Day One
Tuesday, May 13 2025
7:00 am Check-In
8:00 am Chair’s Opening Remarks
Developing Technical Expertise
8:10 am Achieving Maximum Engagement in Technical Training Sessions to Ensure Designers are Equipped with Practical Skills & Constructability Knowledge
Synopsis
- Boosting interest and excitement about technical design through simple, quick and relevant modules
- Incorporating customized training on firm-specific design workflows into a broader curriculum on industry standards
- Exploring the most effective training mediums to resonate best with recipients
8:50 am Panel: Bridging the Knowledge Gap Between Retiring & Emerging Professionals Through Mentorship Programs to Sustain a Skilled Workforce
Synopsis
- Appointing diverse teams so that emerging design professionals can learn from senior technical designers on projects
- Considering generational communication and cultural barriers when training mentors
- Managing resources and knowledge within your firm through intranets and platforms to subsequently improve Quality
10:00 am Morning Refreshments & Speed Networking
Track 1: Quality Program Leadership
Technical Excellence in Design-Build Settings
10:40 am Case Study: Harnessing Design-Build to Better Integrate Design & Construction Quality Management Processes
Synopsis
- Elevating the status of both design and construction team influence on a design-build project
- Leveraging ROI for Quality to advocate for extended design-phase schedules in project timelines
- Allocating dedicated time for submittals to ensure adherence to design intent
11:20 am Audience Discussion: Integrating Design & Construction Teams During Bidding to Ensure Clear Expectations & Reduce Scope Creep
Synopsis
- Differentiating ‘design-assist’, ‘design-delegation’ and ‘design-build’ to ensure all stakeholders understand expectations
- Incorporating design teams in the bidding process to mitigate risks and enhance accountability
- Verifying the project scope in contracts to prevent clients from requesting additional work beyond the agreed terms
Track 2: Technical Design Quality
Integrating Cross-Stakeholder Quality
10:40 am Mapping Out Design Schedules to Account for High- Risk Quality Deliverables
Synopsis
- Creating alignment on definitions for design deliverables between individuals given the lack of industry standard
- Understanding the most critical and high-risk elements of a project to prioritize work effectively
- Ensuring the design schedule makes sense with the proposed construction timeline
11:20 am Improving Architect-Engineer Collaboration to Identify Structural & System Limitations
Synopsis
- Outlining the nuances between technical considerations for vertical and horizontal markets
- Analyzing project-specific touchpoints where collaboration is needed
- Ensuring effective consultation during the design of nonstandard details
12:30 pm Lunch Break
Harnessing Data to Improve Program Efficiencies
1:30 pm Analyzing Data & Metrics to Implement More Proactive Quality Measures in the Future
Synopsis
- Reconciling inconsistencies in financial metrics across projects caused by variations in contract values and methodologies
- Determining which metrics should be shared across the organization or managed locally by individual project teams
- Utilizing data in real-time to adjust current plans and actions on projects
2:10 pm Audience Discussion: Tracking Metrics in Dynamic Project Environments to Hold Teams Accountable to High Standards of Work
Synopsis
- Determining the most impactful metrics to evaluate technical excellence on projects
- Exploring methods and software for capturing and inputting data with ease
- Promoting accountability among project designers to ensure the production of accurate and reliable data
Promoting Cohesive Teams & Processes
1:30 pm Leading Effective Kick-Off Meetings to Foster Collective Responsibility for Project Success
Synopsis
- Developing consistent communication frameworks to build trust and transparency among all stakeholders
- Inspiring Quality ownership across the entire team, regardless of their position within the structure
- Ensuring contractors fully comprehend the implications of specifications in each scope
- Ensuring common objectives among all stakeholders
2:10 pm Benchmarking Best Practices for Design Reviews to Address All Technical Issues Before Construction
Synopsis
- Identifying key elements within drawings that require review
- Ensuring the QC reviewer has a clear understanding of the project scope
- Establishing a robust technical methodology for projects requiring ongoing reviews to prevent information loss between versions
- Incorporating construction management software into design reviews once construction has started
2:50 pm Afternoon Refreshments
Carving Out Time for Quality
3:20 pm Uncovering Proactive Strategies to Manage Compressed Schedules Without Compromising Design Integrity
Synopsis
- Evaluating project feasibility upfront to set clear expectations on quality management for all parties
- Creating opportunities for teams to pause and re-assess objectives in line with project goals and requirements
- Shifting Quality upstream to avoid additional work during construction administration, despite tensions between cost, schedule and quality
4:00 pm Audience Discussion: Understanding the Opportunities for AI to Expedite Design Without Adverse Risk & Liability
Synopsis
- Discussing the possibilities of AI to enhance both technical quality and alignment of design with client intent
- Addressing liability concerns associated with the use of AI in design processes
- Preserving technical design skills in the emerging workforce to validate the accuracy of AI outputs