Clark Nexsen receives first-ever construction information award

NORFOLK, VA. — Clark Nexsen has been selected to receive the first-ever Excellence in Construction Information Award (Innovation category) from the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) and Specifications Consultants in Independent Practice (SCIP) for its original sustainable design document — An Approach to Systems.

CSI and SCIP developed the Excellence in Construction Information Award to recognize excellence and innovation in processes, tools and documents used in the development or outcomes of the built environment. Richard Rivin, technical director of architecture, accepted the award at the CONSTRUCT2010 & CSI Annual Convention in Philadelphia May 14.

Under the leadership of David Keith, director of architecture, Clark Nexsen’s team of student interns created An Approach to Systems in the summer of 2009 to support the conceptual design phase of a new office building commission, the Defense Distribution Center headquarters facility in New Cumberland, Penn.

The original purpose of the innovative supporting document was to inform the architectural and engineering project design team and the client, the Army Corps of Engineers, about suitable strategies for designing a U.S. Green Building Council LEED Gold certified project, but the comprehensive book is now used as a resource for other projects firm-wide.

“I am honored to accept this award on behalf of Clark Nexsen,” said Rivin, who is a fellow of CSI. “An Approach to Systems was not only a novel approach to educating stakeholders in the selection of the sustainable systems for the DDC project, but it has become a seminal resource for other Clark Nexsen projects and evidence of Clark Nexsen’s commitment to sustainable design.”

For An Approach to Systems, Clark Nexsen’s interns researched 15 different sustainable systems and visited a dozen green buildings to see how these systems functioned on a realistic, everyday basis. The results of the documentation showed that the DDC project could qualify for earning a LEED Gold Certification.

For more information about Clark Nexsen, please visit www.clarknexsen.com.