AIA Archives - Page 3 of 5

Engineering Inc. – 2013 Professional Liability Insurance Survey of Carriers

By Lynda

Incredibly, even the global economic crisis hasn’t hardened the Professional Liability Insurance market for Architects and Engineers. Today, there are more insurance companies offering A&E policies than ever. And, thanks to the increasing insurance savvy of Design Professionals (particularly those utilizing the services of specialist brokers), new Professional Liability insurers are offering more in the way of risk management and pre-claims assistance, too.

You’ll find all this information and more outlined in the The Hard Market That Never Came, an analysis of the 2013 Professional Liability Insurance Survey of Carriers, in the February 2014 issue of Engineering, Inc. Continue reading “Engineering Inc. – 2013 Professional Liability Insurance Survey of Carriers”

Announcing Our Scholarship Winners

By Lynda

It’s that time of year! We get to congratulate the winners of the a/e ProNet AIA David W. Lakamp Scholarship. Late last year, we announced the expansion of our long-standing scholarship to include two $5,000 awards annually. Out of a field of excellent candidates, the committee selected two especially deserving students:

Josh Gerloff is from Chesapeake, VA and is currently an architecture graduate student at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He received his undergraduate degree in Government from the University of Notre Dame.

Prior to graduate school, Gerloff worked with his family at Gerloff Painting, Inc. He also served on numerous community boards and commissions, culminating with an appointment to the Chesapeake Planning Commission. Gerloff found this planning commission experience to be most rewarding as he has strong interest in social issues and community engagement. He hopes to fuse these interests with his architectural studies.

Following graduate school, Gerloff will seek employment at an architectural firm and will pursue his NCARB registration. When he’s not studying or spending time with his wife Katie and their three children, Gerloff enjoys triathlon and playing guitar. His biggest accomplishment is finishing the 2010 Ironman Lake Placid.

* * *

Mark Manczyk will be completing his Bachelor of Arts in Architecture degree at the University of Kentucky in May 2014, and will be attending graduate school in the fall of 2014. Manczyk, an honors student, has actively led student organizations as Co-Vice President of the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) in 2012–2013 and, at present, as Secretary for the Tau Sigma Delta (ΤΣΔ) – Honor Society in Architecture and Allied Arts.

Manczyk has gained experience at several architecture firms including Bernard Tschumi (New York City, NY) in the spring of 2013 and Centerbrook Architects (Centerbrook, CT) in the summer of 2012. Currently, he is a Research Assistant at the University of Kentucky with Gregory Luhan, Associate Dean for Research, working to design modular, energy-efficient, and low-cost workforce housing, schools, clinics, and offices.

His interests include playing acoustic guitar, painting, sketching, and biking. He is active in developing his Catholic faith. He currently leads a Men’s Group at the Newman Center Holy Spirit Parish and is a Parish Liturgy Council Student Representative.

Congratulations, gentlemen! We are proud to be able to support your pursuit of an education and career in the field of Architecture.

Those interested in more information about our scholarship can find it here. The deadline for application comes up each November.

Architecture Students: We Expanded Our Scholarship! (Deadline: November 29)

By Lynda

a/e ProNet is excited to announce the expansion of the a/e ProNet David W Lakamp/AIA Scholarship. For more than two decades, our organizations have partnered to award two scholarships each year to rising senior or graduate architectural students. At the annual a/e ProNet meeting in Chicago this September, our Board of Directors authorized the increase of the scholarship amount from $2,500 to $5,000 apiece. These changes will take effect with the 2013 scholarship. The deadline for this year’s scholarship application is November 29.

Visit our website for more details about this scholarship for architecture students. Applications and submission details can be found at the AIA website. Applications and supplementary materials can be submitted via email to pmkc@aia.org in PDF format.

In 2012, two recipients were awarded the a/e ProNet David W. Lakamp Scholarship. To read their case study topic responses, please click here.

Questions? Please send inquiries to: pmkc@aia.org

Why should Architects & Engineers use a specialist Insurance Broker?

By Lynda

At our fall meeting last month, a panelist asked an important question:

Why is an insurance broker necessary for design professionals? Shouldn’t architects and engineers be able to access insurance companies and purchase Professional Liability policies directly?

Members of a/e ProNet are professional, independent brokers who serve the insurance needs of design professionals. Membership in our association is by invitation only, and members must be experienced and have a minimum number of design professional clients, as well as a minimum amount of premium volume. Our members must also provide their clients with services beyond the sale of a professional liability policy.

In addition to knowing the professional liability marketplace, they negotiate the best product at the best price for their clients. That negotiation happens every year at renewal time, and because our members are independent—not obligated to any one insurance company—they are in the best position to compare and contrast policies. Often, the time and expertise this process requires is underestimated by A/E clients. With a specialist broker, the A/E can rest assured that they have an advocate annually, both in relation to their bottom line and their exposure as a professional in a demanding and risky environment.

Most importantly, though, that advocacy doesn’t end when the renewal has been processed. The rest of the year, our members’ clients can count on their specialist brokers to provide services such as contract review, accredited continuing education, and other risk management services. Continue reading “Why should Architects & Engineers use a specialist Insurance Broker?”

a/e ProNet Holds Annual Meeting in Chicago

By Lynda

Chicago, IL, October 01, 2013 –(PR.com)– This week, a/e ProNet will hold its annual fall meeting at the Embassy Suites Downtown/Lakefront in Chicago. a/e ProNet is a nationwide network of independent insurance brokers specializing in the professional liability needs of architects and engineers.Members from across the country will convene to meet with representatives from several top-tier professional liability insurance companies and discuss changes in the industry, as well as to participate in a number of smaller events.

Over the course of the three-day meeting (October 2—4, 2013), eleven professional liability insurance carriers are scheduled to make presentations: RLI, Travelers, Hanover, AXIS, Catlin, HCC, Liberty, Beazley, Navigators, AllRisk and Victor O. Schinnerer. Each presentation will include information about the insurance company’s products, policy forms and endorsements, claims, risk management offerings, etc.

On Thursday night, a/e ProNet will host a reception for its members and insurance company representatives, as well as members of the Risk Management Committees of NSPE, AIA and ACEC. The reception will be held at The Rookery in Chicago, a space designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Established in 1988, a/e ProNet’s member-brokers represent a combined annual professional liability premium volume exceeding $300 million. At this meeting, a/e ProNet will explore the possibility of extending its scope to include Lawyers Professional Liability insurance. To that end, five insurance companies (Beazley, AXIS Capital, Catlin, Travelers and Ironshore) will present on their lawyers’ professional liability insurance program offerings, as well.

Learn more about a/e ProNet

a/e ProNet offers a wide range of Risk Management resources to all design professionals via the a/e ProNet website including: Practice Notes, Guest Essays, ProNetwork News, Contract Concerns, Typical Coverages and Frequently Asked Questions. For relevant industry news and risk management information, you can also follow The ProNet Blog and/or follow a/e ProNet on Twitter.

a/e ProNet Partners with the Society for Design Administration (SDA)

By Lynda

In May this year, the Society for Design Administration (SDA), the nation’s largest professional organization for architectural and engineering design firm administrators and managers, announced its endorsement of a/e ProNet.

The proper management of professional risk factors such as contract administration, project administration, and document management are known factors in reducing professional risk in a/e firms. Both SDA and a/e ProNet are dedicated to providing a/e firms the necessary tools to better manage risk and improve firm management. ~ Deborah A Gill, CPA, CGMA, CDFA, 2013 SDA President

As announced in the June/July 2013 issue of SDA Today, “a/e ProNet will pay one half of a new SDA member’s dues if that member’s insurance agent belongs to a/e ProNet… Chapters can partner with the local broker and reach out to principals and managers in their network.”

a/e ProNet and the SDA will also collaborate on a number of educational events, including the SDA’s annual EDSymposium conference. Last year, past a/e ProNet President, Leslie Pancoast, made two presentations at EDSymposium12 in Portland, Oregon, and current a/e ProNet President Jeff Todd spoke at EDSymposium13 in Williamsburg, Virginia earlier this year.

We look forward to a long and successful partnership with the SDA.

Need CE Credits? a/e ProNet’s Contract Review Guides Can Help

By Lynda

Looking for a convenient way to fulfilll your AIA Continuing Education credit requirements? a/e ProNet can help.

In the past few years, a/e ProNet has published two risk management guides for the design industry: Risk Management & Contract Guide for Design Professionals and Risk Management for Design Professionals in a World of Change. Both include courses at the back of the book, which have just been renewed with the AIA for credit for an additional 3 years.

Our books and access to the courses are available for purchase on our website, but you can receive a discount for both by requesting copies from your a/e ProNet broker. (And if your broker isn’t an a/e ProNet member, call your local a/e ProNet broker today!)

Read on for details about both contract review guides… Continue reading “Need CE Credits? a/e ProNet’s Contract Review Guides Can Help”

California Court Upholds Contractual Statute of Limitations Provision in AIA Standard Form

By Lynda

California architects can breathe a little easier. Filed June 3, 2013, the Court of Appeals decision in Brisbane Lodging, LP v. Webcor Builders, Inc. held that the section 13.7.1.1 of the 1997 AIA Standard Form of Agreement between Owner and Contractor is enforceable.

This is good news for Design Professionals, as section 13.7.1.1 shortens the statute of limitations period to four years and effectively abrogates the delayed discovery rule in California.

Per an announcement email recently received from Jacqueline Pons-Bunney, a partner at law firm Weil & Drage:

The case involves a contract between an owner and a contractor for the construction of a hotel. The clause at issue reads:

“any applicable statute of limitations shall commence to run and any alleged cause of action shall be deemed to have accrued in any and all events not later than such date of Substantial Completion.”

Substantial completion at the subject project was July 31, 2000. In early 2005, the owner discovered a break in the sewer line which caused waste to flow under the hotel. It was determined that the plumbing problem was a latent defect. Both the contractor and its plumbing subcontractor investigated the problem and attempted repairs. It was ultimately discovered that the plumbing subcontractor had installed ABS pipe rather than cast iron pipe for the sewer line, in violation of the Uniform Plumbing Code. The owner filed a lawsuit in May 2008. Continue reading “California Court Upholds Contractual Statute of Limitations Provision in AIA Standard Form”

Design Professional Contracts – Words to Avoid

By Lynda

At its most basic level, risk management for design firms includes selecting and signing sound contracts. a/e ProNet’s Risk Management & Contract Guide for Design Professionals (2005) can assist with the specifics of this process.

An excerpt from Chapter 7, Some Do’s and Don’ts of Contract Language:

7.2 Words to Avoid

Certain words create the impression that the design firm has a greater duty or responsibility than required by the generally accepted standard of care and scope of services stated elsewhere in the contract. Some words that risk managers often advise the design firm to avoid using in their contracts to the greatest extent possible include the following:

“supervise contractor’s work”
“control contractor’s work”
“direct contractor’s work”
“guarantee or warrant either your services or the contractor’s work”
“certify that contractor’s work meets the plans and specifications”
“inspect contractor’s work to assure it meets the plans and specifications”

This risk management guide was previously out of print, but has since been re-released in electronic format. The book includes three updated optional AIA-approved continuing education courses! Visit the a/e ProNet Web Store to purchase and download your copy today! Also available is our most recent guide, Risk Management for Design Professionals in a World of Change (2009). If you have any questions about these resources, find your local a/e ProNet broker or Contact Us.