As the nation’s design-build industry continues to grow, it’s vital that universities expose their construction, engineering and design students to design-build best practices. DBIA, in conjunction with the Charles Pankow Foundation, co-hosted the fourth annual Design-Build Educator Workshop in August at the University of Denver.

With a record attendance of 20 educators from 19 universities across the United States, the four-day workshop provided a comprehensive education on DBIA’s Design-Build Done Right™ principles and core curriculum. Incorporating DBIA’s University Program into existing curriculum also gives students a competitive advantage, as design-build is currently 40% of the non-residential design and construction market. Currently ten universities are participating in the DB University Program.

“It’s extremely important that our future industry leaders are introduced to the right way to delivery design-build projects through every stage of a project from procurement, contracting and execution. Helping educators create Design-Build Done Right™ curriculums is the first step toward that goal,” says DBIA Deputy Executive Director, Lisa Choplin. In addition to exposure to DBIA’s core curriculum, an industry panel of members from the Rocky Mountain Region and a visit to a recent design-build project (and 2017 Project Award Winner in the Office Buildings category), 1401 Lawrence, hosted by The Beck Group.

“DBIA’s Design-Build Educator Workshop was an excellent and very valuable experience,” said Joe Boylan, instructor at the University of Texas at Tyler. “The workshop gave us the foundation on how to properly prepare the students to be integrated project leaders capable of successfully managing design-build projects as soon as they graduate. Having an opportunity to discuss DB with many leading industry leaders and educators was worth the trip all by itself.”

The Educator Workshop is made possible with the generous financial support of the Charles Pankow Foundation. Additional funds are raised via silent auctions which were held at the 2016 Annual and 2017 specialty conferences. Stop by this year’s silent auction in the Exhibit Hall at the 2017 Design-Build Conference & Expo in Philadelphia and bid on a wide range of unique items, while you support the next generation of design-build!