For Immediate Release: November 18, 2024
CONTACT: dobcommunications@buildings.nyc.gov, (212) 393-2126

DEPARTMENT LAUNCHES INNOVATION BOARD TO IMPROVE HOW WE BUILD IN NEW YORK CITY

Application Window Open For Industry Stakeholders Looking to Join Effort to Consider Adoption of New Construction and Building Technologies

New York, NY – Commissioner Jimmy Oddo announced today that the Department of Buildings (DOB) is convening a new Innovation Review Board, tasked with evaluating cutting-edge technologies that can potentially be used in the construction and development sectors here in New York City. To staff the new board, DOB has put out an open call for volunteers from the construction, real estate, labor, technology, architectural, and engineering communities. These volunteers will join government subject matter experts from DOB and other city agencies in regular meetings to discuss emerging technologies that could be implemented here in the city to improve efficiency, safety, sustainability, and resiliency. The top ideas selected by the board will be supported by DOB to promote wider adoption throughout the industry.

“Government isn’t traditionally as nimble as the private sector; that doesn’t mean we can’t get the benefit of the private sector’s expertise and innovation, especially in an industry as technical as building and development,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi. “Thanks to the Department of Buildings’ foresight, we will be able to leverage cutting-edge technologies to support city operations and best practices on work sites, from expediting work to ensuring safety.”

“Our Innovation Review Board is an incredible opportunity for government and the private sector to work together on new ideas that can help transform the development industry,” said Buildings Commissioner Jimmy Oddo. “With this open call for volunteers, we are reaching out directly to the experts who know this world best, so they can help us modernize the way we build and maintain our city.

Industry members interested in joining the Innovation Review Board can submit an application on DOB’s website here. Applications will be accepted through December 14^th, 2024.

The Innovation Review Board is being launched through an agency Executive Order signed by Commissioner Oddo earlier today, and in accordance with Local Law 5 of 2010 which requires the agency to regularly convene a formal board to review innovative new technologies, construction techniques, materials and products. Today’s announcement is the latest in a line of initiatives at DOB Buildings to promote innovation through industry outreach and public-private collaboration, including most recently the Buildings Sustainability Board launched in 2020, as well as innovation challenge competitions held by the Department in previous years.

Previous innovation initiatives at DOB have led to the publication of official agency bulletins that provided guidance on the use of artificial intelligence to assist with façade inspections, supported new anchor point technology that reduced the need to drill into newly poured concrete, and showed how property owners can use space heating distribution energy management systems to improve the efficiency of mechanical systems. Once fully staffed, the new board will be asked to look into other new innovations that can improve construction techniques, building materials, energy efficiency retrofits, the Department’s plan examination process for construction applications, and the equipment carried by DOB inspectors to perform their duties. 

Board members will be asked to provide technical expertise, advice, and recommendations to the Department regarding all technologies that may be appropriate for adoption here in New York City. Each of the board members will be selected and vetted by the Department to assure the integrity of these recommendations. Final determinations on these recommendations will be made by the DOB Commissioner and will be published on the DOB website. To support these ideas, DOB will consider potential code updates, agency rule changes, and guidance bulletins, so that the ideas they can be safely implemented in our city for the benefit of all New Yorkers.