ACE Mentor Session on Architecture and Construction Management

On November 17, 2020, the NYC Department of Design and Construction (DDC) and NYC School Construction Authority (SCA) ACE TEAM 8 session featured a presentation on Architecture and Construction Management by ACE mentors, Oral Selkridge and Salman Javed. The presentation focused on the collaborative relationship that exists between architects and construction managers. Team 8 is an affiliate of the national ACE Mentor Program of America. ACE is an afterschool program designed to attract high school students to pursue careers in Architecture, Construction Management and Engineering fields.

Oral Selkridge, Director of Architecture & Engineering, conducted an exercise with students where they were tasked with reviewing the order of the different phases necessary in designing a building. Students also identified famous world landmarks such as the Parthenon in Greece, the Ulm Cathedral in Germany, and the Great Pyramids of Giza in Egypt. The ACE students were also quizzed on New York City building/structures such as City Hall and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The quiz was intended to test what students learned on the first presentation day.

Salman Javed, an Auditor in the Construction Allowance & Change Order Unit, led an exercise on the Critical Path Method to help students become familiar with a construction manager’s process and frame of mind in the design process of a building. Salman created budget/cost estimation practice questions that allowed students to calculate the cost of installing kitchen tiles in a work day. The exercise was a thinking challenge intended to enable students to understand the many constraints faced by construction managers. The goal was to finish the project in the pre-established timeframe.

About the NYC Department of Design and Construction

The Department of Design and Construction is the City’s primary capital construction project manager. In supporting Mayor de Blasio’s long-term vision of growth, sustainability, resiliency, equity and healthy living, DDC provides communities with new or renovated public buildings such as such as firehouses, libraries, police precincts, and new or upgraded roads, sewers and water mains in all five boroughs. To manage this $14 billion portfolio, DDC partners with other City agencies, architects and consultants, whose experience bring efficient, innovative and environmentally-conscious design and construction strategies to City projects. For more information, please visit nyc.gov/ddc