failure again.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Flipping the Classroom

2011-12-11T20:00:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I've linked to Khan Academy materials in the past. Below is a link a Vimeo video of Salman Khan speaking at an education conference. Below that I've linked to a substantive article detailing the work the Khan Academy is doing on the educational front.

Salman Khan remarks from the Future of State Universities Conference from Academic Partnerships on Vimeo.

The Problem Solvers

I'm posting the link for readers of the blog as I think the combined use of online webinars - recorded for use by keystakeholders at their leisure - followed by collaborative workshops where real-life teams come together to apply the lessons learned via the online materials represents a viable model for delivering knowledge of innovative new business processes - like IPD, BIM and lean solutions - that will be of real value in the accreditation arena in the near future.

Khan's effort to "flip the classroom" matches what Collaborative Construction does via its webinars and live collaborative workshops. Recorded webinars represent the practice and review that takes place outside the classroom in an interactive online environment while the collaborative workshops represent the intensely collaborative class time facilitated by Khan's online learning center which provides the teacher with valuable data regarding each student's progress.

The Khan Acadamy team has focused on capturing the learner's progress up the learning curve - however slow, swift, steady or uneven it might be - and providing insightful analysis to teachers based on that data. There is no reason an accreditation scheme at the professional level could not provide similar levels of feedback to participants, employers, clients, partners and others.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Who are the critical stakeholders in IPD?

2011-11-30T12:51:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Collaborative Construction has been providing integrated project delivery (IPD) facilitation services, conducting collaborative workshops and working closely with building information modeling (BIM) consultants for several years now. The conventional wisdom is that IPD works best when owners, contractors and designers sign a tri-party agreement. Collaborative Construction challenged that idea right out of the box, drafting a Multi-Party Agreement that could be signed my all the project stakeholdeers and helping other stakeholders craft, negotiate and implement Strategic Alliance Agreements among multiple parties regardless of the form of contracts used on the underlying project.

Today we are thinking about ways to expand the collaborative sandbox even further. Collaborative Construction is working on an innovative new program called FISCAL Control that will enable planners, owners, designers, constructors, trade contractors, suppliers, and facilities managers to invite lenders, insurers and surty providers to the table early in the process.

Most stakeholders are familiar with OCIPs (Owner Controlled Insurance Programs) and CCIPs (Contractor Controlled Insurance Programs) and readers of this blog may have seen posts referencing the Collaborative Controled Insurance Programs we advocate. The FISCAL Control program will take the OCIP/CCIP concept to a whole new level. FISCAL Control means an integrated team operating in a BUILT environment has a program in place for collaborating regarding Finance, Insurance, Sureties, Contracts And Liability. Involving lenders, insurers and sureties in an intelligent conversation about risk and risk mitigation from the outset benefits those institutional stakeholders and the project specific stakeholders.

In January I will speak at the Western Canadian Construction Superconference and I anticipate covering this concept in my presentation. Additional events are in the works, including collaborative workshops highlighting the value of FISCAL Control, as defined above, and those interested in learning more should contact Collaborative Construction for mor information.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Obama Administration Punts on Keystone

2011-11-15T10:55:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The failure to develop our own resources and support the use of ethical oil out of Canada is going to come back to bite us.

By preventing the oil flow from Canada, the United States will thus deliberately deprive itself of new manufacturing and construction jobs; it will not slow down the increase of global CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion (OK, by two weeks, perhaps); it will almost certainly empower China; and it will make itself strategically even more vulnerable by becoming further dependent on declining, unstable, and contested overseas crude oil supplies. That is what is called a spherically perfect decision, because no matter from which angle you look at it, it looks perfectly the same: wrong.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Is methanol the fuel of the future?

2011-11-10T16:10:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The researchers cited in the article below seem to think so.

Methanol makes a lot of sense given the recent realization that we are sitting on trillions of cubic feet of natural gas here in the US and elsewhere. The intriguing thing about methanol is that it is easily created from water and carbon dioxide. If we can commercialize the use of carbon dioxide and extend the life of existing fossil fuels we would experience a win win.

Apparently, the catch is the US currently doesn't allow the use of methanol in the internal combustion engine. More dumb dumb dumb regulations it seems. To the extent my green friends think I've jumped the shark when it comes to work in the oil and gas energy this seems to be a perfect compromise. Methanol can be created anywhere on the planet. As the article notes:

Methanol can be made solely with water and carbon dioxide — available everywhere on Earth — and any energy source such as solar, wind, geothermal or safe nuclear energy.

I'm not sure what the costs of production are, but surely the process can compete with $75 to $100 a barrel oil. Hell, I'd wouldn't be surprised if it couldn't compete with $40 to $60 a barrel oil. Further, any gas to liquid fuel plant worth its salt ought to be able to produce methanol on a grand scale.

My understanding is methanol can be used in a fuel cell to generate DC electric current. The question in my mind is what happens to the carbon dioxide that's in the methanol once the chemical process that creates the DC current runs its course in the fuel cell. Doesn't it just come out as water and carbon dioxide? If the process creates carbon dioxide won't those shrieking and wailing about global warming due to carbon dioxide oppose the process?

Overall, I see this as a viable step forward and again I'm apalled that the US government bars use of methanol in combustion engines - if in fact it does - as such restrictions seem counter productive, at least in this setting. Any readers with insight into these issues should contact me.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Barry wants your candy!

2011-11-07T09:50:00.004-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Wicked Tools Article

2011-11-07T09:36:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

This month I will be submitting the next Wicked article for publication in the AUGIWorld Magazine. The title, in the current draft, is "Wicked Tools" and I plan on covering innovative technologies, legal agreements and business processes that serve as wicked tools in the BUILT environment.

After identifying wicked tools in those three categories I will address the critical features of a trust based integrated team and the best mechanisms for forging trust based relationships and trust based agreements.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Another shale gas article

2011-11-04T10:10:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

When writers at the NYT begin to climb on board the train is REALLY leaving the station. Even if the writer is a faux conservative like Brooks.

Already shale gas has produced more than half a million new jobs, not only in traditional areas like Texas but also in economically wounded places like western Pennsylvania and, soon, Ohio. If current trends continue, there are hundreds of thousands of new jobs to come.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

BUILT - BIM to FM in AUGIWorld Magazine

2011-11-03T09:22:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Not sure how many have been reading the new BUILT - BIM to FM Section of AUGIWorld Magazine but I wanted tor remind readers of the section, invite comments on future articles and share a few thoughts on the content published to date.

The link above takes you to a page from which you can select any issue discussed below. PDF copies of those issues are available as well - online -and if you are interested in a PDF copy of a specific article published in the BUILT BIM to FM Section shoot me an email.

The links below take you to the specific online issue in which a linked article appears. Take a few minutes to review the online magazine and bookmark the page for future reference. As the editor of the BUILT - BIM to FM Section I will continue to write feature articles there. Also, if any readers have any ideas for articles please do not hesitate to contact me.

The section launched in May, 2011 with an article titled "An Introduction to the Revolution" in which I outlined the rationale for the use of integrated agreements to support Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), Building Information Modeling and other virtual design and construction tools and software (BIM) and lean business processes. The article provides an overview of key concepts related to integrated agreements and the use of such agreements on a project specific basis.

The article published in June 2011, was titled "What Owners Want" and laid out the case for functional digital assets from the owners perspective. Publication coincided, roughly, with an excellent BIMStorm in New Orleans that addressed the same topic.  My presentation at the IPD Round Table that month addressed owners' desires in some detail and we discussed Texas A&M University's demand for BIM to FM on a major project and other examples of owners demanding BIM.

In July, in an article titled, "Procuring Integrated Services" the BUILT - BIM to FM Section addressed the mechanisms whereby owners - both public and private - can procure planning, design and construction services from integrated teams. Again, the topic was featured in the IPD Round Table session that month. More and more institutional owners are demanding BIM to FM and more and more of those owners are coming to realize the current procurement process is broken. The rules and regulations that control delivery of services in the BUILT Indudstry require providers to operate in a series of silos and in accordance with the classic, dysfunctional and utterly broken Design, Bid, Build model. Procuring services under the Design, Bid, Build model actually inhibits the delivery of such services by integrated teams.

When I was in Texas I spent a good deal of time lobbying for inclusion of an IPD procurement mechanism in the state statutes.  Though ultimately unsuccessful, the experience opened my eyes to the challenges associated with procuring planning, design and construction services from integrated teams within the framework of the existing rules and regulations.  I set out, over the next few months to research the issues, seeking a solution.

The August and September issues of AUGIWorld Magazine featured guest columnists Andrew Abernathy, Mike Bordenaro and Professor Bob Smith. Andrew wrote an article titled "Value Driven Project Delivery" in which he delved into the nuts and bolts of integrated project delivery and outlined six (6) keys to success.  In an article titled "Revit Plug-in Allows BIG Data Sharing" Mike and Professor Smith introduced readers to a Revit Plug-in that utlizes BIMXML to capture data in a wide variety of software applications - including CAD, Sketchup, Archicad, Bentley, Tekla, etc. - and pour that data over into the Revit model. Thanks to the efforts of these guest contributors I had time to research the procurement issue in depth.

Armed with research into the condundrum faced by institutional owners seeking to procure planning, design and construction services in an environment dominated by Design, Bid Build, I wrote "A Wicked Primer", the article that was published in the October issue of AUGIWorld Magazine. That article treats is the first in a series of articles in which I will argue for a new legal framework within which to deliver planning, design, construction, operations and maintenance services in the BUILT Industry. The November issue, due out any day now, will feature an article titled "Wicked Problems in Construction" where I continue to lay out the challenges we face. In the coming months I will address wicked tools, wicked solutions and the use wicked workshops to align the interests of disparate stakeholders involved in the delivery of integrated services in the BUILT Industry.

Here, on the Collaborative Construction Blog, I will be publishing excerpts from the articles above and expanding on the thoughts set forth in those articles. Insitutional stakeholders, including, lenders, insurers, sureties, national organizations representing the interests of public and private owners, contractors, designers, trade contractors, suppliers and others need to join forces and create a new legal framework whithin which planning, design, construction, operations and maitenance services can be delivered more efficiently. A new legal framework that streamlines, simplifies and integrates services across disciplines and throughout the lifecycle of a facility has the potential to save billions if not trillions of dollars.

In the coming year Collaborative Construction will be working with interested stakeholders to achieve these lofty goals.  Meanwhile, contact us if you need help delivering BIM or lean processes in a traditional Design, Bid Build environment, help negotiating and implementing an integrated agreement on a specific project, help introducing in-house personnel, clients or collaborative partners to IPD, BIM or lean processes or help with any vexing aspect of your next project. If Collaborative Construction cannot help you I bet we know someone who can!

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

An Integrated Legal Framework for IPD BIM and Lean

2011-11-01T19:10:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I've been kicking around the idea of a new legal framework within which to deploy IPD, BIM and Lean processes and the idea seems to be gaining a bit of traction. I thought I would share a summary of the concept with readers of the blog. I will follow this post, over the next few weeks, with copies of the articles I've written over the past year for the BUILT - BIM to FM Series in AUGIWorld Magazine where I have detailed a few of the thoughts underlying this concept.

Feel free to link these posts to friends and colleagues you think might be interested in engaging substantively on the topic. On a related note, this concept will be a central theme of the Wicked Solutions Series that I will be presenting in Canada in January. Collaborative workshops are currently planned for Vancouver and Calgary and I will also be presenting at the Western Canadian Construction Superconference. We would like to present a series of workshops in Canada and we are actively recruiting sponsors for those workshops. If you know of any companies seeking a presence in Canada the Wicked Solutions Series would be a great place to start.

Integrated Legal Frameworks
An Executive Summary for Institutional Stakeholders

A New Legal Framework

Innovation, modern problems and modern solutions create complexity and opportunities for innovators. New legal frameworks will empower owners to procure built industry services more efficiently. The $4.6 trillion global construction industry needs a legal makeover. Integrating legal agreements across disciplines – e.g. finance, planning, design, construction, insurance, sureties, operations and maintenance – enables solutions. A cross disciplinary framework provides a roadmap to integrating planning, design, construction, operations, and maintenance services. Lending instruments, insurance products, surety bonds, project specific agreements and long term operations and maintenance contracts need to exist in a common legal framework that supports and enables integrated project delivery, BIM and lean processes.

Design Bid Build is Fatally Flawed

Design, bid, build is dead. The process delivers projects – not products – piecemeal and increases waste and risk. Stakeholders operate in silos – a product of antiquated financial instruments, legal agreements, surety bonds and insurance products – failing to share knowledge across disciplines. This deeply flawed process costs trillions annually. Institutional consumers of planning, design and construction services who revolutionize the process, will save billions and revitalize economies.

Integrated Manufacturing as a Model

Manufacturers pioneered business process integration, reaping benefits globally. We now track conceptualization, design, fabrication, sales, distribution, warranties, service, and every other facet of a product’s life cycle. The same is rarely true of institutional facilities. Emerging market forces – environmental and energy awareness, BIM mandates, etc. – are, however, pressuring the fragmented and dysfunctional construction industry to deliver high performance buildings and functional digital assets. This the industry cannot do sans integration. Institutional consumers of built industry services must create a new integrated legal framework to foster integrated – and efficient – delivery of these services.

New Generation Legal Instruments

Integrating planning, design, construction, operations and maintenance expands markets, increases efficiency and reduces waste. Integrating new business processes into lending instruments, legal agreements and insurance products requires cross disciplinary cooperation among highly skilled professionals. Institutional owners can leverage these innovative business processes by crafting a new legal framework that supports these processes. Innovative new legal instruments will increase the efficiency with which built industry services are delivered to institutional owners, saving time and money.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Architects trained to be crazy?

2011-10-23T19:26:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

That would explain a lot wouldn't it! lol. I keed. I keed my architect friends.

Architecture school invests several years conditioning the student to respond preferentially to abstract industrial forms and surfaces. At the same time, this industrial aesthetic is touted as superior to all previous, traditional expressions of built geometry. Elaborate theories of history and technology are given as apologias for this now-correct aesthetic, solely appropriate to this wholly unique climax period in history (Banham, 1960; Giedion, 1941; Gropius, 1965). All of this effort creates individuals that see things differently from the rest of us.

This long-term program of psychological conditioning, has, since its development in the original Bauhaus, turned out to be extraordinarily effective. An architect experiences the world in a very different manner to any person who has not undergone the same training. By internalizing preferences derived from abstract images that override our neurological structure, over time, responses become automatic and crowd out other, more innate responses. The result of this aesthetic hegemony is the phenomenon of “architectural myopia,” an interpretation of reality that conforms to ingrained beliefs.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Green on green violence shutters windmills at night

2011-10-19T15:09:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The story linked below highlights one of the enduring conundrums faced by advocates of renewable energy.  Renewable energy production kills endangered species just as dead as production of energy from fossil fuels does. Shutting down renewable energy production hardly seems to advance the cause.

With windfarms killing protected bats and birds, hydroelectic facilities depriving endangered fish and other species of habitat and solar farms wiping out vast swaths of desert habitat its looking more and more like we need to take another long hard look at developing fossil fuels more responsibly.

Until renewable energy technologies mature no one interested in sustainable design and development is going to be well served. Market based renewable energy solutions, which would be more viable in a deregulated utility industry, make sense.  Having the federal government pick winners and losers based on the amount money bundled for campaing contributions does not.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Utica Shale bigger than Marcellus?

2011-10-11T10:05:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I had a long conversation a couple of months ago with the president of the Ohio Natural Gas Association and he mentioned that the Utica was going to come in bigger than Marcellus. It looks like he was right.

According to an estimate from Ohio state geologists, that state's portion of the Utica alone could contain up to 15 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, which would make it a significant contributor to national supplies of the fuel that will help cut greenhouse gas emissions and create thousands of jobs.
But the Utica is distinguished by also harboring natural gas liquids and large quantities of oil which have sparked a rush by energy companies to acquire leases on millions of acres of land, especially in eastern Ohio.

The Ohio geologists calculate there could be as many as 5.5 billion barrels of recoverable oil underlying their state's share of the Utica, or about a third of the expected production from Alaska's Prudhoe Bay, the largest US oil reserve.

Read the whole thing here.

Let those numbers sink in for a minute. 15 TRILLION cubic feet of gas in Ohio ALONE and another 5.5 BILLION barrels of recoverable oil in Ohio ALONE.

Ding ding ding. Can you say economic winner? What pray tell is taking place in North Dakota and western PA at this very moment?

Ultimately, we must wean ourselves off petroleum and move to an economy powered by renewable forms of engery. But misguided attempts to force that result while renewables are not ready for prime time have proven disasterous. Its time to develop the energy resources we have in our own back yard. Cheap, abundant and reliable energy will fuel an economic recovery of immense proportions. It's time to develope these resources.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Coal to Liquid Fuel Story

2011-10-06T12:23:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

My impression is that the gas to liquid process utilized by Shell's Pearl Plant in Qatar is more efficient and more environmentally friendly that the coal to liquid process pioneered by Nazi Germany during WWII but the article linked below indicates a company in Wyoming is producing diesel fuel from coal at a cost that is competitive with oil at $60 per barrel. That number is, I think, very similar to the gas to liquid cost discussed in prior posts here.

Ultimately, cheaper more abundent and more reliable engery will be the best medicine for our economy. I've grown more and more skeptical over the last year of the need to "decarbonize" our economy. We certainly need to protect our environment but I don't see the benefit of throwing the baby out with the bathwater as many of my green friends seem intent on doing.

Not sure how new the ideas discussed in the article are but it does discuss another use for coal which is widely available in the US.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

NPR Discovers the Oil Boom in North Dakota

2011-09-30T10:06:00.000-04:00

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The article linked below highlights the need for communities experiencing boom times to plan for the future. Collaborative Construction is working on a collaborative workshop series that will be presented in Canada and we would like to visit our friends in North Dakota while we are in Canada.

The shale oil and gas reserves being discovered throughout North America are going to have long term geo-political ramifications. The availability of "ethical oil" at low prices is going to break OPEC's monopoly and the economic, political and cultural fallout is going to send shockwaves around the world. Dictatorships throughout the middle east will continued to be impacted as will our allies and enemies elsewhere around the world. Below are a few excerpts from the NPR piece. These boom towns represent tremendous opportunities for advocates of IPD, BIM and lean business processes as the mechanisms by which integrated teams plan, design, construct, operate and maintain lend themsevles to task of solving the complex array of problems these communities face.

Amy Myers Jaffe of Rice University says in the next decade, new oil in the US, Canada and South America could change the center of gravity of the entire global energy supply.

"Some are now saying, in five or 10 years' time, we're a major oil-producing region, where our production is going up," she says.

The US, Jaffe says, could have 2 trillion barrels of oil waiting to be drilled. South America could hold another 2 trillion. And Canada? 2.4 trillion. That's compared to just 1.2 trillion in the Middle East and north Africa.
Jaffe says those new oil reserves, combined with growing turmoil in the Middle East, will "absolutely propel more and more investment into the energy resources in the Americas."

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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Carbon Nanotubes to Replace Cooper Wire?

2011-09-21T09:17:00.000-04:00

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The article linked below describes a break through by researchers at Rice University who have created a carbon nanotube based cable to carry electrical current. Advances in nanotechnologies will, eventually, impact the BUILT environment in ways we cannot even imagine today.

Making lightweight, efficient carbon nanotube wiring as conductive as copper has been a goal of nanotechnologists since the 1980s. Individual carbon nanotubes—hollow nanoscale tubes of pure carbon—are mechanically strong and an order of magnitude more conductive than copper. But unless carbon nanotubes are put together just so, larger structures made from them don't have the superlative properties of the individual tubes.

The production process sounds remarkable simple to my uneducated mind. If a noncorrodable easily installed product weighing 1/6th what cooper weighs enters the market the potential for innovation in all things electronic seems immense to me.

Read the whole thing
James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Ethical Oil v. Conflict Oil

2011-09-20T09:55:00.000-04:00

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Canada's vast oil sands represent a huge percentage of the world's proven oil reserves and, as noted earlier on this Blog, those reserves are being developed in an environmentally conscious way by our neighbors to the north. An online non-profit group has been promoting Canadian oil as "Ethical Oil" and the campaign struck a chord with me. Apparently is struck a less pleasant chord with the Saudis who are now threatening legal action against Canadian media outlets that air ads advocating Ethical Oil. In the article linked below the founder of the non-profit group contends:

Normally, Islamic extremists focus their hatred on the Great Satan — the United States. But Canada is now an enemy of the Saudis, too. Because we’re competitors to them for oil. Within ten years, the oilsands could totally replace Saudi exports to the U.S.

Below is a link to one of the the grou['s ads and to the article. From my perspective the Saudis would be better served by addressing the underlying issues that give rise to the criticism than bullying Canadian media outlets. In our interconnected web-driven world it strikes me as a bad idea to seek to suppress free speech from half way around the world. You can check out the video and read the article and form your own opinions.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Collaborative Gamers Solve Protein Puzzle

2011-09-19T09:10:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I'm finalizing my AUGIWorld Magazine Article for the BUILT - BIM to FM section of the magazine and the topic is wicked problems that require wicked tools and wicked solutions. In researching the topic I came across the article linked below. Wouldn't it be cool if sophisticated owners of complex facilties poured the speicfications for their facilities into an online BIM pot and allowed a distributed network of innovative young designers to collaboratively create best in class design solutions in a gaming environment? Heck, we might even come up with a cool name for the process like, BIMStorm or something.

The article provides:

Gamers have solved the structure of a retrovirus enzyme whose configuration had stumped scientists for more than a decade. The gamers achieved their discovery by playing Foldit, an online game that allows players to collaborate and compete in predicting the structure of protein molecules.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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Williston North Dakota Booming

2011-09-16T14:55:00.000-04:00

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Collaborative Construction is putting together a Collaborative Solutions Series that will be presented in six cities in Canada in 2012. It looks like we may want to swing south into Williston on our way across Canada!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

San Francisco Considering Bird Compliant Buildings

2011-09-13T18:19:00.000-04:00

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Because California lacks sufficient regulations! I was hoping this was a link to the Onion or some other online parody, but alas, it's not.

You cannot make this stuff up!

Proponents of the “bird-safe” building standards told the board’s land use committee that clear glass window panes pose a hazard to migratory and local birds because they don’t necessarily recognize that glass is in their flight pattern, resulting in dead or injured birds upon impact. The proposed legislation would require builders to install treated windows on any new construction determined to pose a great risk to birds.

San Fran Considers Building Regs to Protect Birds

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
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Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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Canadian Oil Sands Impact

2011-09-12T09:22:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The WSJ article linked below serves as another reminder of what an incredible economic driver oil & gas exploration can be. Further, Candada seems to be developing its oil sands in a remarkably environmentally friendly manner.

Several recent studies have highlighted the value to the US economy of releasing the regulatory shackles from the oil & gas industry here. Importantly, no one is advocating unbridled or uncontrolled development. In fact, environmentally responsible development costs a little more but produces more jobs as well, as exploration and development companies are required to remediate the environmental impact of their operations.

Alberta's oil and gas industry supports more than 271,000 direct jobs and hundreds of thousands of indirect jobs in sectors such as construction, manufacturing and financial services. The province has an unemployment rate of 5.6%. There are also some 960 American companies involved in Alberta energy, supplying equipment and technology, among other things. As an example, Mr. Liepert says, "dozens of Caterpillar tractors, made in Illinois and Michigan and costing $5 million a piece" work the oil sands. He says the region is on track to create more than 400,000 direct American jobs by 2035. The Bakken region of North Dakota, where private land ownership gives drillers relief from federal obstructionism, shares a similar, if smaller, story. Oil production there is booming, and North Dakota unemployment is 3.3%.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Regulations Are Strangling the Economy

2011-09-08T20:17:00.000-04:00

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The Obama administrtion simply refuses to allow free markets to operate.

This is sooooo frustrating.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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LEED-igation Against the USGBC?

2011-09-07T23:37:00.000-04:00

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The term "LEED-igation" is a cleaver description of what I've been warning of on this blog for years. In the context of building performance service providers at every level need to under promise and over deliver. The pipeline of LEED-lawsuits is only beginning to fill. Once the plaintiffs' lawyers draw blood the sharks will be drawn the wreckage like - well sharks.

This topic fits hand in glove with my mantra that BIM has become the new standard of care in the planning, design and construction industry.

LEEDigation, a term coined by Christopher Cheatham, principal of The Law Office of Christopher W. Cheatham LLP and publisher of Green Building Law Update (www.greenbuildinglawupdate.com), encompasses a multitude of potential disputes that arise from LEED certification, green technology, and all other green building components.

LEED Liability and You

Hat tip to Andrew Abernathy for the heads up on this one!
James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
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Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
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A Nano Propeller?

2011-09-07T08:55:00.000-04:00

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I'm not sure how this will fit into the construction world, but ya'll know I don't need much an excuse to post nano-tech updates.

E. Charles Sykes at Tufts University in Boston and colleagues turned to asymmetric butyl methyl sulphide, a sulphur atom with a chain of four carbons on one side and a lone carbon atom on the other. They anchored the molecule to a copper surface via the sulphur atom, producing a lopsided, horizontal "propeller" that is free to rotate about the vertical copper-sulphur bond (see diagram).

Click here to READ THE WHOLE THING.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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The hatch on another bunker creaks open!

2011-09-02T09:12:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Are lenders begining to talk to contractors BEFORE they finance the project? Are they also talking to contractors DURING the project? Oh my. What a novel concept. In the article in Ingrams linked below two Kansas City lawyers describe the epiphany their lending clients are experiencing. If only we could convince lenders to offer lower interest rates on financing for IPD projects where EVERYBODY talks BEFORE, DURING and AFTER the project. Should they? Yes. Will they? Not likely.

The New BFFs: Construction Lenders, Contractors

What's next, insurance companies talking to the participants of a project BEFORE they start suing each other? Let's hope.

Below is an excerpt from Collaborative Construction's marketing materials detailing the benefits of integrating lending instruments, legal agreements and insurance products - including surety bonds - on projects deploying IPD, BIM and Lean porcesses. Could it be that lenders and insurers - who have been HAMMERED by bad loans / claims in the downturn - are finally ready to talk IPD, BIM and Lean? Let's hope.

Collaborative Solutions Series
Executive Summary

Collaborative Solutions Drive Profits

Innovation, modern problems and modern solutions are complex. This complexity creates opportunities for innovators. Collaborative Solutions empowers clients to deploy innovative solutions to complex problems in the $4.6 trillion global construction industry. Many possess the infrastructure and capacity to leverage solutions in complex environments across multiple markets. Collaborative Solutions provides a roadmap for integrating planning, design, construction, operations, and maintenance services with innovative lending instruments, legal agreements and insurance products for clients interested in doing so.

The Fragmented Construction Industry is Broken

The construction industry typically fails to leverage integrated business processes and web access effectively. The industry delivers projects – not products – in a piecemeal fashion that exponentially increases waste and risks. Stakeholders operate in silos – a product of antiquated financial instruments, legal agreements, surety bonds and insurance products – and fail to share knowledge across disciplines. Lean experts contend the industry’s deeply flawed processes costs trillions annually. Revolutionizing these complex processes saves clients billions and increases profits and market share for innovators.

The Integrated Manufacturing Industry as a Model

Manufacturers who pioneered business process integration reap benefits globally. Sophisticated manufacturers track conceptualization, design, fabrication, sales, distribution, warranties, service, and every other facet of a product’s life cycle. The same is rarely true of a facility or supporting infrastructure. However, emerging market forces – driven in large part by environmental concerns and government mandates – are pressuring the fragmented and dysfunctional construction industry to deliver high performance buildings and functional digital assets. This the industry cannot do sans integration. Insurers who support new generation integrated tools with integrated insurance products will increase profits.

Collaborative Solutions

Integrating planning, design, construction, operations and maintenance with new collaborative business processes expands markets, increases competitiveness and enhances profits. Integrating new business processes into lending instruments, legal agreements and insurance products requires cross disciplinary cooperation among highly skilled professionals. Clients can leverage innovative business processes through the Collaborative Solutions Series. Deploying innovative solutions will increase efficiency, profits and institutional knowledge of IPD, BIM and lean processes for such clients.

If you encounter lenders, lawyers, insurers, contractors, developers, designers, or owners who need help intergrating processes in the construction arena please have them call.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Oil Project in Utah

2011-08-24T10:55:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

TomCo Energy out of the UK has taken the first step in developing oil leases they hold in the massive Uintah Shale formation in Utah. TomCo's approach is as environmentally friendly as a fossil fuel production plan can be. The EcoShaleTM process they have developed purports to produce oil from tight shale formations, like the Uintah, with NO WATER which is a big deal in Utah. A series of contracts have been signed with a variety of engineering and consulting firms involving the environmental assess required to move forward.

Stephen Komlosy, CEO of TomCo Energy, comments: "We are delighted to have engaged the services of Rocky Mountain Power, Epic Engineering and Norwest Corporation as consultancy partners in our Holliday Block development project, and we expect to see some real progress over the next several months. These are all companies with enormous experience in the Uintah Basin, and in the challenges presented by oil shale projects, and the projects being initiated are all necessary for the upgrading of project Resources to Reserves as we move towards development of our Holliday Block asset."

The Uintah Shale formation is estimated to contain on the order of 1.3 trillion cubic barrels of oil, with 800 billion of those thought to be recoverable through current technology. To put those numbers in perspective, the Saudis are sitting on proven reserves of only 267 billion barrels of oil, or 1/5th of the world's proven reserves. If TomCo can extract this oil in an environmentally responsible manner the positive impact on the US economy will be enormous. Collaborative Construction will be keeping a close eye on TomCo's efforts.

Link to Article

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Techonology and Investors

2011-08-22T14:13:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I found the article linked below interesting. The quoted language is, I think, of interest to those of us in the construction industry interested in IPD, BIM and lean business processes.

Stated simply, we can already find, access, and share so much information that we are drowning. The next wave of developments are likely to emphasize filtering and analysis—helping us get the information we either want or need (not always the same thing), and then make sense of that information. Specialized search, analytics, and interfaces capable of making complex scientific derivations accessible to the average consumer, are likely to become prominent. We may be leaving an extended period of increased information access and entering an era of enhanced information access.

Google and HP Hammered for Aquisitions

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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IBM's New "Brain Chip" Mimics the Human Mind

2011-08-18T23:45:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Can the deep thinkers please step to the front of the class and tell us what this means for IPD, BIM and lean business processes?

IBM's New Chip Mimics the Brain

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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IPD Round Table on ROI for General Contractors

2011-08-15T22:42:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The IPD Round Table presentation on August 25, 2011 will focus on the ROI for IPD, BIM and lean processes for General Contractors. Short definitions of BIM, IPD and Lean will be set forth, the best legal mechanism for achieving IPD, BIM and Lean will be identified – an integrated agreement – and we will then turn our attention to the ROI achieved by General Contractors in the US who have adopted all or some aspects of IPD, BIM and the lean construction processes like the Last Planner System, Integrated Supply Chain Management and similar tools.

Collaborative Construction defines ROI as ROIx where the return on investment in innovation & information is multiplied to the X power by leveraging modern technology and lean business processes. Some of the questions we will explore include:

What is the ROIx of an investment in BIM?

What is the ROIx of an investment in IPD?

What is the ROIx of an investment in lean construction processes?

Where can the ROIx be found?

How do you measure ROIx?

Who gets the $ generated by ROIx?

Who gets the knowledge associated with ROIx?

Who gets the functional digital asset ROIx produces?

The ROI (Return on Investment) in BIM manifested by clash detection is old hat.

ROIx is a totally different ballgame as investing in innovation AND information AND leveraging that investment over the web has the potential to exponentially expand the value of the investment.

Adopting BIM – and the innovative lean business processes that must accompany it - is an investment in innovation required to compete in the 21st Century. Early adopters are reaping huge benefits. Adoption requires changes in corporate culture and, ultimately, a revolution in the built industry around the globe. Currently, too few entities in the built industry in Ireland are paying attention to the looming Tsunami of change bearing down on them. Focusing on these processes while the economy is slow will pay huge dividents when the economy comes back. The one (1) hour Webinar scheduled for Thursday August 25, 2011 at 9:30 a.m. EST.
Below are instructions for joining.

1. Go to this LINK

2. If requested, enter your name and email address.

3. If a password is required, enter the meeting password: ipdrountable

4. Click "Join".

5. Follow the instructions that appear on your screen.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Wyoming Federal District Court Rejects Obama Administration Drilling Rules

2011-08-13T02:10:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I haven't had a chance to read the decision but if MSNBC is reporting the ruling in a positive light it's probably pretty good. The Obama Administration has bent over backwards to accomodate environmental concerns and the BLM, under hte new rules crafted by the Obama Administration's Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar, was denying a lot of permits.

A more fundamental questions arises in my mind and that is to what extent and under what authority the federal government continues to control vast swaths ot land in western states. I suspect this was the "deal" that was struck back in the day for admission to the Union but I'm not sure how long residents in western states are going to stand by as the federal government deprives them of access to their resources. This ruling appears to be a step in the right direction.

You can read more at the link below.

Interior Rules Rejected
James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
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Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
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Oil Sands in Alberta - Part III

2011-08-12T13:34:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I didn't realize this was a III part series. Here's the final installment.

Good stuff.

Alberta Oil Sands - Part III

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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Mining Oil Sands - Part II

2011-08-12T09:47:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Below is a link to the second in a a two part series on producing oil from the oil sands in Alberta. Energy companies seem to be paying a lot more attention to reclamation and other efforts to protect the environment today. Watch the second video in the embedded report for a good overview of the use of steam to extract the oil.

I'm also interested in the use of natural gas to dilute the oil which might be a better option in drier climates. Initially, I was worried about excess use of water, but it appears these companies are doing a great job of keeping the water they use to minimum by recycling the water used in the steam loop from one cycle to the next.

The report alludes to the boom to bust cycle associated with these production efforts and I see a lot of opportunity fo the use of IPD, BIM and lean processes by the companies involved. Of course, most of these big energy companies already have a preffered set of service providers, but the surrounding communites, I think, are the ones that could benefit from collaborative solutions provided by intergrated teams.

Oil Sands Production Part II

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Mining Oil Sands in Alberta Canada

2011-08-10T15:19:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The story linked below provides a more in depth explantation of the process for extracting oil sands located close enough to the surface to allow removal of the overburden. The reclamation effort, described in the article and an accompanying video, is impressive.

Ignoring vast reserves of oil and natural gas in North America seems rather impurdent. "Ethical Oil", i.e. oil produced by our friends and not our enemies, is the kind of oil we should consume. Collaborative Construction will continue to highlight stories detailing ongoing efforts to access and produce these resources.

Mining Alberta Oil Sands

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Rare Earth Metal Boom in Nebraska?

2011-08-05T09:20:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The article linked below, in the Washington Times, highlights the emerging boom related to a rare earth metals find in a small town in Nebraska. As readers may recall, from the seabed article on rare earth metals post a few weeks ago the Chinese have us by the short hairs when it comes to rare earth metals.

The U.S. has relied on China for years for the 17 minerals that are defined as rare earths by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry. Despite having such obscure names as praseodymium, promethium and samarium - no copper or zinc here - they are necessary for such routine contemporary technologies as magnets, laser pointers and miniature electronics, such as iPods.

This local communties affected by this boom, like those affected by the the shale gas plays Collaborative Construction has been posting about here, need to considere an planned and intergrated approach to the economic development coming their way.

Rare Earth Metals in Nebraska

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
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Oil Sands Production Costs to Drop?

2011-08-03T16:25:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Canada, and many parts of the western United States, have vast reserves of oil trapped in so-called "oil sands" and it has, historically, been too expensive to extract the oil from the oil sands. Oil trapped in oil sands is too thick to flow easily and it must be refined before it will flow through a pipeline. Much of Candada's oil sands are accessed and refined - through heating the oil - at the surface.

Drilling for oil in an oil sand formation is difficult because the oil has to be heated downhole before it will flow. Until recently, steam was injected downhole to heat the oil and cause it to flow. The article linked below describes a new process that involves the use - and re-use - of propane as a solvent cabable of reducing the viscosity of the oil in the oil sands, enabling production without steam.

The article also highlights the value of horizontal drilling techniques in the process.

Because the new process requires less energy, it should also be cheaper. Smith adds that the equipment needed for heating and reusing the propane is less expensive than technology for managing the large volumes of water used in the steam process. With conventional techniques, oil prices have to be above $50 to $60 per barrel—as they have been for several years—for oil sands to be economical. Smith says that with the solvent process, oil sands are still economical even if oil is $30 to $40 per barrel, close to what it was in the 1990s and early 2000s (in inflation-adjusted dollars). N-Solv says the lower costs will make it possible to economically extract more than twice as much oil from the oil sands compared to conventional technologies.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Flipping the Classroom - Is the Khan Academy Revolutionizing Teaching?

2011-08-01T09:26:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Below I'm linking to another great TED video. This is a presentation by Salman Khan, founder of the Khan Academy. In the video he presents the concept of "flipping the classroom", the idea of recording lectures on the web and then teaching homework in the class room. At Collaborative Construction we are exploring the use of this technique in our collaborative workshops. If collaborative workshop attendees will invest time and energy in viewing lectures in advance then we can work on "homework" during the actual collaborative workshops.

I encourage all readers to take the time to view the video and a think about ways to extend these concepts in your business. Please think about forwarding a link to this blog post to colleagues you think might be interested in the concept.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Economic Impact of Marcellus Bigger than Thought

2011-07-29T11:08:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Good news regarding the impact of these shale gas plays continues to role in from around the country. The group we are putting together to provide collaborative consulting services to communities in the throes of the boom are, I think, timely. I've been busy on the big case I'm consulting on in Cincinnati, but will try to focus on this project a bit more soon.

A Lucrative Investment - private companies are on track to continue investing billions of dollars in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus natural gas. According to the study, $5.3 billion was spent on drilling activities in 2009, an estimated $11.5 billion will be spent in 2010, and on pace to $12.7 billion in 2011.

Increases GDP, Jobs, and Revenue - $11.5 billion in spending in 2010 generated $11.2 billion in additional value. The employment in the state jumps to +336,000 jobs for 2011-2012. And $2.6 billion generated in additional tax revenues during 2011-2012.

Here's a link to a PDF of the 68 Pg Report

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

The Federal Debt Comes Calling!

2011-07-28T14:04:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

We must do something about the looming federal debt crisis. Or stated differently, we must force our spineless political class to do something about the looming federal debt crisis. Politicians have been spending like drunken sailors for years and we must reign them in or this country will fail. Three lawyers I know launched a website a number of years ago called the Powerline Blog and the blog ran a contest this year seeking input form their readers on the topic of the federal debt. A number of great submissions can be seen on their blog bu this is one of my favorites. It's short and has a pointed message.

As one of the lawyers I work with commented the other day, the reality of the debt crisis is NOT granny being pushed over the cliff as a recent advocacy ad depicted - with Congressman Paul Ryan staring as the granny dumper - but one where the grandparents slip over to the edge of the "Debt Cliff" and throw a baby - their grand child presummably - off the Debt Cliff and then calmly pick up their golf clubs and stroll back onto the golf course. Not THAT would be an attention getting ad! To bad nobody has the stones to take on AARP and their thugish supporters by airing such an ad.

P.S.

The lawyer that suggested such an ad is 50 + and I doubt very much he will ever vote to throw any of his grandchildren off the Debt Cliff.

Just a little food for thought.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - NY v. PA

2011-07-26T09:02:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Below is an excerpt from and a link to an interesting article detailing some of the economic benefits of participating in a shale gas play. The article focuses on the different apporach to the Martellus Shale Play by New York and Pennsylvania.

More than 2,000 wells have been drilled in the Keystone State since 2008, and gas production surged to 81 billion cubic feet in 2009 from five billion in 2007. A new Manhattan Institute report by University of Wyoming professor Timothy Considine estimates that a typical Marcellus well generates some $2.8 million in direct economic benefits from natural gas company purchases; $1.2 million in indirect benefits from companies engaged along the supply chain; another $1.5 million from workers spending their wages, or landowners spending their royalty payments; plus $2 million in federal, state and local taxes. Oh, and 62 jobs.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Middle East Development

2011-07-19T12:41:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

As regular readers know Hector Camps and I will be presenting to the Middle East chapter of the International buildingSMARTalliance next Monday. Mike Bordenaro with the BIM Education Co-Op is working with us on our presentations and he sent me the heads up on the Abu Dhabi project. You can follow this WEBEX LINK to register for the presentation.

The article linked below discusses the effort by Over Under to layout a vision for the development of Abu Dhabi's Sowwah Island.

Designated as Abu Dhabi’s new Central Business District in Plan Abu Dhabi 2030, Sowwah Island is designed to meet long- term commercial and community needs. Located at the nexus of the existing city and new growth areas such as Reem and Saadiyat, the 114 hectare project is envisioned as the focus of a fully integrated commercial and financial center that is also a vibrant mixed-use community. Sowwah Island will provide a compelling and dynamic environment in a compact urban context.
As Abu Dhabi’s new Central Business District, Sowwah Island represents a significant investment in the capital city’s future. As such, the client has sought to protect the vision of the Island as a world class development that is characterized by high quality architectural design. This is being achieved through the Architectural Design Controls that are both island-wide and plot-specific, intended to create a set of flexible performance-based criteria that permit scope for design imagination without sacrificing quality. The ADCs also determine the process by which design proposals will be reviewed for compliance.

Magic Sand & Clean Water

2011-07-17T15:10:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Water treatment is an enormously expensive and important process. Clean drinking water is a precious commodity that must be produced in large quantities around the world. Recent nano-technology breakthroughs provide a glimpse of enticing solutions to a variety of water treatment challenges. The Rice Univeristy video below demonstrates the effectiveness of using graphite coated sand to filter water.

Combined with algae and other biological / nano-tech based solutions this technique me prove to be a game changer. We should keep an eye on it.

Magic Sand Article

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Is BIM the New Standard of Care?

2011-07-12T19:48:00.002-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

In May I published a post titled "Architect Sued for "Defective BIM... on a Design-Bid-Build Project" in which I linked to Nadine Post's article in ENR entitled "A Cautionary Tale of Virtual Design and Construction". Later, I published another post linking to a ForConstructionPros.com article titled "BIM Emerging as Construction's Legal Standard of Care" in which I commented on BIM as the emerging standard of care for design professionals. The ENR article has generated 13 pages of comments, the Construction Pros article has generated well over 1,000 hits and the two posts on my little blog have been viewed hundreds of times. I do believe the topic hit a nerve!

More importantly, the industry needs to grapple with the issue in a substantive and intelligent way. Accordingly, Collaborative Construction and Phi-Cubed have joined forces with the BIM Education Coop to put together a series of presentations addressing the issue.

The two articles highlight the modern designer's on dilemma. On the one hand designers who fail to utilize BIM expose themselves to potential liability as their actions may fall below the standard of care expected of a reasonably prudent designer in their community. Alternatively, if designers use BIM they must do so competently or run the risk of being sued for improper use of BIM. Accordingly, designers face a double edged sword of potential liability where they may be sued for using BIM on one project and sued for NOT using BIM on another.

Constructors, specialty trade contractors and others who deliver BIM components may also be treading a thin line visa-a-vi potential liability. Regardless, all participants in the planning, design, construction, operations and maintenance of facilities and supporting infrastructure owe themselves, their clients, other team members and the public at large certain duties vis-a-vi BIM and those duties can best be fulfilled by an integrated team.

On Monday, July 25 James L. Salmon, Esq. and Hector Camps, RA will address this topic in a presentation to the buildingSMART Middle East chapter. Members of that chapter will attend the web-based presentation at no charge, but others are invited to register and attend for a modest fee. Follow the link, Is BIM the new Standard of Care?, to register. Individuals can pay by clicking on the Pay Pal link below or by mailing a check for $14.95 to James L. Salmon at the address below. You will be asked to confirm your method of payment when you register. Alternatively, building industry teams who wish to share the cost can pay a group fee of $99.99 and gather in a single location to view the Webinar.

Click Below to Pay $14.95 as an Individual

Click Below to Pay $99.99 as a Group

Overview of the Presentation

Forensic BIM, BIM as the new standard of care for designers and BIM as a risk management tool took center stage as Salmon and Camps teamed up to settle a recent construction dispute. The two will share insights regarding use of BIM in a traditional legal dispute and their vision for use of BIM on integrated projects.

Camps will explain Integrated Project Lifecycle Management (IPLM), a process which delivers fully functional digital assets to owners. Project information in an IPLM environment is available to the entire team via a common information technology infrastructure which binds the team, digitally represents the building and fosters a collaborative culture. This culminates in increased efficiency, lower costs and faster completion.

Salmon will discuss BIM as an emerging standard of care and the basic legal framework required to deploy IPLM, BIM and lean processes effectively. Salmon will focus on the nature of integrated agreements, allocating and managing risk effectively and other legal mechanisms critical to collaborative success and intelligent use of BIM.

A 40-minute discussion period will allow meaningful interaction on specific legal hurdles and technical difficulties in the Middle East.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Little Man Got Swag!

2011-07-12T12:25:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I enjoy presenting and I have decent stage presence, but I'm no dancer. This little man, however, seems to have what my kids call SWAG.

Hope everyone enjoys this lighter moment as much as I did.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - New York Lifts Ban on Fracking

2011-07-11T10:32:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Last week Governor Cuomo lifted the ban on fracking in New York and the state is now drafting regulations to address the process. This is excellent news for western New York as the economic boom experienced in western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio and West Virginia may now spread.

The link below takes you to an editorial pnned by former New Hampshire Governor John Sununu, who, surprisingly, was involved in fracking experiments as a young student. The continued exploration of shale gas resources represents an opportunity for advocates of sustainable and responsible development and we should move quickly to influence the process in a positive manner. The more I learn the more convinced I am that shale gas and the boom times associated with it represent a great opportunity to deploy and refine IPD, BIM and lean processes.

In New York, rhetoric came face to face with hard facts. Despite decades of use, fracking fluids - which typically contain small amounts of acids, anti-microbials, petroleum distillates, and other chemicals - have never been found to contaminate groundwater. That’s because the shale formations are typically thousands of feet down, far below aquifers and isolated by impermeable rock. Over 99 percent of the fluid used is water, but to address the potential for surface spills, most states regulate its transportation and now disclose its contents. The environmental records of both the process and the gas it produces are pretty strong, but the economics are even more compelling.

Job creation and tax collections in Pennsylvania counties producing shale gas have increased significantly during the past three years. Their neighbors have not fared so well. Governor Tom Corbett calls the investment boom, started under Democratic Governor Ed Rendell, “the foundation of a new economy.” New York could either ignore the economic development occurring in its own back yard or participate.

Smart Fracking, read the whole thing.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

3D Printer on Steroids

2011-07-06T23:47:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Pretty sure I linked to an article on 3D printers a year or two ago, but the demonstration below is particularly cool. I would love to see this system adapted to make copies of key components on site in the construction industry. The cost is probably too high now, but the technology is there and economies of scale would bring the costs down in a hurry. I don't know enough about the chemistry of the resins used in the printer to intelligently comment on the durability / quality / functionality of the printed products, but for things like clips, spacers, etc. I see no reason a system like this wouldn't work like a charm. The potential for this type of technology is mind bogglingly cool!

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Rare Earth Metals Discovered in the Pacific

2011-07-05T10:18:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I'm linking to the article below for several reasons. First, it highlights the stranglehold the Chinese have on the rare earth metals market - they produce 97% of those metals - and these discoveries demonstrate the importance of breaking that stranglehold. Second, the current Chinese monopoly on rare earth metals needs to be viewed in the context of that coutnry's explosive growth path and the willigness of Chinese leadership to outsource economic development globally. The Chinese buy into the Ford Shale Gas Play in south Texas is one example of such outsourcing already linked on this blog. If you take a look around the world you will see the Chinese government buying a stake in a myriad of economic opportunities globally. Those of us interested in increased efficiency and sustainability must study and understand the motivations of the Chinese, and the billions of upon billions of people that live in that counrty..

Another reason for the link is to draw attention to what will, undoubtedly be a a growing industry in the near future. Rare earth metals are crucial to manufacturers of modern electronics and diversifying sources of those metals will be a priorty. Accordingly, many billions will be invested in locating, mining, refining, transporting and utilizing these resources. Those who wish to positively influence the process must do so early.

Finally, the article reminds us that exploring for, extracting, refining, transporting and utlizing natural resources in an efficient and sustainable manner represents an enormous economic opportunty. Treating these rare earth metals as feedstock for the global electronics manufacturing industry - and leveraging shale gas as a bridge source to more sustainable energy options - represent two of the many prongs of economic development unfolding on a worldwide scale with which every advocate of sustainable development must grapple. Rethinking how we plan, design, construct, operate and maintain facilities and related infrastructure empowers us to do it better. Extracting, utlizing and recycling - to the extent possible - shale gas, rare earth metals and other resources energizes our global economy and improves the lives of billions.

In the coming weeks Collaborative Construction will outline a vision for engaging communities impacted by boom times in a conversation regarding the planning of economic expansion and contraction with an eye towards building sustainable infrastructure duing the boom capable of supporting the community when inevitable contractions occur. These ides will be devloped here and in the Collaborative Construction newsletter. Stay tuned.

Rare Earth Metals Discovered in Pacific

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

IS BIM the new Standard of Care for Designers?

2011-06-29T14:18:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

As many who follow this blog know I've argued for years that BIM is the new standard of care by which design professionals will be judged. I have always been hesitant to say that very loudly due to fear my colleagues in legal professional will use it as a cudgel to beat my former design clients about the head and shoulders. In light of the "BIM Lawsuit" reported by Nadine Post in ENR - linked here last month - I can no longer sit idle.

Accordingly, I agreed to the publication of statements by me related to the Standard of Care issue earlier this month. You can read the article, BIM Emerging as Construction's Legal Standard of Care as published on For Construction Pros website.

I've been quietly consulting on behalf of attorneys interested in leveraging BIM for several years now, but the case referenced in this article is the first instance in which we hired a BIM expert to model 2D drawings in order to highlight errors in those drawings. The use of what I would call Forensic BIM will rise dramatically as lawyers recognize the value of 3D models in complex construction cases.

Design professionals - and to a lesser extent on professionals in the construction industry - will find BIM to be a double edged sword. On the one hand, as the ENR article illustrates, the use of BIM in a silo can lead to liability if other team members are not familiar with BIM while the failure to use BIM altogether may result in liability premised on a failure to meet the new standard of care.

Delivery of BIM enabled planning, design and constructions services by an integrated team will reduce the risk of liability by all stakeholders as BIM use takes place in a collaborative environment outside traditional silos. If readers have any questions they should feel free to call.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

BIM Breakfast Scheduled in July

2011-06-29T13:57:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Planning for the Second IPD Round Table series is underway and BIM Breakfast participants are welcome to join the discussion. The focus will be on Public Private Partnerships and leveraging IPD, BIM and lean processes in the oil & gas industry. The next Collaborative BIM Breakfast is scheduled for 7:00 a.m. next Thursday July, 7, 2011.

We will meet on the MAIN FLOOR of the American Book Building located at 300 Pike Street, Cincinnati 45202. Once all are present we will move downstairs, get breakfast and grab a table. This is an intimate small group meeting and we delve into the nuts and bolts of IPD, BIM and lean processes in detail. Bring a friend or a client and join us!

For those who drive, turn RIGHT on to Pike Street near the end of 5th Street as it leaves downtown Cincinnati and follow Pike Street STRAIGHT until it dead ends into Third Street. The main entrance to the American Book Building will be on your LEFT as you go down Pike Street towards Third Street. At Third Street turn LEFT and go about 200' and then turn RIGHT into the parking lot beneath the I-471 On-Ramp Overpass. Jot down your license plate number and record it at the front desk and you will not be charged for parking.

Organizations whose members have a stake in the AEC Industry are encouraged to forward information about the Collaborative BIM Breakfast meetings to their members and to encourage those members to attend. The breakfast meetings and any subsequent IPD Round Table discussions are designed to stimulate cross disciplinary conversations among like minded professionals interested in integrated project delivery (IPD) building information modeling (BIM) and lean business processes. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to call.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - Short Carbon Chains to Long Carbon Chains

2011-06-29T11:45:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The most intriguing thing to me about the shale gas boom is the potential to "refine" natural gas - a short chain hydrocarbon - into a variety of long chain hydrocarbon products. I've long argued for the use of renewable energy resources on the grounds that we REALLY need to preserve our oil and gas resources until we unlock the secrets of the vast energy reserves. Advances in nanotechnologies always stuck me as the most likely mechanism for doing so. While nanotechnology may ultimately carry the day old fashioned refining techniques - reversed and applied to natural gas - may well preempt much of the hand wringing over "peak oil" that has dominated the conversations related to sustainability for the last several decades.

Shell has opened two massive refinerie that feature what I call "reverse refining" processes. In the energy industry the process is called gast to liquid or a GTL process. The Pearl Plant in Qatar and the Bintulu Plant in Malasia both utulize the technique to convert natrual gas feed stock into liquid fuels, paraffin and other refined petroleum products with higher profit margins and more specialized uses than raw natural gas.

The Shell Pearl Plant, planned, designed, constructed operated and maintained purusant to a fully intergrated joint ventrue agreement between Shell and Qatar took almost 7 years to construct. 54,0000 employees worked 77 million hours constructing the plant without a single serious accident! Shell has a wealth of information about the plant on the web, You can follow the Shell Pearl Plant link and peruse the website at your leisure. The image below is an aerial view of construction in 2010.

Shell's Bintulu GLT Plant, like the Pearl Plant, is a join venture. For an excellent report summarizing the scope and nature of the Bintulu GLT Plant take a look at Robert Rapier's excellent article in Consumer Energy Report titled Inside Shell's Bintulu GTL Plant. As Robert notes in the excerpt below, the joint venture was a great success.

The plant is actually a venture composed of four shareholders: Shell (72%), Mitsubishi (14%), Petronas, the national oil company of Malaysia (7%), and Sarawak State (7%).

The plant was originally completed in 1993 with a capacity of 12,500 bbl/day at a cost of $850 million. That is a capital cost of $68,000 per daily barrel, more expensive than a conventional oil refinery but far less than the costs often cited for coal-to-liquids (CTL), biomass-to-liquids (BTL), or any number of alternative fuel technologies. The plant has since expanded to the present capacity of 14,700 bbl/day and the total investment is over $1 billion.

While Shell is scaling these processes up - and gaining economies of scale - my thought is the right integrated team can scale the system down and add real value in key regions impacted by shale gas plays. I expand a bit on these thoughts in Collaborative Construction's June Newsletter and will revist the idea in a future post here.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - WSJ Article "The Facts About fracking"

2011-06-26T15:03:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The article linked below purports to reveal "The Facts about Fracking". This is another shale gas related post that should be tucked away in your memory. The economic development angle is the key to the shale gas plays from my perspective.

As recently as 2000, shale gas was 1% of America's gas supplies; today it is 25%. Prior to the shale breakthrough, U.S. natural gas reserves were in decline, prices exceeded $15 per million British thermal units, and investors were building ports to import liquid natural gas. Today, proven reserves are the highest since 1971, prices have fallen close to $4 and ports are being retrofitted for LNG exports.

The shale boom is also reviving economically suffering parts of the country, while offering a new incentive for manufacturers to stay in the U.S. Pennsylvania's Department of Labor and Industry estimates fracking in the Marcellus shale formation, which stretches from upstate New York through West Virginia, has created 72,000 jobs in the Keystone State between the fourth quarter of 2009 and the first quarter of 2011.

The economic development aspect of the topic will be explored in more detail in coming weeks.

The Facts About Fracking

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - Chinese Buy into South Texas Oil & Gas Field

2011-06-21T12:17:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

There are some very interesting economics at play in the Eagle Ford Shale play unfolding in South Texas. The article linked below describes a deal between China's CNOOC and Chesapeake Energy, an early player in Shale gas plays around the country. Chesapeake gobbled up thousdands of oil and gas leases bu needs capital to develop those leases in a timely manner.

Enter CNOOC a company owned by the Chines government. As the article from the San Antonio Express explains:

"From the Chinese perspective, this is a golden opportunity for them. They have identified shale resources in China, but they don't have the knowledge or technical expertise to go after those resources," said Ken Medlock, a fellow at Houston's Baker Institute and adjunct professor in Rice University's economics department.
McClendon disputed that notion, saying hydraulic fracturing is now "off-the-shelf technology" available to anyone.
Also underlying the move is China's need to find new energy sources and the technology to develop them to feed its expansive economic growth.

Energy consumption in the world's most populous nation has doubled in less than a decade, and the International Energy Agency reported in July that China surpassed the U.S. in total energy used in 2009.
China has increasingly been looking to the Americas for raw materials it needs to sustain the boom. As private investment dwindled with the global financial crisis, the cash-flush Chinese went on a regional shopping spree.

SA Express Article

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Why the engineer's calculations matter!

2011-06-16T13:48:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Physics are physics, and when somebody makes a mistake bad things happen. Just wanted to post something light hearted that conveys the importance of careful planning. Nobody was hurt - as far as I know - in the crane fail video linked below, but that isn't always the case.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

USGBC and LEED Standards Under Attack

2011-06-16T13:10:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

In 2009 I lamented the fact that high performance building standards and similar certification regimens are forcing stakeholders in the construction industry to pound round green pegs through square brown holes. In our collaborative workshops I routinely warn designers and constructors not to over promise when it comes to green results. The article linked below describes litigation filed against USGBC over its LEED program and highlights many of the risks I alluded to in the green peg square brown hole post.

Continued caution is warrented in this arena, but there are also substantial opportunities associated with these increasing demands for leaner, greener more efficient facilities.

USGBC LEED Lawsuit

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - Where is it and how should we develop it?

2011-06-13T09:03:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The map below shows the extensive reach of shale gas formations in the US. At Collaborative Construction we are working to put together integrated teams capable of delivering planning, design, construction, operations and maintenace services to key stakeholders involved in these gas plays around the country. We are particularly interested in helping governmental entities in these locations procure planning, design and construction services from entities capable of delivering fully functional digital assets to those governmental entities that will empower intelligent and efficient operations of the facilities and infrastructuctrue delivered for generations to come. I grew up in West Texas during the oil boom and I see extensive opportunities and pitfalls here.

South Texas is booming, as is western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, West Virginia and North Dakota as well as parts of Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas. Of course New York has issued a moratorium on fracking so none of the vast shale gas reserves in western New York are yet being tapped.

Governmental entities in these boom areas will have the need and opportunity to upgrade a variety of infrastrucrure in their communties and integrated teams capable of planning, designing and constructing such infrastructure intelligently and efficiently can positively impact lives, the economy and the environment.

Anyone interested in joining such an intergrated team should contact Collaborative Construction.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - Economic Boon or Environmental Disaster?

2011-06-09T17:09:00.003-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Natural gas enjoyed a short a run as an acceptable "green energy" source in the early 2000s but has, of late been criticized by many environmentalists. To determine its viability as an energy source the risks associated with exploration, estraction, production, transportation, delivery and use must be balanced against the detrimental effects of those activities. In the law, when pursuing or defending a products liability claims, lawyers often ask jurors to balance the utility of a product against the risks associated with the use of the product. I view the query regarding the risk / benefit analysis of natural gas as an energy source in much the same way.

Rather than argue the pros and cons of the issue in depth myself I am simply going to post links, with brief comments, to sources arguing the pros and cons and leave it to the readers of the blog to self-educate on the topic.

The first item I will link to is an editorial published in USA Today titled "Fracking' with care holds key to energy future" which argues the economic benefits outweigh the environmental risks. The USA Editorial Board argues:

"This technique [fracing] has brought a surprising amount of new gas production from states as disparate as Texas, North Dakota and Pennsylvania — enough combined with conventional supplies to last perhaps 100 years at current consumption rates.
That's game-changing, wildly underdiscussed news. Gas now meets only about a quarter of the nation's energy needs, much of it for home heating and industrial use. But if estimates of shale gas reserves are correct — and they seem to just get bigger — gas could begin to displace oil as a fuel for vehicles and might even help unseat coal as the nation's dominant fuel for generating electricity. Price pressures would ease; dependence on unstable supplies of foreign oil could decline."

The following video accompanies the editorial.

USA Today published a piece at the same time that argued we should, "Ban Fracking Now." The author, Josh Fox, has also produced a documentary titled "Gasland" in which he advances the argument set forth in his editorial. Below is a trailer for the documentary.

My view is these vast reserves of gas shale will be developed regardless of the merits - or lack thereof - of Mr. Fox's documentary because the economics of these shale gas plays are too compelling to ignore. In the coming days I will link to more resources and comment further on the economic realities of these gas plays.

Meanwhile, I will leave readers with the following thoughts. If significant gas plays are inevitable in 32 countries around the world and in the US wouldn't it be prudent to inject a bit of IPD, BIM and lean thinking into the process? Wouldn't the communities, contractors, suppliers, landowners and others who are touched by the development of these shale gas resources benefit from access to fully functional digital assets associated with the developments in their communities? Those of us who want to see integrated project delivery, BIM and lean processes weilded for good have an obligation to step to the plate in these communtiies and deliver on the promise of these innovative new bsuiness processes.

The energy industry has significant experience utilizing virtual design and construction tools and this represents a golden opportunity to lead by example in the communities where these shale gays plays are unfolding.

Again, I will post more on this topic soon.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Shale Gas - An Introduction

2011-06-07T17:56:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

This is the first in a series of shale gas posts. These posts will focus on opportunities for the use of integrated project delivery, virtual design and construction and lean processes in planning, designing, constructing and maintaining the infrastructure associated the development of natural gas resources found in shale formations around the world.

Advances in technology and extraction methods have rendered recoverable vast reserves of gas trapped in shale formations around the world. Combining advances in the use of Fischer-Tropsch techniques to convert natural gas feed stock to liquid fuels and other valuable products with the revelation of these vast oil and gas reserves has fundamentally changed global landscape both politically and economically. Successfull recovery will depend on completion of substantial infrastructure in each market.

The US Energy Information Agency (eia) comissioned an analysis of 48 shale gas basins in 32 countries containing 70 seperate shale gas formations and the report, authored by Advanced Resources International and released april 5, 2011, revealed 5,760 trillion cubic feet of technically recoverable shale gas in those 32 countries. The US has 862 trillion cubic feet of technically recoverable shale gas. In 2010 technically recoverable gas resoureces, largely excluding shale gas, were estimated to be 16,000 trillion cubic feet. The report published by the eia April 5, 2011 adds 6,622 trillion cubic feet - over 40% - to that estimate for a total of 22,600 trillion cubic feet. The report does not address oil in those shale formations, does not provide any analysis of any shale formations in Central Africa, does not address shale formations in North and South Africa, or in Russia or Central Asia.

The report indicates, "The development of shale gas plays has become a "game changer" for the U.S. natural gas market." The same will soon be true globally.

Natrual gas is cleaner than coal or oil and is far more abundent and reliable than solar, wind and other green energy options. Nuclear has a huge black eye due the tsunami in Japan and the revelation of these vast untapped reserves of shale gas represent an enormous opportunity.

Responsibly developing these resources will spark much needed economic growth both domestically and internationally. Stakeholders involved in these shale gas plays will benefit from the use of integrated project delivery, virtual design and construction methods and lean business processes of all kinds. International players like Shell, Exxon and BP understand the value of these innovative business processes and have experience deploying thse tools in the planning, design, construction, operation and maitenance of complex energy industry infrastructure. Smaller players in the industry as well as strategic alliances and coallitions will benefit from integrating these processes and will earn huge returns on innovation.

Followers of this blog, readers of the Collaborative Construction Newsletter and members of Collaborative BIM Advocates are well positioned to form teams capable of delivering integrated services to stakeholders invovled in development of shale gas resources. This Shale Gas series will highlight the opportunities.

World Shale Gas Resources: An Initial Assessment of 14 Regions Outside the United States

The link takes you to a 7 page summary of the report. When you click on the link took to the right side of the page and you will see a link via which you can download a complete PDF copy of the 365 page report. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

IPROBLUE Technologies Making Waves

2011-06-06T17:48:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I wrote a post a few weeks ago about IPROBLUE Technologies Mobile Engineering Apps and indicated I thought the company was onto something. Turns out I might have been right. Below I've linked to an ASME article in which IPROBLUE Tech's David Homes is quoted and the market niche the company is carving out appears primed to explode.

“Counting only the two major platforms in the mobile space today, iOS and Android, there are more than 500,000 apps available these days,” says David Homes, director of technology at IPROBLUE Tech, which develops mobile engineering solutions. “This is a market that pretty much just started in July 2008, when Apple launched the App Store and made it an accessible platform for developers to self-publish there.”

Later in article Homes comments on the future of the market:

By 2015, the mobile app market is expected to be worth $25 billion dollars (up from $6.8 billion in 2010), according to a report by TechCrunch. “With the new tablets on the market, the rate of new mobile application is expected to increase big time during 2011,” says Homes.

These are the kinds of advances that will enable integrated team members to deliver IPD, BIM and lean processes more effectively. Be sure and read the whole thing.

ASME Article

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Collaborative Workshop Topics

2011-06-02T14:30:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Collaborative Construction offers a series of collaborative workshops related to IPD, BIM and lean processes. The list below reflects a few of the topics Collaborative Construction covers in those workshops. Typical workshops run a full day with a morning lecture and an afternoon of interactive team building exercises. Abbreviated versions of the collaborative workshop presentations listed below are presented online as part of the IPD Round Table series and many topics are now being explored in detail in the BUILT - BIM to FM section of the AUGIWorld Magazine each month.

If you or any of your collaborative partners are interested in having Collaborative Construction provide in-house training on the topics listed below or if you are interested in forming an integrated team or a strategic alliance of collaborative partners capable of delivering a particular scope of work on a specific project in an integrated environment please call. Meanwhile, please share information about Collaborative Construction's ability to provide these collaborative workshops with you colleagues.

Level 1 Seminars & Workshops

Introductory Session - What are the moving parts of IPD, BIM and Lean
Integrated Agreements - What they are and how they work
Project Delivery Models - What delivery models are most common and what works
Trust Based Team Building - How to build effective integrated teams
Strategic Alliance Contracts - What are they and how do they work
ROI on IPD, BIM and Lean - If you aren't measuring it how can you manage it?
Dispute Resolution - Adjust legal relationships outside the court room
Collaborative Insurance - Mitigating and managing risk effectively
IPD Incentive Programs - Reward collaborative & cooperative behavior
Joining Agreements - Bringing suppliers, consultants and trade contractors on board
Collaborative Workshops - What integrated teams and owners need to know
IPD, BIM and Lean Consultants - What are the relevant skill sets?

Level 2 Seminars & Workshops

Introductory Session – Why Functional Digital Assets Matter
What Owners Want – Decisions Accessing Valuable & Informative Data Systems
Return on Innovation – What does IPD, BIM and lean really give owners?
Owners Want it All – What kind of RFPs and RFQs help them get it all?
Integrated Teams – How does an owner form and train integrated teams?
Trust Based Relationships – Why do they matter and how do I build them?
Laddered ADR – What it is, how it works and why it matters
Cluster Teams – Integrating an entire scope of work
Strategic Alliances – Forming integrated teams to pursue traditional work

What Owners Want.... They Want IT ALL!

2011-05-23T23:31:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Below is an excerpt from the article I wrote for the June edition of AUGIWorld Magazine. I will publish a link to the full article later this summer, but I wanted to provider readers of the blog and the Collaborative Construction Newsletter with a preview. In addition, I'm linking, here, to a copy of the initial article, "An Introduction to the Revolution" published in May in the BUILT - BIM to FM section in AUGIWorld Magazine. The article is on pages 21 -23 of the online version of the magazine. As the title of the article implies, it introduces the series which explores BUILT - BIM to FM, the process whereby functional digital assets are delivered to owners by planners, designers, constructors, commissioning agents, and utilized by their operations and maintenance personnel over life of a facility and any accompanying infrastructure.

The June article, titled "What Owners Want" lays out the conceptual framework for the procurement of functional digital assets from an owner's perspective. Subsequent articles will delve into the nuts and bolts of BIM, IPD, lean business processes, trust based team building, laddered alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, strategic alliance agreements and other mechanisms for achieving BIM to FM in a BUILT environment. The articles highlight the concepts developed by Collaborative Construction in its innovative IPD in 3D program and in the BUILT System it has pioneered. In the article I argue:

Increasing efficiency in the AEC Industry puts $1.1 to $2.3 trillion in potential savings in play world wide, creating an industry in and of itself. Separately, operations, energy and maintenance costs represent several TRILLION dollars more from which additional savings can be extracted over the life cycle of a facility and its infrastructure. IPD, BIM and lean processes deliver functional digital assets which empower decisions that drive increases in efficiency and savings on the trillions of dollars spent over the life cycle of facilities and infrastructure world wide.

The image below accompanies the foregoing text and graphically illustrates the immense savings available to owners who leverage these tools and demand use of IPD, BIM and lean on their projects.

Over the next few months this blog will focus on the BUILT - BIM to FIM series and similar efforts throughout the country and around the world to highlight the benefits owners glen from IPD, BIM and lean processes. Specifically, I will be linking to the AUGIWorld Magazine articles in the BUILT - BIM to FM series and to a series of owner presentations delivered in conjunction with the AIA TAP Committee's presentation at the AIA meeting in New Orleans on 05-11-11. Kimon Onuma coordinated that effort in a mini-BIMSTorm style and did a great job of gathering presentations from a diverse array of owners. Kimon recorded the presentations on his Vimeo page and you can view them all there at your leisure. If readers know of other informative materials that might be of interest to owners exploring the adoption of IPD, BIM and lean processes in an effort to procure functional digital assets please contact me and I will link to those materials as well.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Architect Sued for "Defective BIM"... on a Design-Bid-Build Project

2011-05-19T14:10:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The article linked below highlights the need for stakeholders on complex Design-Bid-Build projects that employ BIM tools to craft a set of BIM Addenda that carefully delineate the rights, responsibilities and duties of the various parties. Here, an architect appears to have utilized BIM tools that indicated certain mechanical systems would fit in certain spaces. Apparently, the mechanical systems fit in the digital world but NOT in the real world. Designers providing BIM under a traditional set of Design-Bid-Build contracts are exposing themselves to additional liability if they fail to execute appropriate BIM Addenda and BIM Communication Protocols. In my presentations I depict these designers as walking a high-rope without a net.

If you are faced with such a situation be sure to call. While Collaborative Construction prefers to work with the entire team to craft effective integrated agreements and to conduct collaborative workshops related to the successful implementation of IPD, BIM and lean processes we recognize the need for work-arounds and solutions to the problems raised by blending Design-Bid-Build contracts with BIM processes.

Cases like these will become more frequent and the next step for plaintiff's lawyers in these cases will be to argue BIM is the new standard of care and any designer NOT utilizing BIM can be held liable for vague, ambiguous or unreadable drawings.

Feel free to call if you have any questions.

ENR Article re: BIM Liability

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

AIA TAP Event Highlights Owner's Desires

2011-05-18T19:46:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

"At the American Institute of Architect's 2011 convention in New Orleans multiple government building leaders and other owners released short videos describing a unified approach to information sharing between building owners, architects and construction contractors that can save billions of dollars each year. Industry leaders have long understood that modeling building construction and operation using uniform information (BIM) improves construction quality while reducing costs, but last week's AIA Convention offered the first unequivocal, concise direction on future building industry data sharing."

Link to Article

I was glad to see the article above as it ties in nicely with the series of articles I am writing for the BUILT to FM section in AUGIWORLD over the next 12 months. Sophisticated consumers of planning, design and construction services who also happen to be long term users of the facilities planned, designed and constructed are desperate for functional digital assets that will enable them to operate, maintain and manage those facilities and any accompanying infrastructure over time. The AIA TAP Committee - which sponsored this parade of owners is led in part by Kimon Onuma who has long advocated the use of opens source neutral platforms for BIM data. It appears as if owners are beginning to recognize the power they wield in the market place.

Stakeholders in the AEC Industry who are interested in planning, designing and constructing facilities for the new generation of owners will have to deliver functional digital assets of the kind demanded by these owners. Readers are encouraged to contact Collaborative Construction for more information.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Trimble Offers to Buy Tekla

2011-05-12T10:25:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Trimble's offer to buy Tekla is an interesting development. Trimble's focus on surveying, scanning and location identification technologies seems to be a good fit with Tekla robust design tools. Combining their services / products will take some time but the combined entity should be able to compete well in the emerging BIM / Digital Scanning markets.

As the economy comes back more and more developers, contractors and owners are going to be looking for BIM packages that culminate in the delivery of a digital asset that matters to the owner.

At Collaborative Construction we continue to see increased demand for integrated solutions from sophisticated institutional owners seeking to leverage digital assets throughout the life cycle of the facility to increase the efficiency with which operations and maintenance are completed. The combined Trimble / Tekla entity should be well positioned to compete for business from such owners.

Link to Press Release

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

iPad2 Hologram Demo?

2011-05-11T11:49:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

I cannot tell whether this is real or fake, but it brings to mind some awesome possibilities in the planning and design arena. I've always thought a full blown hologram of a facility that visitors could interact with would be a phenomenally cool feature to display in the lobby. It looks like we are getting closer and closter!

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

What Owners Want

2011-05-10T16:06:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Kimon Onuma is hosting a webinar tomorrow with 17 owners who will be presenting their view of the world in real time tomorrow.

The 5.11.11 Webinar is free, will occur in real time ( and later as a saved animation on you tube asynchronously ). Each owner will have 5 minutes in which to present a year's worth of work.

You can take a sneak peek at what Kimon has in mind by watching the VIMEO video below.

AIA TAP Revolution 2011 from KimonOnuma on Vimeo.

Follow this AIATAP Link to register.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Green energy advocate mugged by reality

2011-05-04T11:02:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

The article quoted and linked below is refreshingly candid. In it, George Monboit, a self declared member of the "green movement" confesses environmentalism is a "belief system" that has failed to articulate "a convincing account of how humanity can get out of this mess". By "mess" he means, I think, the "planet-wrecking project" humans have undertaken as a result of our propensity to improve our circumstances from day to day and generation to generation.

Monboit outlines three "green" solutions to the "planet-wrecking project" he deems inadequate. The three solutions are accommodation of the world economy, dramatic downsizing of the world economy and collapse of the world economy. Rejecting each solution as unworkable, he concludes:

I hope that by laying out the problem I can encourage us to address it more logically, to abandon magical thinking and to recognise the contradictions we confront. (emphasis added)

Decarbonising the economy, as Monboit wants to do, will require an increase in infrastructure on a scale that places "green solutions" in conflict with the world view favored by members of the green movement. Specifically, he explains:

These questions are so divisive because the same world-view tells us that we must reduce emissions, defend our landscapes and resist both the state and big business. The four objectives are at odds.

As our economy rebounds - globally the world economy grew at a rate of 4.6% last year - Monboit and his acolytes lament the fact the date for peak oil has passed with no collapse of the global economy. The reason peak oil failed to cause global collapse, as predicted by many greens, is that other fossil fuels are now filling the gap - natural gas, and oil sands combine to dwarf crude oil reserves - while nuclear power and coal remain the cheapest and most efficient fuel sources for electric power. Faced with this reality Monboit laments:

We have enough non-renewable resources of all kinds to complete our wreckage of renewable resources: forests, soil, fish, freshwater, benign weather. Collapse will come one day, but not before we have pulled everything down around us.

What horrible and pessemistic world view. I prefer to see the silver lining in all of this. I view the need to preserve and conserve our spectacular natural resources as an intellectual, spiritual and economic challenge that can only be met by bold innovative thinkers striving to improve their lot, the lot of those around them and the lot of their children and grandchildren from day to day and generation to generation. Restricting economic growth for billions in third wold countries - i.e. decarbonizing our economy to accommodate slower / lower economic growth - strikes me as short sighted and foolish in the extreme.

I agree with Monboit that members of the green movement need to "abandon magical thinking" and recognize the inherently contradictory solutions they advocate are part of a "belief system" consisting of "beliefs that in some cases remain unexamined." Too many in the green movement have adopted a belief system that can best be described a "green religion"

From my perspective, as a Christian, I find it odd that my green friends - many of whom declare themselves to be atheists - argue from a "belief system" that requires incredible leaps of faith that prove complete untenable when analyzed in the cold harsh light of reality. Monboit recognizes those realities. Neither India nor China will ever agree to limit their growth to any substantial degree. Accordingly, different solutions to these "green" conundrums are required.

Mastering the digital data associated with the facilities and infrastructure we create is one mechanism via which we can at least make intelligent fact based decisions regarding energy use in a variety of circumstances. Misplaced blind faith in climate scientists - who have proven less than credible - big government - which has seized power through excessive regulation and taxation, and big business - which has proven all too eager to crawl in bed with big government, seems less than prudent to me. I prefer innovative market based solutions and I would encourage my friends in the green movement to adopt green solutions driven by greenbacks rather than green beliefs.

Read the whole thing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Trade Hubs with Mike Rowe

2011-05-02T14:12:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Mike Rowe Is No Expert, But He Knows Where to Find Them

After being an apprentice on nearly 300 dirty jobs, Mike Rowe is still no expert, but he sure knows where to find them. In 2008, Mike launched mikeroweWORKS, a website dedicated to championing the cause of hard workers and reinvigorating the skilled trades. Since then, mikeroweworks has provided resources, news, and a community forum for folks from all kinds of trades. Now, with the launch of the Trades Hub, the goals of mikerowewokrs can be expanded even further and across many more website portals.

Think of Trade Hubs as a “first cousin” to mikeroweWorks. With this new platform, we’ll be able to pull together even more experts from such diverse trade fields as construction, plumbing, landscaping, manufacturing, machinery and HVAC just to name a few.

Here’s what you can look for at the Trades Hub:

More High Quality Content: The mrW Trades Hub will be pulling together all kinds of blogs, articles and news stories relating to the trades, by the trades and for the trades. They will be updated throughout the day.

One Stop Shop: With an easy to navigate site, users will be able to quickly source out those areas of interest that appeal to them on any given day. The links will take them right to where they want to go without sorting through all kinds of search engine pages for the right site.

Finding the Diamond in the Rough: When you consider the millions of new pages and posts uploaded across the internet everyday it’s hard to find the best representations for your interests. Trade Hubs takes internet searching to the next level by identifying those popular blog and websites that might normally go unnoticed if you’re not a regular subscriber.

Building Up the Trades Community: "The skills gap is a real concern that's getting more worrisome every day. Fewer skilled tradesmen in the workforce will affect us all. Younger folks need to have a better understanding of how they can benefit from learning a trade, and parents need to encourage their kids to consider this worthwhile and important path. mrW strives to reinvigorate the trades. The mrW Trades Hub will help us in that effort."

mikeroweWORKS would like to thank Tony Karrer with assistance from John Sonnhalter for their efforts in getting the Trades Hub up and running.

Second IPD Round Table Series - Registration and Payment

2011-05-02T07:00:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Second IPD Round Table Series Launched

NOTE: IF YOU JUST REGISTERED FOR THE WEBINAR AND YOU NEED TO PAY SCROLL DOWN THE PAGE TO THE PAYPAL / MAILING INSTRUCTIONS BELOW.

Collaborative Construction invites advocates of Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Construction & Design (VDC) to participate in the Second IPD Round Table Series. Firms are invited to host a series of informative IPD Round Table conversations around the GLOBE in the coming year. The Second IPD Round Table series begins May 5, 2011 at 9:30 a.m. and continues monthly. To register follow this link, Second IPD Round Table Registration. You will land back on this page when you submit your registration and you can pay below. Hosts will conduct IPD Round Table events at their office with their clients and collaborative partners. Hosts are free to advertise the event locally, nationally, globally or online.

The annual hosting fee is $600, which is only $50.00 per month. Hosts are entitled to invite as many participants to attend their hosted events as they choose and are free to advertise the events locally as they see fit. The annual fee for an individual attendee is $99.99 - which is only $8.33 per session! - or individuals can sign up one session at a time for $14.99 per session. Entities interested in hosting IPD Round Table sessions in multiple locations should contact JamesLsalmon@gmail.com to negotiate a discounted annual fee. To learn more continue reading below or follow this link - Second IPD Round Table Introduction - to see a web-based presentation detailing scope and nature of the series.

To pay by check mail your payment to:

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street, Suite 500
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

To pay online follow the instructions below.

Click Below to pay a $600.00 Annual Hosting Fee

Click Below to pay a $99.99 Individual Annual Fee

Click Below to pay a $14.99 Fee to Attend an Individual Session

IPD ROUND TABLE FORMAT

James L. Salmon of Collaborative Construction begins each 1 hour IPD Round Table discussion with a short Webinar presentation on an IPD topic of interest. Hosts and attendees are then free to ask questions, and James typically remains on the line for another 30 to 45 minutes. Following the online discussion the Webinar ends and local hosts have the opportunity to continue the conversation with local attendees in a collaborative setting. Each host formlates a series of questions designed to prompt further discussion at the local level. Hosts and participants may, from time to time, be invited to make presentations of their own.

Invitations to participate in the Second IPD Round Table Series are being extended to firms, organizations and individuals located around the world and we anticipate a interesting and informative conversation among IPD, BIM, VDC and Lean process advocates around the GLOBE. Questions and answers will come from the from around the world. All participants - hosts and attendees alike - will benefit from accessing a diverse knowledge base and leveraging that knowledge every month.

BENEFITS OF HOSTING IPD ROUND TABLE EVENTS

Recognition in IPD Round Table Updates published monthly on this blog
Exposure on the Collaborative Construction Blog
Links on Collaborative Construction's Affiliates' Websites
Collaborative Construction Newsletter Listing Monthly
Discussions in 20+ targeted LinkedIn Groups online
Recognition in local market as an IPD, BIM, VDC and Lean Leader
Education of Attendees Invited by Host Entity Re IPD, BIM, VDC and Lean Processes
Monthly Marketing Opportunities Among Select Clients & Collaborative Partners

Host firms will be encouraged to bring cross disciplinary teams to the IPD Round Table events each month and should view IPD Round Table events as the remarkable marketing opportunities they are. Each presentation will trigger robust debate - first online and then locally - with the hosted conversation continuing long after the Webinar ends. Firms interested in positioning themselves as IPD leaders in their market will be well served by hosting IPD Round Table events.

IPD Round Table summaries will be distributed monthly through the Collaborative Construction newsletter, posted on the Collaborative Construction Blog, discussed on LinkedIn, mentioned on Twitter and linked on a myriad of affiliated websites. As Collaborative Construction's network of contacts and affiliated websites expands, so will the marketing power of an IPD Round Table Host's sponsorship of IPD Round Table events.

HOSTS AND CO-HOSTS LOCATED IN EVERY CORNER OF THE GLOBE

Collaborative Construction will be seeking commitments from Hosts throughout the United States and abroad. Potential hosts will also be contacted in Canada, South America, Europe, the Middle East, New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Rim. Don't be left on the sideline! Sign up to host an IPD Round Table discussion in your community today.

This GLOBAL flier will be followed by a targeted invitation directed at key firms Collaborative Construction perceives as emerging IPD leaders in their communities around the globe. No more than 12 firms will be allowed to Host IPD Round Table events during a single Webinar. We have found that the quality and intimacy of the conversation deteriorates significantly when there are more than 8 to 12 active participants in a Webinar. There will be no limit on the number of individuals who can participate. We will schedule as many IPD Round Table Webinars as demand supports.

Hosts should also consider partnering with potential integrated team mates as Co-Hosts. If the $600.00 annual fee is too burdensome for a single entity a Co-Host could split that cost and two entities could enjoy GLOBAL exposure as IPD advocates in a market for $300 each per year.

As demand grows, we will add additional IPD Round Table dates to the calendar. Pricing will be re-visted next year as well, but Charter Hosts will be offered substantial discounts to renew their sponsorships. Finally, individual remote participants will be always be able to attend virtually for FREE.

HOW DO I BECOME AN IPD ROUND TABLE HOST?

This initial flier is being posted on the Collaborative Construction Blog and will sent to recipients of Collaborative Construction's April Newsletter. A follow on invitation will be extended to a select group of firms around the world, but hosting opportunities will be assigned on a first come first serve basis. Since hosts will be selected on a first come first serve basis and geographic overlap between hosts will be discouraged, time is of the essence.

If you are a decision maker in your firm send a check today to secure your firm's spot as an IPD Round Table host. If you prefer to pay online, you can click the Buy Now button below.

$600 Annual Host Fee

$99.99 Annual Individual Fee

$14.99 Individual Session Fee

Second IPD Round Table Topics, Schedules and Host Locations

TOPICS

Introductory Session - What are the moving parts of IPD, BIM and Lean
Integrated Agreements - What they are and how they work
Project Delivery Models - What delivery models are most common and what works
Trust Based Team Building - How to build effective integrated teams
Strategic Alliance Contracts - What are they and how do they work
ROI on IPD, BIM and Lean - If you aren't measuring it how can you manage it?
Dispute Resolution - Adjust legal relationships outside the court room
Collaborative Insurance - Mitigating and managing risk effectively
IPD Incentive Programs - Reward collaborative & cooperative behavior
Joining Agreements - Bringing suppliers, consultants and trade contractors on board
Collaborative Workshops - What integrated teams and owners need to know
IPD, BIM and Lean Consultants - What are the relevant skill sets?

SCHEDULE

The Second IPD Round Table sessions will generally be scheduled on the FIRST Thursday of the month.

Currently events are being hosted in the US at 9:30 a.m. Eastern. Those US hosts are joined by hosts in Ireland and India, where events begin at 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m respectively. As hosts are identified for the Second IPD Round Table Series we will address the logistics in more detail.

Return to Index

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF INVITED HOSTS

Eastern United States - Hosts invited from these locations

Western United States - Hosts invited from these locations

Canada - Hosts invited from these locations

Israel, Middle East and India - Hosts invited from these locations

Hawaii, Korea, China, Australia and New Zealand - Hosts invited from these locations

European and Turkish - Hosts invited from these locations

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Collaborative Construction's Services

Feel free to contact James L. Salmon of Collaborative Construction with questions at anytime. We understand that IPD, BIM, VDC and the lean business processes associated with those new tools are not easy to implement. That's why we are available to serve as IPD Facilitators, Project Neutrals, Project Counsel, or simply as an educational resource. We can help you and your trusted business partners understand the moving parts of IPD, BIM, VDC and lean business processes. Contact James today if you have any questions.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street, Suite 500
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

JamesLsalmon@gmailDOTcom
Cell 512-630-4446
Office 513-721-5672

Collaborative Construction Website

Why Legal Agreements Matter

2011-04-27T10:23:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

This post was adapted from a comment I made in iPda's new bs BIM Group discussion. iPda is a new venture that provides cutting edge BIM Consulting Services and the bs BIM Group is a LinkedIn Group that is focused on BIM Servers and use of the same to facilitate IPD. The comment below was in response to another poster who mentioned the use of Design-Construct agreements used in Australia and New Zeland.

The problem lies with traditional transactional legal agreements. Those instruments force key stakeholders who ought to be coordinating and collaborating closely into silos where they work - far too often - in isolation. There is a fundamental difference between a traditional transactional agreement and an integrated or collaborative agreement. Transactional agreements CREATE legal relationships out of whole clothe among strangers who rely on the Court System to adjust those legal relationships when disputes arise. By contrast, integrated or collaborative agreements ARISE OUT OF trusted business relationships among parties who leverage advanced alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to adjust their legal relationships when disputes arise.

It is very difficult to achieve Integrated Project Delivery within a traditional legal framework because those agreements tend to pit the interests of the parties one against another and key stakeholders retreat to their silos to perform work that ought to be completed in a collaborative and cooperative environment.

Think of integrated or collaborative agreements as the keystone that supports an arch upon which IPD can be built. The image below will give you a graphic visual for the concept. The blocks on the left side of the arch are carved using BIM / VDC tools and software while the blocks on the right side are carved using lean tools and business processes like the Last Planner System, lean supply chains and logistics, etc. When trusted business partners enter into an integrated or collaborative agreement they spend a lot of time building that arch together. Traditional transactional agreements CREATE legal relationships and are not tailored to serve the keystone role. Integrated and collaborative agreements are.

The Design&Construct instruments from AU / NX andthe UK served as the catalyst for the Design-Build movement in the US and, ultimately, inspired Will Lichtig - Sutter Health's lawyer - to draft the first Integrated Form of Agreement for Integrated / Lean Project Delivery. The Sutter Health IFOA then served as the model for the ConsensusDOCS 300 Series, the AIA's Integrated Project Delivery Guide and the AIA's so-called transistional IPD Documents. This new generation of legal instruments are critically important to the process of IPD but are, unfortunately, largely untested and not quite ready for prime time.

That said, owners - especially large institutional owners - are beginning to demand BIM to FM, which will require integrated agreements in the private sector and integrated procurement laws and regulations in the public sector. Sophisticated owners want their planners, designers and constructors to hand off digital assets that function as Integrated / As-Built BIM Models. Such digital assets can then be used to increase the efficiency with which a facility is operated and maintained throughout its life cycle, something far more valuable than saving a few dollars during design and construction. I highlighted this issue in a recent post here in which I analyzed an ENR article titled, "Aligning Data for the Life Cycle."

Lack of interoperability among BIM software programs is hindering the BIM to FM process, but the design professionals in this forum are making great strides towards overcoming the technical hurdles, while the new generation of legal instruments will provide needed structure and support. BIM Servers operating on a common neutral IT backbone ala the internet will - I think - be the best long term solution to the technical challenges. A BIM xml "language" that leverages IFCs and COBIE standards will enable designers and facilities managers to achieve BIM to FM. Again, the deisgners commenting in this forum are well on their way.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

RIAI Practice Committee for BIM Presentation and Survey

2011-04-25T19:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Below is a link to another excellent BIM presentation that deserves a broader audience. The video was produced by Ralph Montague of ArcDox - a leading BIM Consulting Group in Ireland - the Chairman of the RIAI's new Practice Committee for BIM. Collaborative Construction will be posting a more substantive review of ArcDox' work in Ireland later this week, but for now enjoy the BIM presentation.

If you are an architect based in Ireland be sure to take the survey so the RIAI can obtain baseline data regarding BIM use there. That information will be valuable as IPD, BIM and Lean tools are adopted throughout the construction industry in Ireland over the next few years.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Energy Infrastructure Required

2011-04-25T10:38:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Higher energy prices may be hear to stay. The blog post linked below cites and analyzes a Financial Times story that needs to be carefully considered.

The gist of it is the Saudis are "investing" $125 billion - or 30% of the GDP - in programs intended to appease the masses and stave off revolutions of the kind seen in Tunisia, Libya, Yemen, Egypt and elsewhere in the Middle East. These new "programs" reek of entitlement and socialism just like the failed Ponzi schemes we fund in the US. To sustain such programs the Saudi Royals will need to see higher oil prices if they intend - and the DO intend - to live in the style and manner to which they have become accustomed.

Financial Times Story Analyzed

Read the whole thing, but keep the chart below in mind as you do.

When 94% of the oil reserves are controlled by NATIONALIZED OIL COMPANIES and the remaining 6% is controlled by multiple private firms it is farcical to argue, as many do, that private oil companies and "speculators" are controlling the price of oil. Thus the price of oil is controlled, almost exclusively, by those with a vested interest in feathering their own nests. For a variety of reasons, the GOVERNMENTS that control 94% of the oil reserves in the world are going to push for higher prices.

Eventually, policy makers in Washington D.C. will clue into these facts and the power of private enterprise will be unleashed to solve this problem. It will take a few years but the problem can quickly and easily be resolved if the United States will place ITS OIL & GAS RESERVES in play. The United States has ACESS to more oil and gas reserves than the Saudis and Iran combined, but we have, to date, REFUSED to tap those resources. If oil prices reach and stay above $150 we should utilize those resources. While many in the green movement will lament the continued use of fossil fuels they do seem to be the best option at this time.

Nuclear power should, of course, play a bigger role but hysterical voices in the environmental community make that option virtually impossible. Gas - rather than oil and coal - is a great alternative, but it too is now under attack by environmentalists across the country. Wind, Solar and other renewables, while promising, are just that and no more at this point. Even with heavy subsidies Wind and Solar have proven too expensive and too unreliable. Breakthroughs are being made, but we haven't found the silver bullet yet.

Meanwhile, we need to upgrade our energy infrastructure and embrace the reality that fossil fuels must be used to ensure lower energy costs until renewable technologies become competitive. Currently, energy prices represent a little more than 6% of the average families budget. Every major recession in the past century has been accompanied by a rise in energy prices above the 6% threshold. If we want to drag this economy out of the doldrums we must start producing cheap and reliable energy in the US. Right now that means oil, coal and gas and we shouldn't be shy about using it.

If you are concerned about the environment and you want to reduce the worlds carbon footprint you should support efforts to reduce energy costs because China, India and other developing nations are NEVER going to support the restrictions on THEIR energy production that would be required to make a difference. The US would be better served to tap our own vast resources of oil, coal and gas and leverage those resources in an environmentally responsible way to reduce energy costs and continue to promote and support renewable energy technologies.

In doing so, this country will have to upgrade and improve our existing energy infrastructure. That would lead to a boom in the commercial building industry, which would benefit the economy as a whole.

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Another CFL Bulb Article of Interest

2011-04-22T09:47:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Here is another CFL Bulb article as a follow on to the earlier post below. This article details certain research indicating the gases surrounding hot CFL bulbs may cause cancer.

Given the propencity for plaintiffs lawyers to comission "studies" to support the law suits they file - the autism "caused" by vaccines fraud being Exhibit A - I'm skeptical. In fact, claims that cell phones, microwave ovens, PCBs, etc. etc. cause cancer remind me of George Carlin's bit where he reported the FDA had determined that salivia causes cancer, but ONLY if swallowed slowly over a very long period of time!

That said, the rush to ban incandesent bulbs and replace them with a technology that has not been fully vetted is proving problematic. I did receive a thoughtful comment on the defetive CFL Bulb post below from a reader in Arizona. He says:

It appears that a couple of mfgrs from China, some of these sold through some of the discount warehouse chains are the primary culprits. Most all of these are screw base lamps. When we specify LEED credited fixtures they must have the 4-pin base to prevent a user placing a traditional "A lamp" incandescent lamp as a replacement. These 4-pin lamps are installed by contractors and are manufactured by the reputable folks like GE, Phillips and the like.

As to the performance, I haven't seen any supporting documentation recently that shows if the lamps are truly performing as they are supposed to. If I come across something along those lines, I'll be sure to pass it along.

Now you see it; now you don't - another quantum computing advance

2011-04-21T15:14:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Here's a link to a mind boggling advance in quantum computing. A team has successfully transported information, in the form of light, that existed in two states at the same time, allowing it to be destroyed in one spot and recreated in another. This is a major step towards quantum computing as it allows a computer to read a 0 and a 1 simultaneously rather than consecutively.

Frankly, I'm not smart enough to understand this in any detail, but if it works the sky will soon be the limit for computing power. I started following these developments several years ago when it all sounded like sheer science fiction. Today's story confirms we are getting close and closer to a sci-fi reality.

Now you see it; now you don't

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

Clear Solar Panel Technology on the Horizon

2011-04-19T17:33:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

After the Debbie Downer post this morning on CFLs I thought I post a positive green story. In the article linked below another break through in solar technology is described that would be very beneficial to the commercial real estate industry.

Link to Article

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International

CFL Bulbs Not Meeting Expectations

2011-04-19T08:41:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Collaborative Revolution!

Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs are not living up to the hype. CFL bulbs have been touted as a "green alternative" that is superior to incandescent bulbs, but there is mounting evidence the performance of CFL bulbs has failed to meet expectations.

It appears the useful life of CFL bulbs is far shorter than advertised, they cost too much and don't really reduce one's carbon footprint to the degee promised. In addition, they appear to be a fire hazard.

Design professionals - especially interior designers and lighting specialists - who are responsible for specifying bulbs should proceed with caution in this arena. In the report linked below the most disturbing fact is the number of fires associated with CFL bulbs that fail. If this trend continues there is a real risk that a significant number of consumers will be injured. If that happens, plaintiffs lawyers will sue everybody involved. If the foreign manufacturers - mainly in China and India - are not easily reached design professionals and others may become targets.

Design professionals should not to over promise energy savings relative to their designs and should proceed with caution on this front. The article linked below contains more information.

CFL Bulbs Failing

James L. Salmon, Esq.
Collaborative Construction
300 Pike Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Office 513-721-5672
Fax 513-562-4388
Cell 512-630-4446
JamesLSalmon@gmailcom
Collaborative Construction Website
Sustainable Land Development International