THE INDUSTRY AND THE UNIVERSITIES: PARTNERS FOR BETTER CONSTRUCTION EDUCATION

INTRODUCTION

This paper will use the terms partners and partnerships to reference many diverse programs. These programs will range from scholarships to competitions. This paper will explore the question: Does the success of construction programs require a form of partnership to be established between the construction educational unit and industry itself? Partnerships can be as formal or informal as the specific tasks require. A formal endowment or co-op program may require contracts to be signed, while requests for guest speakers may only require a phone call. Both of these partnerships require a close working relationship and close cooperation between the two parties. This paper will serve as a guide to establish new cooperation and new relationships between the constructor, the educator and the university.

TRADITIONAL INDUSTRY SUPPORT

Data and information

In most areas of the country, the needs of construction education are money, time and information. Of the three information typically is the area that many contractors feel the least comfortable in giving. Often they feel the information they give will reflect poorly on their management style, show cash and profit problems or provide their competition with propriety data they will be able to use. In the cases of propriety information, the information or data can be kept confidential or only used for background. Data is a key element to improving the research and depth of discovery in a graduate program.

One of the areas that could be enhanced, is the chance to use working projects as active labs for both discovery and experiments. Many areas that construction researchers are exploring in a lab could better be simulated or performed in the working environment. Research and data collection into method and productivity can sometimes only be accomplished at an actual working site.

Scholarships

Scholarships have been a traditional form of support to students and a wide range of scholarships and financial aid are available. This paper does not intend to be the definitive guide to our industry scholarships, but to give our programs and students a beginning place and a point of discussion for this paper.

There are three different areas for students to look for scholarships. These areas arc National Industry Associations, Large National Construction, Engineering and Consulting Firms, and Local Industry Groups and Contractors.

National Organizations

National Construction Firms

Local Associations

Guest Speakers

Guest speakers are another traditional source of industry contact. Many of our institutions are not located near major sources of guest speakers. Local contractors can grow weary of having the continuing request for assistance. Schools that are well established often call on their alumni for this type of assistance.

Guest speakers have also been more of a student organization activity in many schools. This author believes that all classes can benefit from guest speakers if they can become more subject oriented vs. the typical talk on "This is my company and this is what I do". This approach requires a coordinated effort between the educator and the constructor who may not feel comfortable in the class room setting. Each of the individual construction department would benefit from formalizing and implementing a guest speakers' guide and outline for subject based speeches.

Field Trips

Field trips have long been one of the easiest and most informative partnerships construction education has had with the construction industry. As lawyer and high insurance costs are a way of life in the industry, we are beginning to see a trend that may result in job site visits being restricted due to insurance. These restrictions can easily be overcome by the educators and the contractors involved by using release forms and waivers. Contractors need to be reassured that providing this type of support does not place them at risk. Schools must formalize their field trip procedure, define appropriate attire, behavior, and be prepared to acknowledge the inherent risk that may be involved with a job site visit.

Field trips provide the glimpse of the construction work place and the people who are active in the building process. The knowledge and understanding of this process greatly increases with the number of job site visits. Companies that allow field trips, interviews with their field people, and other field related activities are providing a much needed page in the education of our students.

Shadow Programs

Shadow programs are designed to match one student with one professional. This program will allow students to follow a professional throughout his/her working day. It gives the student a complete view of activities that the different people in our industry will perform. Most students do not completely understand the variety of positions in the construction industry. The student quite often doe not know what are the individual duties associated with these different positions. i.e. Project Engineer, Office Engineer, Estimator, Superintendent, and Project Manager.

The major impact on the student can be gained in experiencing the excitement and the action that happens around most construction professionals. As a student spends time with a Superintendent, he/she will become aware of the great need for quality tradespeople, the need for proper scheduling and sequence of work, the ability of a specific piece of equipment to preform and the many other field related subjects. By following" the estimator, one would experience the excitement of a bid opening, the importance of systems and quality of subcontract quotes. The project manager may show him or her the art of negotiating a change order or working with other professional such as the Architect and Engineer.

Many of the above mentioned experiences can not be duplicated or properly simulated in the classroom. The ones that can be simulated normally lack the energy and excitement that a real situation may bring.

"Career Day" and Job Fairs

In California, the AGC of California Education Committee sponsors an annual "Career Day". It is an opportunity for firms to show construction management students the many opportunities and diverse types of work the various companies are doing. Many students start their college experience with preconceived ideas or limited views of what additional opportunities and types of work are available to them in the construction industry. After four years of college the student's ideas may change, or he/she may realize that one type of work will not fulfill their career goals, but are not sure of the other areas available. "Career Day' can help in that growing process.

The next step to a "Career Day" for the employers is a Job Fair. Associated Builders and Contractors had their second annual Job Fair in March in conjunction with ABCs national convention. It is an opportunity for students and employer to make contact and interview. M.W. Kellogg, Becon, Fluor-Daniel, and Brown & Root are among the engineering and construction firms participating.

Recognition Dinners and Alumni Breakfasts

An annual event held in Tempe, Arizona is a construction recognition dinner sponsored by local construction groups and the Arizona State University. These two groups bring together industry, the ASU's construction program and high school and jr. college counselors to recognize local contractors, construction students, and provide awareness to the counselors as to the needs and opportunities in the construction industry.

The alumni breakfast concept is another opportunity for the student to participate on a one to one basis with our industry professionals. Participating alumni sign up for specific days and are matched with interested students. The number of student is controlled to suit this type of get together. Alumni often form the backbone for our networking into the industry for both job searches and educational partnerships. This idea is a spin off of the idea of safety breakfasts many firms use to discuss safty issues.

Centers for Construction Education

(Industry Education or Continuing Education)

The idea that four year construction education programs should take the lead in promoting continuing education opportunities for the practicing professional or the individual constructor wishing to improve his or her knowledge base has only recently taken steps forward. Clemson University has established a center in conjunction with the Associated Builders and Contractors to help that association continue to educate and upgrade their members. At the University of Florida's, M.E. Rinker, Sr., School of Building Construction, national and international seminars for both construction educators and professionals are being promoted.

Many four year construction programs work with their local industry chapters and campus continuing education departments to provide classes on a variety of construction related subjects but none are as extensive as the relationship between Clemson University and the ABC. ABC and Clemson University have joined forces to provide week-long academies for supervisory level personnel. Three such academies are presently being offered; Supervisors Academy, Project Managers Academy and Safety Academy. All are intensive, seven day programs designed to add and hone the skills of management and supervisory personnel.

Clemson's Department of Building Sciences is the host for these retreats as well as provide many of the educators for the academy. While this may be the most extensive partnership in the area of continuing education other individuals and institution have relationships with many of the key industry organizations.

Types of Seminars and Short Courses offered by American Council for Construction Education accredited schools:

The idea of creating centers for this type of education has substantial merit and is being explored in many regions of the nation. These centers for construction education would be able to draw on more than one school for instructors and could provide a larger identity for advertising and familiarization.

Industry Advisory Groups

Association Education Committees

AGC, ABC and NAHB, all have education committees at both the national and state levels. At the national levels, students clubs, scholarships, national grants and awards are their main types of support ASC member schools can receive. At the state level, these committees work with individual state schools and groups of construction schools, as in the case of California.

Most national construction groups have their own education committees. These groups generally are looking inwards at apprenticeship training and membership education. Their support for construction management programs at the university level takes a back seat to their responsibilities to educate their membership. This is not to say that they are not supporting programs but only that such support is not their primary goal. AGC nationally does one of the better jobs of providing monies and support.

Construction Department or Program Advisory Groups

Most ASC member schools have advisory boards, but the degree of involvement with the schools varies greatly. Further, the mission or direction these boards take, changes from school to school. Typical activities of these boards fall into the following categories:

The average number of advisory board members for ACCE accredited schools range from a low of three to a high of thirty four, with the most common being nine to fifteen with the numeric average being thirteen. In their capacity as advisory boards, they commonly meet only once or twice a year and use a very informal system of meetings.

A typical quote from schools on advisory boards is, "our board serves us and provides us a place to send ideas on our educational goals, department philosophy, and to voice needs we may have ……". The advisory board serves as a department or program's first line of industry support making it much more important than it appears at first glance.

endowments and trusts

The first paragraph of this paper identified the three needs of construction education as money, time, and information. The one need that most construction programs have in common is financial. Annual donations have long supplemented state budgets, but both of these sources have not been as reliable as one would wish or need to plan for growth and new initiatives as they may arise.

Long term planning can be facilitated by establishing construction education endowments. Construction companies who are interested in the long term success and stability of a construction program have a number of ways to assure that long term goals can be met. Trusts, endowments, professorship or chairs are the most frequent used methods to provide yearly funds.

Two types of endowments have been used successfully. The first is established by a single company making an annual contribution to an endowment in the corporate name or a founder's name. The second is a general endowment, established by the department, that alumni, corporations, and others could contribute on one time or on a yearly basis.

Endowment monies are normally invested by a university foundation group with the proceeds from the investments going directly to the construction program. The major hazard with the above named endowment above is yearly donations which are used to supplement yearly budget moves to the endowment fund. The first years can then have a negative impact on yearly budgets.

Gifts can come in many different forms. In the Winter 1989-90 Cal Poly Today, a unique form of partnership was formed between Malcolm and Bessie Williams in the form of an unitrust. Property was donated to Cal Poly Foundation, which in turn invested the funds. The earnings provide the couple with an income for life. When they pass away, funds will revert to Cal Poly's Agricultural Programs. In the same article, an organization pledged a large amount to support a endowed professorship. These same ideas have been used at The University of Florida's School of Building Construction.

Gifts through wills and life insurance policies are additional ways for individuals to participate and support construction education on a long term basis.

NON-TRADITIONAL PILOT PROGRAMS

"Living" Labs

When discussing "Living" labs one should first define the term and general ideas behind them. Second we must talk about the importance of "Leaning by Doing", a phase commonly used at California Polytechnic State University. The idea of developing an actual project, where hands on management, practices, and techniques can be seen, managed, touched, learned, and experienced is the basis for "living" labs. Construction education has long fought for professional status and against the idea or image that we are training trades people. With this in mind, construction educators tend to exclude any instruction or instructional technique that could give outside people a mixed signal on this issue. The student that has not experienced the physical nature of the equipment and material used in the construction industry may never have the understanding and respect the value of the trades he or she may manage. These types of labs help the visualization process that one must have to succeed in our industry. It is important for students to visualize the relative sizes, weights, and physical nature of the materials

that are used. "Living Labs" are controlled learning centers for the student to experience and appreciate the materials used, labor required, and the equipment of construction along with their relationship to the project site. This learning experience is a key element to a construction student's education. These labs can take the form of steel erection, formwork erection, residential construction or other controlled processes. Purdue's program has led construction schools in this area of "living labs". Other schools have soils labs and concrete labs where small samples are used. But these types of labs can only demonstrate the testing procedures used in our industry to check the quality of the in place materials. These labs can not show you the workability of soils as equipment moves it or compacts it , nor can it demonstrate the different finishing techniques, the weight of the concrete, and the need for workable concrete.

Professionals in residence programs

A professional in residence program can be used much like visiting lecture series. Because of the makeup of the construction industry and the demanding schedules of most professionals, it is difficult for contractors to leave their business for long periods of time as would be required of a visiting professor for a quarter or semester-long period. But a short week and partial weeks are acceptable and often desirable for some professionals. A course titled "Construction : A Professional's Perspective" may be appropriate.

A proposal for just such a course could read "An Important element of any professional education program is the exposure of students to the men and women who are actively engaged in the profession. Too often, that exposure is limited to lower echelon personnel that are encountered during the summer jobs or field trip job visits. Opportunities for any dialogue with senior management personnel is usually confined to the short period of time that such individuals are available as guest speakers or recruiters."

To facilitate the interaction between the students and the senior level professional constructor, a professional in residence program can be established. The course enrollment should be limited and offered in a seminar format to better facilitate one on one between the student and the professional.

The idea of bringing together students and faculty of the different construction schools in the form of a competition was first explored by Associated Schools of Construction-Region VI at their 1988 mid-year meeting in San Francisco. It's idea was enthusiastically excepted by industry and supported in the form of trophies, financial awards, problems, judges and funding.

The Region VPs competition was expanded to cover both a building construction problem and a heavy/civil construction problem at it's 1989 competition in Las Vegas and to include a third division for Residential Development in 1990. Just as the number of divisions has increased, so has the number of participating schools to a total of fourteen. The problems are similar in requirements consisting of proposals for the work which include schedules, cash flow requirements, estimates, company qualifications, and proposed contracts. Oral presentations were given to "owners" which were members of different construction companies who then acted as judges to determine winners.

Other types of competition could take the forms of problem solving in the areas of value engineering or conceptual estimating, material and equipment use, or on a lighter side a construction Olympics. Two goals should be strived for in planning for other alternate competitions. First, a learning experience for the students should take place, and second, the opportunity for the students and faculty to interact with professionals from the industry should be available.

The idea of a competition has spread to the National Association of Home Builders' national convention. This completion is a direct spin off of the Associated Schools of Construction Region VPs in Las Vegas. They have opted to completely mirror that successful competition in lieu of exploring a different format and idea.

Videoconferencing:

The use of satellite communication is being used daily by the news and sports medias. Universities are finally embracing the idea. While the use of classroom television for playing video movies is in common use on most campuses, the use of live videoconferencing is not.

A broad definition of videoconferencing by the National University Teleconference Network includes the "interactive communication between person at one or more locations using full color, full motion video programs" quite often providing a two way feed for both live video and audio. For us in construction education this may be our link to job sites, a long list of active high level management, and a method of providing additional classes between universities at reduced costs. It will allow us to have meeting and competitions less expensively than the face to face meetings we typically attend. Continuing education may take on a new look and the job site may be the classroom.

This type of communication has not worked well in the past because of a variety of root problems. A quote form the NUTN Sourcebook summarizes the basic problem, "I can't believe I just paid $ 40.00 to watch three hours of television!". Interaction is the key to this media and today's costs for providing it requires additional expenses. Local assistants must be active on both ends of the communications and the presenter must be able to stimulate interaction while not being present.

The following Associated School of Construction Members are also members of National University Teleconference Network(NUTN):

Most other members of The Associated Schools of Construction have down link reception available on their respective campuses.

This form of communication does not have to completely rely on satellite, uplinks and down links. With the advent and widespread distribution of fiber optic services by MCI, Sprint, and AT & 'E video can be sent economically over these lines. Sprint has gone so far as to establish "Sprint Rooms" in most major metropolitan areas for just such a service. These facilities are also connected to Atlanta operations which then can uplink to satellites and downlink to areas not serviced by fiber optics. In addition to US Sprint operated facilities, a large number of Public Rooms are also available for rent.

The following cities have Public Rooms or Sprint Rooms:

The list of private rooms encompasses most major corporations in the United States. Public rooms, as well as private rooms, can also be used for international communications. Companies range from Bechtel to IBM.

Hardware and Software Support

Timberline Software out of Beaverton, Oregon is a leading developer of construction software. They are also in the forefront of helping university construction programs with their educational construction software programs. In the summer of 1990, Timberline is hosting an Estimating Educators Conference at their headquarters on both beginning and advanced computer estimating product training. Seminar topics include:

In addition to the training provided in the upcoming conference, Timberline has donated to interested programs, at a greatly reduced price, all their software for educational use. In another area, Timberline is starting to issue free copies of Precision Estimating Light to graduates of programs using their product. Primavera with its "short" version and its' student version is another supporter in bringing construction software to the classroom. Student versions quite often are not complete but are acceptable for teaching and early use in one's education. Boland software is another strong supporter of education with its' spreadsheet lines. These products are not pure construction applications but as spreadsheets are used extensively by most business firms for many different applications. Boland's Quatro can be purchased for $ 45.00 as a student or instructor.

Concrete Canoe Competition

In looking for additional ways to stimulate students' minds and to better familiarize students as to the many uses of concrete, many regions in the country have concrete canoe design and construction competitions sponsored by American Society of Civil Engineers. This completion takes the form of mix design, formwork design and construction, constructing the canoe, and performance.

"I found that the building of a concrete canoe is a complex and fascinating design problem involving several aspects of the Construction and Engineering Fields" quoted a 1988 competitor.

The requirements for this competition involve three areas, the production of a display board showing the phases of the construction process, written presentation on the design and

testing, and the final area, the construction of a canoe and the race. The design considerations included the forming method, mix design, ability to place the concrete, and method of reinforcing the canoe. "The goal of the 1990 Construction Management Canoe team is to raise our current level of technology " This statement was made by one team member that participated in the 1989 completion. His goal and method to become more competitive was to use his education to improve the level of competition.

WORKING PARTNERSHIPS

Part time and Summer Employment

Most schools do not have formal summer employment programs. Summer employment is quite often left up to the individual student. Not so at the University of Florida's, School of Building Construction. Professor Arlan Toy conducts a summer employment program which gives the student the opportunity to use the "learn by doing" approach to education. It has a high rate of success in average summer placement. It has averaged 45 students placed with contractors or developers in the past seven years. These programs, much like the coop programs elsewhere, provide the construction firm the opportunity to sell their company to students, provide the opportunity for the student to earn money for the upcoming year, and the companies that participate gets a first hand look at a student who may provide them with a future employee. Some urban schools have moved classes to the night to better accommodate the working student or active professional.

Urban labs

The urban lab or urban centers would be a central place where student, construction educators and urban construction companies could interact, brainstorm, and solve problems. It would be a place where a construction company could obtain basic services, educators could provide advice to actual problems and see final resolutions to those problems, and an environment where the students could gain practical experience by providing scheduling, estimating and other help. It allows the faculty to stay current to the trends and participate in short courses on a variety of selected subjects. Many new trends are developing in the area of contracts and specifications. As a further service to the industry, these labs could provide additional learning and teaching on specialized subjects, taking the teaching and education to the industry.

Cooperative Education (CO-OP)

Co-ops are formal programs that universities establish with construction firms to provide the working/learning environment for the student who wish to supplement their formal education with professional experience. Normally the student will receive some form of academic credit given by the schools involved and also earn money during the period of employment.

Cooperative education is one method of integrating the education gained in the work place and the education gained in the classroom. Most member schools in ASC do not require a cooperative education experience for graduation but many do have programs available. One program requiring mandatory cooperative work experience is the University of Cincinnati. A requirement of five alternating quarters of relevant, paid and employer evaluated work experience is required. In contrast, California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo strongly supports cooperative education but stops short of requiring cooperative work experience for graduation. Credit is given to the student for relevant, paid and employer-supervised work. Credits earned from such experience do not normally satisfy degree requirements.

A short list of firms which have participated in construction coops coast to coast follows:

If one looks at the benefits to the construction employer, educational institution, and the student, it is apparent that all share in the programs implementation. Reading the pamplet titled, "The Importance of Cooperative Education, Internship, and Work-Study Programs to the Construction Contractor", published by the AGC the following summary of benefits were listed: Benefits of Cooperative Education

To the Construction Emplyer:

To the Educational Institution:

To the Student:

In discussing cooperative education with Margaret Mack, Cooperative Coordinator for the Construction Management Department at Cal Poly, she made the following statement, " Whether a student is highly focused, not sure where to begin, or somewhere in between, a co-op work experience is an essential component in career development. Co-op is always a "win" situation for both student and employer. Co-op is education's link to industry". In further exploration of this subject, past co-op student views were best summarized by the following student exit reports. "The business world is just so much different than the structured academic environment. I think the Co-op program is a wonderful tool to gain insight into one's career before graduation."

Of all the alternative types of educational opportunities for students, none is as successful as the available cooperative work experience program.

FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIPS

Sabbaticals and Summer Employment

Sabbaticals are available to many universities for faculty development. This can take on many forms; research, work on a terminal degree, writing and/or other academic activities. Industry can support each of these goals by different means. One may be access to company information, another by allowing employees to be interviewed, and grants to allow faculty members to return to school work on advanced degrees.

Many faculty members need to supplement yearly salaries from their university as well as add to their knowledge base. By providing summer employment, both of these area are helped.

Professional Internships for Construction Educators

No person has expertise in all areas of our industry. An instructor, with only large firm experience, may have become specialized in certain areas, i.e. estimating, project controls, scheduling. A faculty member with experience in a smaller company may have become more of a generalist but may not see a great variety of larger projects. Another educator may have a residential or light construction experience but no heavy construction. In each case, additional industry experience is needed. It is a unique individual that has been able to move between the diverse areas of our industry.

With further investigation of this area of industry support, the following questions may arise:

Educator and Industry must look closely at these questions and address each individually. These questions point directly to the first paragraph of this section. Industry must be willing to hire construction educators in positions that will challenge and educate the individual, and the construction educator must recognize that additional professional training can not come only from written words but must be experienced first hand.

CONCLUSION

The advantages of developing partnerships between ourselves as educators and the industry we represent are many, but the basic and most compelling reason is it creates a better educational experience for our students. The major problems facing each of our individual programs can best be addressed and eliminated by these different partnerships. The quality of educational programs that each of us are involved in can only be increased by the involvement of the industry. Of the different working partnerships this paper explored, the cooperative work experience seemed to be the type of educational experience many students and programs were excited about. Scott Noble a student in Cal Poly Construction Management Department, provided this further testimonial to this program," The co-op program provided great insight into the workings of the construction world and proved very beneficial in planning my career path."

This paper also explored some untried approaches as in the case of "living" labs and new ideas for bringing the construction professional into the classroom. As this paper was being finalized, Cal Poly's first "professional in residence", in the course entitled "Construction: A Professional Prospective", finished his three days of lectures and seminars. The insights and his message stimulated both the student and faculty involved. If this is any indication of the success this type of series brings, all students and faculty involved will be enriched.

The following list illustrates the many different partnerships. Additionally this list classifies the cost commitment by the construction industry partner. The larger commitment falls under the A category with the C being of low cost.

The ultimate success of our programs and improvement of the educational experiences of student of construction in greatly enhanced by the development of partnerships of all forms with the construction industry as a whole.

REFERENCES