Behind the Revolution

In 2007, U.S. construction was estimated at $1.288 trillion – with more than 50 percent of that cost attributed to waste. On virtually every construction project in the United States, we can trace back this very expensive black hole to two root causes: simple inefficiency and bad behaviors.

The traditional production model (Design-Bid-Build) is a linear progression, so interactions between parties – the architect, the contractor, the vendors, even the end-user – are fragmented, sequential, and rarely collaborative. These relationships often become adversarial within the intrinsic and long-established hierarchy.

Budgets, bids and timelines most often are based on incomplete plans that come out of a segmented design process.  Consequently, an exclusionary planning process, a segmented production model and a reliance on predetermined solutions all lead to missed opportunities for innovation, cost savings and client-centered problem-solving.

 *Adapted from The Commercial Real Estate Revolution by Rex Miller, Dean Strombom, Mark Iammarino, and Bill Black.  ©2009

Video: Behind the Revolution

“[We] can no longer use the tried and tested practices of the last 30 years to respond to the challenges we’re being faced with today.  They’re no longer valid. They’re no longer relevant… Our customers need to demand more and our industry needs to set itself up to provide it.”  -- Bill Black, Haworth

For more information on mindshift, contact Lydia Knowles (lydia.knowles@haworth.com) or Bill Black (bill.black@haworth.com).