BS CARDS Flashcards
Work Plan
A schedule describing the tasks and milestone dates a person or team must complete on a project.
RFI
Request For Information. A form of documented correspondence between members of the project team. May be submitted to the owner, architect, or contractor. Issues that require clarification during construction should be addressed through the RFI process so that an official log can be referenced later if needed.
Specifications
Technical standards documentation which outlines the types of materials, products, and procedures to be utilized in constructing the work.
Project Manual
Consists of the written documents created for the purposes of procuring and constructing the work, which can include instructions to bidders, bid requirements, specifications, etc. The contract drawings, such as plans, sections, elevations, and details, are separate from the project manual.
Special Conditions
Used to further extend the supplementary conditions of the contract for construction. Government clients often have special conditions.
Building Information Modeling (BIM)
Architectural documentation which affixes parameters and other data to typical elements of the drawing set, such as doors, walls, and window
Architecture/Engineering (AE) Firms
A multi-disciplinary firm that offers engineering services in addition to traditional architectural services. These types of firms require less external consultants due to their in-house capabilities, and this may be beneficial in winning RFPs that require extensive consultant services. The synergy amongst the two teams can be a benefit to the overall project team.
Corporation
Legal entity that is generally only used by large firms. They can be publicly traded or closely held, and shareholders own portions of the company in the form of stock. Directors and officers are elected, and individual’s personal assets are shielded from liability if the firm is accused of wrongdoing.
Limited Liability Company (LLC)
Legal entity that offers protection to the owner’s personal assets while also being relatively simple to form, maintain, and perform accounting for. These entities can have a single member or multiple members; generally the members take an active role in managing the firm. The entity can elect to be taxed as a pass-through entity or to pay taxes as a corporation.
Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)
A type of partnership that offers additional protection to each owner’s personal assets, aside from their share of the business. Each partner is generally not liable for claims made against the other partner.
Sole Proprietorship
The simplest type of business structure; a single person owning an unincorporated business. The owner pays personal income tax on their business profits.
General Partnership
A common form of legal entity in which two or more individuals practice together, sharing all risks and rewards of their practice equally. This form of practice affords the least protection to the practice owners.
Scheduling
The process of determining the time frame and sequence of any aspect of the project.
Phasing
The process of breaking a construction effort into smaller parts for reasons of timing, management, financial considerations, and so forth.
Material Takeoffs
During the cost estimating process, the estimator performs material takeoffs by using the drawings to quantify the different elements needed to construct the building (i.e., number of doors, volume of concrete, square footage of carpet, etc.).
