Digital Marketing for kitchen and bathroom manufacturers
21 August 2021
Thousands of kitchen and bathroom products are specified each year with NBS. Find out why specifi...
04 March 2017 | By Tina Pringle
With the construction industry undergoing a digital revolution, specification has become more critical than ever, with specification documentation serving as the backbone of your entire digital project.
As the world of construction develops, adapts to the BIM environment and embraces the challenges of becoming a digital industry, specification remains a critical part of the process. It is as essential now as it has ever been, forming an integral part of a building information model (BIM) and the digital golden thread of information that provides living, accurate and up-to-date data from asset design through operation and end of life.
“Specification: A detailed description of the dimensions, construction, workmanship, materials etc., of work done or to be done, prepared by an architect, engineer etc.”
Let's look at what we mean when we talk about a specification; here is an official definition:
"Specification: A detailed description of the dimensions, construction, workmanship, materials etc., of work done or to be done, prepared by an architect, engineer etc."
- Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
A specification is the document that describes in words what cannot be visualised or explained on a drawing or model. This is not only applicable to construction; the same principles apply to all industries, from aerospace and oil and gas to automobiles and manufacturing. In construction, the specification can cover everything:
The type of specification can relate to the project or the procurement route – whether it is performance-based, prescriptive or proprietary – depending on project requirements.
Specifications:
Let’s look at some of the primary reasons why specification is essential to the construction process:
Specifications used to be one of the last items written before issuing a tender package; however this has changed over time, especially since the advent of BIM.
Nowadays, the best practice is to begin specification writing as early as possible in the project lifecycle. Early-stage specifications can capture information from the client review, documenting what the client is trying to achieve on the project. Early-stage work also provides a better understanding of a project's performance requirements. Any information incorporated into the client's EIR (employer information requirements) and discussions on complexes, entities, spaces, locations, elements, systems, and products contribute to the specification as it builds.
In essence, specification is about data communication and information exchange between client, designer and contractor. As project data requirements become more complex and we strive for more collaboration, it is crucial everyone has the same basis for project requirements – making specifications as essential now as they have ever been.
The team at NBS has been developing and delivering specification products and tools for 50 years, and we are continuously reviewing our content to reflect industry changes. With NBS Chorus, our users can write and deliver construction specifications in a BIM environment. For manufacturers, we have developed NBS Source. This building product library places manufacturer products directly in front of the people who matter as they are making product decisions. Finally, NBS users with a subscription to The Construction Information Service gain access to a comprehensive online collection of industry-relevant publications and can take advantage of embedded links within the specification guidance to access pertinent documentation.
Image: Franklin Hunting – 15 – fifteen on Flickr subject to a CC BY-ND 2.0 licence.