The Pankow name is all over the place this month. First, ENR editors selected the Charles Pankow Foundation president, Richard M. Kunnath, as a Top 25 Newsmaker for his stewardship of the only private foundation in the U.S. funding building innovation.
Second, A Better Way to Build, which is a history of the Pankow companies by Michael R. Adamson, was just published by Purdue University Press. It is a complete coincidence that the book's foreword is by Arthur J. Fox Jr., ENR's editor emeritus (and my former boss). Art had no idea I had nominated Rik Kunnath for his development and stewardship of the foundation and I had no idea Art was involved with the book.
For those unfamiliar with the name, construction giant Charles Pankow, who died in 2004, was highly respected as an innovator and an entrepreneur. He developed a "big" niche—design-build concrete construction—and stayed with it.
Adamson's book is 450 pages (not counting the index!). I have only skimmed it—reading select passages. But if those passages, some randomly sampled and others not, and Art's intro (I read that in its entirety) are any indication, the book is likely an interesting read.
One more thing. Recently, the foundation issued its Design Management Guide for the Design-Build Environment, based on three workshops and written by a group led by Edward C. Wundram. "The purpose of this guide is to give the design manager the practical tools, information and advice he or she needs to fulfill his or her obligations successfully," says the intro.
I was impressed by a point made, in the intro, that though most design-builders will have the design manager become the construction-phase manager, a good design manager is not necessarily a good construction-phase manager—and vice versa. The tone of the guide is direct and, at (only) 58 pages, is likely a must-read for design-builders. The guide is a perfect example of how the foundation is doing the construction industry a great service.
In the guide, there is a request for input. Apparently, the foundation is planning a series of design management guides for design-builders. Those interested in joining the effort—shes or hes—can e-mail DMG@pankowfoundation.org.
Congrats to Rik and the other 24 ENR Newsmakers!
Second, A Better Way to Build, which is a history of the Pankow companies by Michael R. Adamson, was just published by Purdue University Press. It is a complete coincidence that the book's foreword is by Arthur J. Fox Jr., ENR's editor emeritus (and my former boss). Art had no idea I had nominated Rik Kunnath for his development and stewardship of the foundation and I had no idea Art was involved with the book.
For those unfamiliar with the name, construction giant Charles Pankow, who died in 2004, was highly respected as an innovator and an entrepreneur. He developed a "big" niche—design-build concrete construction—and stayed with it.
Adamson's book is 450 pages (not counting the index!). I have only skimmed it—reading select passages. But if those passages, some randomly sampled and others not, and Art's intro (I read that in its entirety) are any indication, the book is likely an interesting read.
One more thing. Recently, the foundation issued its Design Management Guide for the Design-Build Environment, based on three workshops and written by a group led by Edward C. Wundram. "The purpose of this guide is to give the design manager the practical tools, information and advice he or she needs to fulfill his or her obligations successfully," says the intro.
I was impressed by a point made, in the intro, that though most design-builders will have the design manager become the construction-phase manager, a good design manager is not necessarily a good construction-phase manager—and vice versa. The tone of the guide is direct and, at (only) 58 pages, is likely a must-read for design-builders. The guide is a perfect example of how the foundation is doing the construction industry a great service.
In the guide, there is a request for input. Apparently, the foundation is planning a series of design management guides for design-builders. Those interested in joining the effort—shes or hes—can e-mail DMG@pankowfoundation.org.
Congrats to Rik and the other 24 ENR Newsmakers!
