|
|
A monthly publication from the Wisconsin Society of Professional Engineers
May 2009 Edition
1. |
|
2. |
|
| 3. | ConsensusDOCS LLC Competes with EJCDC and AI By Attorney Robert J. Kay |
| 4. |
WSPE's President's Corner |
|
Fellow P.E.s, For those members and guests who were able to attend the 2009 Discovery Conference, I sincerely hope that you found the conference worthwhile. When one is involved with the planning and development of a conference such as this, there is always a concern that the presentations would be of interest and that the individual speakers would be capable of holding the attention of the attendees. From my personal standpoint, I was pleasantly surprised with all of the presentations. Not only was the subject matter current and of great interest, the presenters were passionate about their subject matter and gave exceptional presentations. We were extremely lucky to have the high level of presenters that we did for each of the sessions. If you were unable to attend, you missed a great conference. URLs for a majority of the presentations will be added to the WSPE Web site. On behalf of WSPE, I would like to recognize and thank the individual speakers and their organizations for the personal time, effort and cost they each contributed to make this a great conference: John Baldus, State of Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence I would also like to recognize the sponsors and exhibitors for the conference. First of all, I would like to recognize the Wisconsin Public Service Corporation for not only its cash donation of $1000 but also its donation of “Green” energy during the conference. Secondly, I would like to recognize both Marquette University and UW-Platteville for their donations in support of the conference. And finally, I would like to thank Northeast Wisconsin Technical College and Milwaukee School of Engineering for their financial support and providing exhibits at the conference. In addition to the Discovery Conference, WSPE held its annual meeting on Wednesday, April 22, prior to the conference. While I could give an extensive report, I would like to briefly focus on one issue, the issue of membership. While we do not as yet have a report from NSPE regarding our membership renewals through the end of 2008, we do know that our membership renewal revenue is only 60% of the annual budget projection. If you have received your notification and have not as yet renewed, please do so immediately. Your organization needs your financial support as well as your active participation. |
|
SPONSOR |
WSPE Discovery Conference a Success |
|
WSPE held its Annual Discovery Conference in Green Bay at the Tundra Lodge on April 23, 2009. WSPE wishes to thank all attendees for sharing in this wonderful event. In addition, a big thank you goes out to the speakers for sharing their time and expertise at this event. And sponsors, we couldn’t do it without your help and support. Some of the topics addressed at this conference included Next-Generation Biofuels, Overview of Wisconsin’s Efforts in the Bioplastic & Composites Industry, The Power to Reduce CO2 Emissions, Delivering Wind Energy to Wisconsin, and Biomass Gasification Project at Bay Front Generating Plant in Ashland, Wisconsin. |
|
SPONSOR
|
ConsensusDOCS LLC Competes with EJCDC and AI By Attorney Robert J. Kay |
|
In 2007, the Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee issued a new EJCDC C-700, Standard General Conditions of the Construction Contract, and the American Institute of Architects issued a new AIA Document A201, General Conditions of the Contract for Construction. Also in 2007, a new compilation of documents known as ConsensusDOCS were published, including ConsensusDOCS 200, Standard Form Agreement, and General Conditions Between Owner and Contractor. ConsensusDOCS is sponsored by 21 endorsing organizations consisting of National Association of State Facilities Administrators, The Construction Users Roundtable, Construction Owners Association of America, Associated General Contractors of America, Associated Specialty Contractors, Inc., Construction Industry Round Table, American Subcontractors Association, Inc., Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc., Lean Construction Institute, Finishing Contractors Association, Mechanical Contractors Association of America, National Electrical Contractors Association, National Insulation Association, National Roofing Contractors Association, Painting and Decorating Contractors of America, Plumbing Heating Cooling Contractors Association, National Subcontractors Alliance, Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors’ National Association, Association of the Wall and Ceiling Industry, National Association of Electrical Distributors, National Association of Surety Bond Producers, and The Surety & Fidelity Association of America. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is not among the endorsing organizations. Nor is the Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee (EJCDC). Design professionals, owners of real estate developments, lawyers, insurance industry representatives and others who advise and consult in design and construction are naturally interested in what the objective of ConsensusDOCS is. AIA and EJCDC documents have been criticized from time to time in the past for favoring the design professions, although AGC has been a participant on the EJCDC. AIA has published its General Conditions of the Contract for Construction for a century and has connected the document with the AIA contracts between owner and architect, between architect and subconsultant, between owner and contractor, and between contractor and subcontractor. Given the substantial number of published contracts by AIA and EJCDC, one wonders why a new organization was formed known as ConsensusDOCS, LLC, to draft and publish more than 70 ConsensusDOCS. Its Web site is www.consensusdocs.org. The ConsensusDOCS Guidebook published by ConsensusDOCS, LLC can be found on the Web site. In the introduction to the ConsensusDOCS Guidebook, ConsensusDOCS, LLC states, inter alia, If you are looking for documents that are Pro-Owner or Pro-Contractor you should not use these documents. ConsensusDOCS contracts and forms attempt to fairly and appropriately allocate risks to the Party in the position to manage and control the risk. The practices articulated in the documents are forward-thinking, and may not always represent the status quo, but rather a better path forward. The goal of the multi-disciplined drafters was to create documents that best place the Parties to a construction contract in a position to complete a project on time and on budget with the highest possibility of avoiding claims. Time will tell whether the thoughts expressed by ConsensusDOCS, LLC in its Guidebook prove to be sound. In any event, AIA, EJCDC and ConsensusDOCS, LLC are now all in the business of publishing design and construction contracts. There are some interesting comparisons between EJCDC C-700, 2007 edition, AIA Document A201, 2007 edition, and ConsensusDOCS 200. I shall review some of those comparisons in the next issue of this e-news. |
|
Welcome New WSPE Members |
|
The WSPE board of directors would like to extend a heartfelt welcome to the following new WSPE members:
New members contribute to the growth, strength and leadership of the WSPE in enhancing its recognition as a leading voice for Professional Engineers throughout Wisconsin and promoting excellence in engineering. |
|
