Press releases don't often make for a very interesting read, nor are they known for being places of discovery for great blog content. However, in this one case I must break tradition and write about a press release from a structural engineering firm in the States, which, in fact, communicates one insightful idea about how AEC firms can profit from the larger global shift toward sustainable design. So rare is the information that I partly think they might not have intended to put up this sort of competitive information in the first place. I immediately saw the value in it, and assume others did as well, mostly because the information and strategies reported in the release can easily be transferred to other firms. In other words, it can be reversed-engineered. Once understood in the context of one's own firm or project, then it's time to ask the serious question: "How can we do what they're doing but better?"
The Summary:
The press release states its purpose is to celebrate the firm's 20,000th solar installation certification. Exercising some discretion, I can report the firm works all over the States on small and mid-size solar installations and certainly to see the sustainable design market mature in size is a good sign of its health. However, I was not expecting the press release to be as forthright was it was in its description of how the firm achieved this milestone. Though I can see their logic, as online marketing values authenticity and sincerity now, and here they have tried to share their expertise transparently. In the end, however, there were definitely elements which stood out that could be learned from and applied elsewhere.
The Takeaway:
The press release notes they improved their numbers by diligently streamlining their workflows. All elements were considered, from their national network of engineers, to drawing up plans, and then certifying them with letters to jurisdictions across the country. There's a balance to strike in a professional environment of limiting endlessly mindless tasks and having policies which contribute to the coordination of the project. What should be recognized is how focusing on and streamlining workflows helped expand their margins for this service. The firm in question proves thinking strategically and critically about workflows and best practices does pay dividends. Inside design studios across the world there barely ever seems time to catch one's breath as deadline after deadline passes. These are not good conditions for the type of reflection and strategic thinking necessarily to accurately set up these workflows so they support users, and don't work against them.
The Analogy:
I recently made the above image for a post about how digital design supports sustainable infrastructure projects but wanted to share it again here in this context because it's a good place to start discussing other areas where streamlining workflows and channel efficiencies have benefits. Nowadays in the AEC industry it's common to see larger firms try to capture several phases of the construction and building services industry (vertical integration from pre-construction to post-occupancy). Many of these firms have started to look closely at how to integrate all these different aspects of BIM in one core set of services. Digital design makes clear there are a lot of ways these phases overlap, possibly reducing rework. But this whole cycle only runs smoothly if there's coordination between phases. High-performance teams are going to want to aim for the perfect configuration of coordination policies that balance the features referred to above. Another channel to consider is the sales channel. It's sort of self evident from the image there are competitive advantages to be gained if firms can encourage clients to stay locked into their firm's cycle. There are aspects to the firm/client relationship that can be cultivated and invested in to make it more likely a client would choose a certain firm for a project and thereafter see value in a continued partnership.
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