Are We Approaching BIM Adoption Correctly?

Charles Duhigg’s February article How Companies Learn Your Secrets includes a number of fascinating (I think) threads:

• Consumer “predictive analytics”
• Habit loop
• Behavioral changes and marketing

I am completely stuck on the concept of the “habit loop”. Duhigg blogs frequently on the habit loop, describing it as a cue à routine à reward. In this article, Duhigg discusses how it impacted Febreze’s marketing strategy, which tried to create a new habit of daily Febreze use:

	Initial Failure
Cue	Bad odor (i.e. cigarette smoke)
Routine	Spray Febreze
Reward	Odor eliminated

The campaign failed. Harvard Business School researchers worked with the Febreze team to identify and correct the problem. In short, they initially missed a key logical progression:

1.  People become immune to “their” bad odors
2. The reward doesn’t matter if they can’t smell the initial bad odor

Observations uncovered an existing cleaning routine that Febreze could connect to.

	Cleaning Routine	Second Campaign
Cue	Notice mess	See cleanliness
Routine	Straighten mess	Spray Febreze
Reward	Admire cleanliness	Enjoy fresh scent

At first I wasn’t entirely clear why I was so stuck on this anecdote. Then, in a blinding flash of the obvious, it hit me. Process innovation, my role, my team’s role, centers on changing routines. We typically don’t use the term “routine”, but that’s exactly what it is. Now for the next step: better understanding the routines that we believe VDC can improve.

Three Rules for Innovation Teams

It’s a good thing that I read Continuum CEO Harry West’s Three Rules for Innovation Teams in our soft conference room, door closed; I couldn’t stop myself from saying “mmm hmmm” or “yes!” out loud as I read each sentence. Then I made a chart that mapped each of West’s points to analogous processes or protocols in our projects, company and industry.

1.   11. Manage Creative Friction

Sounds a lot like one of the “why IPDworks” principles that Howard Ashcraft highlighted so long ago at the Autodesk Waltham kickoff. And then, he gets even more IPD:

a.       Share the Experience

Include the entire team in the full ideation process. I experienced this firsthand on Autodesk Waltham and am seeing it again in Manchester. Interacting with users to understand their needs and aspirations is motivating and creates a strong sense of shared purpose.

b.       Remove Communication Barriers

We think we’re removing communication barriers when we exchange models or get people together in a room. At Continuum, they do “social styles analyses to help people understand how their teammates tend to communicate”. Yes, we learn how to maximize our effectiveness with individuals over time, but I’d much rather do it sooner.

c.        Have at It

Engaging multiple perspectives creates a better result. “Lock yourselves in the project room and engage in a passionate debate.” See colocation.

2.   22. Bring the Creativity to the Center

According to West, a project room (i.e. colo room) is:

-          A dedicated space teams use from conception to execution

-          Setup with natural light (check), plenty of space (oops), pinup space (got it!), AV access (check)

He also indicates that “a successful project room should not isolate the team [from the company as a whole].” This is where we have some thinking to do.

When we pull multiple people out of their different company offices into a single place, we leave out the “home office”. Furthermore, individuals who work near the colo room (rather than in it) sometimes lose track of the action. Pierce and I will touch on that more in tomorrow’s BIMForum presentation.

3.    33. Stand For Delivery

“Innovation is the creation and the delivery of new value.” Yes! This is why we are using VDC –using innovation to deliver a better product. (This also speaks to the “we perform” in Tocci’s covenant.)

West also refers to the handoffs from conception (design) to execution (construction). “Make sure there is an extended team of stakeholders who have responsibility for the entire innovation process.” I can see how that applies internally and on project teams:

1.       Internally, our atomization plan intends to do exactly that. We are deploying the VDC team throughout the company, while maintaining their responsibility for innovation.

2.       On projects, we use BIM Execution Planning to build a multi-disciplinary team that shares the responsibility for innovation throughout the project.

No "ish" in Modified Project Delivery

While I'm continually frustrated by the terms "IPD-ish" and "IPD-like", I really like what Kitchell and Cannon are doing at UC San Diego Jacobs Medical Center with "High Performance Team" delivery.

I don't know what the contract looks like, but the linked article describes the following:

Team Governance: Board of Directors, consisting of at least the key owner, architect and contractor

Mission: transforming people, processes, place

Core Values: reliance, passion, resolve and enjoyment

Environment: what sounds like a significant colo room which includes subcontractors

I hope to hear more from the team on the process to date and the results going forward. Oh, and by the way Cannon, amazing video describing the design.

Is Colo a Form of Local Supply Chain?

I finally finished listening to "Retraction", a recent episode of TAL. My favorite part of the episode was Ira's discussion with NYTimes reporter Charles Duhigg on the facts of working conditions at Apple’s supply chain partners. At one point, Duhigg referenced his January article on why manufacturing jobs go overseas. It’s all about the supply chain, which can quickly scale up, scale down, and responds to changes in design or demand. Although it’s quite logical when you compare the “minimal” labor costs to material expenses, it isn’t usually part of the mainstream conversation (or at least the conversation that I hear).

The day after I finished Retraction, I read “Not-So-Dumb Technology” in March’s issue of Metropolis. The article, written by Karrie Jacobs, offers a low tech comparison to Duhigg’s argument: cardboard. (Duhigg was in my mind as I was reading; in fact, Jacobs concludes with a reference to the very same January article.) MIO, a Philadelphia-based “quirky household goods” design firm, opted to work with the local supply chain instead of Chinese manufacturing. The 5-mile drive between MIO and Weber, a cardboard manufacturer, enables Jaime Salm, MIO co-founder, to keep a close eye on practices and quality. It also enables MIO to make rapid product design changes.

These two articles just wouldn’t quit swirling around in the back around in my mind, but after a few days I realized why I was so stuck on them. It’s basically co-location.

Creating a local supply chain for commercial construction is challenging. A few LEED credits “force” us to aim for local products and manufacturing, but don’t actually create the benefit of a local supply chain. On the other hand, co-location creates a very local supply chain. Like Jaime Salm visiting Weber, architects and engineers can keep a better eye on the manufacturing plan – and they can make and implement informed design changes.

I always appreciate making connections between our process and other industries - especially when they validate what we're doing! It is nothing profound, but I've cleared some space to chewing on something else on my reading list.

The Language of Colo

It's sad to see a colo room empty out at the end of a project, but a recent team has left a legacy beyond the actual project work. They're developing the language of colo. Some of my favorites:

colo it - to resolve an issue during colo (as seen on meeting minutes)

solocation - when a single person is working in the colo room

colosthenics - hand stretches after an intensive modeling effort

cologa - sitting on the stability ball that somehow made its way into the colo room

Risk and Liability of BIM Panel

This morning, I attended NAIOP's Identifying the Risk and Liabilities of BIM panel discussion - which included Michael Herlihy (Ames & Gough), John Sullivan (SG&A), John Tocci (Tocci), and Bruce Tribush (Goodwin Procter). Interesting discussion, here are a few of the questions and the thoughts from the panel.

Bruce Tribuse: How does BIM change the standard of care?

John Sullivan: The BIM Execution Plan is the contractual way to define roles. If done properly, it doesn't impact the standard of care.

BT: So is BIM the standard of care?

JS: Yes. For large, complex projects, why wouldn't you use the best tools and process?

John Tocci: The standard of care has changed. Although there is no known litigation, there are arbitration where the design team has been accused of not using BIM therefore not meeting standard of care. This may not be easy and it may not be cheap, but firms will experience increasing risk if they don't adopt these tools.

Michael Herlihy: Insurance is typically "review-view mirror" oriented. It appears that BIM reduces risk, but the standard is still the standard.

What is the model's status as a contract document? What is its priority as compared to other documents?

JS: We try to look at the model as the final work product. Contractually, it usually has higher priority, but that should evolve.

Who owns the model?

JT: The owner.

What are the issues regarding early subcontractor and contractor services?

MH: For the overall project, it reduces risk to have input from contractors and subcontractors. However, as they are providing advice and model content, they may be doing so without coverage - especially if they don't have Professional Liability insurance.

How does BIM impact the Spearin doctrine?

BT: The Spearin doctrine comes out of a 1918 US Supreme Court decision; by issuing plans, specifications, and information, the owner implies that the information is free from deficiencies - and that the contractor isn't liable to the owner for loss or damage resulting from those deficiencies.

JT: RIP Spearin doctrine. However, for contractors to participate in a collaborative BIM process, they need to be educated in architectural history, good design principles, code, requirements, and the design process.

How can owners help with this process?

JT: For one, get informed. Ask questions. Learn about BIM and IPD. But also, learn how to ask for it. You won't get the value if you merely ask for '5 lbs of thinly sliced' BIM.

R&D On the Brain

As the countdown clock continues [99 days, 2 hours, 12 minutes, 26, 25, 24 sec...], everything I read reminds me of the work that we need to do in preparation for Atomization. One component of Atomization that I haven't given enough attention to is the start of our R&D department (although to be honest, it will likely continue to be neglected until the clock hits 0 - projects and people come first!). None the less, the pressure is on and my subconscious (and conscious) is feeling it! Here are just a few recent (okay, and less than recent) reads that make me think R&D:

Why Success Always Starts with Failure

These are great principles for an R&D department, but an even better perspective for the rest of company to have about R&D. Among other things, R&D is our 'safe space to fail', but we need to continue to incorporate that philosophy into day-to-day operations.

Seimens' new iPad App

Cool, but these feels like an incremental innovation. I'd like to see more than the relatively static BAS interface. Show us some BIM. None the less, this is a step in the right direction, and I'm excited to take a closer look.

Augmented Reality

I think I saw this on Twitter a few weeks ago, but forgot about it until another Tocci teammate, put the print issue on my desk with a post-it, "I wanted you to see this. So cool." The technology and potential is very exciting. But what is even more exciting to me is that BNB is doing amazingly innovative things, despite (or maybe because) VDC is already atomized. One of my secret atomization fears is that we won't be able to sustain the same level of innovation. This made me feel better - thanks Dace!