Conspectus Inc., a consulting firm providing specifications and other services to the architectural design and construction industry, has developed Evolving Specifications, a new approach for delivering specifications for the construction industry. The Evolving Specifications approach uses a custom and proprietary web-based tool, ConspectusCloud, for collaborative participation by all project stakeholders—a first in the industry. Conspectus is responding to the industry's demand to eliminate information gaps arising from uncoordinated data across multiple sources presented in multiple formats and out-of-sequence design decisions.

Evolving Specifications can record the owner's project requirements and keep it at the forefront throughout the project. This system also effectively integrates all specifications data in a single, cohesive information platform to ensure the utmost coordination among all the data and parties. In addition, ConspectusCloud allows the complete project team, including the designer, owner, contractor, subcontractors, and material suppliers, to review and proactively participate in the specifications process in real time by posing and answering questions about particular specification decisions. Comments are captured as threaded discussions for all to see. This feature allows questions to be asked and resolved before becoming RFIs and Change Orders. Participants can see the development status of each specification document. Each issue required by the project contract is saved and retained for record. Comparisons between any two issues or a current document can be effectively analyzed and discussed, while providing a discussion trail to understand what changes occurred and why decisions were made, recording who did what and when. The complete record is captured in the audit trail for each document.

This new approach has been used successfully on six projects, including Delano Indian Wells, California; San Jose Sharks Arena Expansion, California; Glendale Hotel Louis, California; and others that are currently in development. Conspectus clients including WATG, Stantec, Perkins+Will, FXCollaborative, and SOSH Architects, are requesting the new Conspectus approach and ConspectusCloud as the specification delivery method for their projects. Conspectus is proud to have contributed experience from this new approach to the National Research Council of Canada by incorporating many of the concepts into the Canadian National Master Specifications.

More information can be found on the Conspectus blog.