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Extracted Content
Normally, the Owner will make final decisions on what the priority order of elements will be. However, the Owner and the rest of the CxP Team must be aware of all requirements so that the final product will include as many individual group requirements as are deemed appropriate and within the budget.
A simple three-step process is recommended for developing the OPR:
a. OPR workshop b. OPR documentation (report) c. Project team approval of the OPR
I2.1 OPR Workshop. The OPR workshop is typically facilitated by the CxP, who elicits the primary concerns of the Project Team. The workshop is organized to encourage identification of all requirements, to encourage interaction and discussion among all team members, and to arrive at group consensus of priorities for the OPR. This is accomplished through the presentation of multiple questions in an ordered structure. A typical process uses a modified nominal group technique workshop format. This is a formal means of gathering the highest level of consensus that approaches the real needs of the group. The procedure consists of the following steps:
a. Provide each question or open concept to each individual
participating in the workshop. b. Allow three to five minutes of quiet writing time for each
individual to respond with as many answers and ideas as he/she can. c. Record individual responses in a round-robin fashion—no
discussion at this point, just record the responses on a visual flipchart, overhead, chalkboard, or multicomputer link to all participants. d. Review all responses, consolidate similar ones, and clarify
so all in the group have the same understanding of all responses. e. Have individuals rank the responses for importance (1
through 5). f. Determine a group ranking from individual rankings. g. A rediscussion of the top 10 items—and any responses
ranked most important—is desired, followed by a second round of individual and group combined rating/ranking.
The questions asked during this workshop must be broad in nature, elicit discussion, result in a variety of viewpoints, and must not leave the workshop. The questions should not focus on items such as “at what temperature are you comfortable?” but should be broader, such as “how do you define
comfort?” or “how will you measure the cost success of this project?” (versus a broader question, such as “how will you determine if this was a successful project?”).
I2.2 OPR Documentation. The OPR workshop will identify key items and priorities important to the Project Team, the Owner, users, and the CxP Team. However, it does not provide specific values. For example, the number one item in the OPR may be good air circulation in the rooms. It is the responsibility of the CxP to take the individual requirements developed by the Project Team and translate them into physical properties that can be measured, designed, and documented.
This transformation of the OPR often requires input from a variety of sources, including the Design Team, contractors, specialists, standards, and guidelines. Typically, the CxP has sufficient experience in the planning, design, construction, and operation of facilities to provide the oversight of such a task. If not, then experts should be retained to aid in the development of the OPR.
I2.3 Project Team Approval of the OPR. After several iterations and reviews of the OPR by the Project Team and Design Team, the requirements must be approved to provide the Design Team adequate direction for their design. It is important to distinguish development of the OPR from the traditional role of the architect in the planning or programming process. The OPR defines the criteria required for success, whereas the architect’s document may only address specific space size and occupant flow requirements. Where the OPR may state that the functional use of the facility is X, Y, and Z, the architect’s document may specify the locations of, the size of, and the flow of people through X, Y, and Z.
I3. SUMMARY
The OPR workshop is one means to provide consistency in the implementation of the Cx from project to project. It should be a topic addressed in the lessons-learned workshop during the Occupancy and Operations Phase of the Cx. Other techniques for developing the OPR, such as interviews and surveys, do not allow interaction between the user groups. Further, it has been shown that the results or answers are biased by the beliefs of the expert who develops the questions for the interviews or surveys. Frequently, using such techniques, the questions can be analyzed and the conclusions predetermined whether the interviews or surveys are completed or not.
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