HKS Trace Paper

Thought leaders from all over the world came together at KA Connect 2012 to share case studies, best practices and ideas about how they organize information and manage knowledge in their firms. Tom Harvey, FAIA, MPH, FACHA, LEED AP, principal with HKS, Inc. and president of the Center for Advanced Design Research & Evaluation (CADRE), presented “Launching into Research: HKS and CADRE.” 

Harvey founded CADRE to develop and implement relevant original research in the areas of architectural and engineering design solutions having an impact on end users, including occupant well-being and user effectiveness; operational performance; and sustainability of the built environment. Throughout his 35-year healthcare architecture career, he has influenced the healthcare environment with design research studies that reveal how architecture affects safety and patient visibility, improves patient outcomes and satisfaction, increases operating efficiencies, reduces nurse walking distances, simplifies design and reduces costs – while providing the highest standard of care. 

KA Connect 2012 is a knowledge and information management conference for the AEC industry. This year’s conference, held April 11-12, 2012 in San Francisco, focused on three intersecting trends driving the future of practice : research, marketing and technology.

Click here to view the video presentation by Tom at KA Connect 2012.

Steve Valenta, project architect with HKS, Inc., was selected to speak at Autodesk University 2011 Conference and Exhibition to be held November 29 – December 1 at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas.

Valenta’s 90-minute presentation, “Collaborate with the Extended Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) Team Using Revit Server and Project Bluestreak,” will expound on the following topics:

• How Revit Server and Project Bluestreak will allow you to virtually work side-by-side with partner engineers, architects and contractors on a single model.
• How a real IPD team successfully implemented Revit Server to collaborate remotely on a singlebuilding information model.  
• How to set up a site-to-site VPN among Revit servers hosted in different firms.
• How WAN accelerators, like Riverbed appliances, coupled with Revit Server can optimize performance of the BIM across wide geographic distances.
• How to maintain over-the-shoulder-like communication with the extended team using Project Bluestreak.
• How to overcome the issue of who is doing what in the model by using worksets to divide modeling responsibilities.

Valenta, with more than 10 years of experience, is an industry leader in Building Information Modeling technology and has sat on the AIA Large Firm Roundtable’s BIM Implementers Forum. He received a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Texas Tech University.

Autodesk is a world leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software.  Its Autodesk University offers a year-round learning and networking experience that helps members develop professionally and advance their careers.  AU’s flagship event is its annual conference and exhibition in Las Vegas, where design professionals from around the world attend classes, keynotes, product demonstrations, exhibits and networking events. 

HKS, Inc. is a leading architectural design firm ranked among the top five architectural and engineering firms, according to Building Design+Construction magazine, and among the top 11 architectural firms, according to BD World Architecture magazine. Since its founding in 1939, HKS has completed construction projects totaling more than $69 billion in more than 1,069 cities located in 46 states, the District of Columbia and 65 foreign countries. The firm operates from 23 offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.hksinc.com.

Peter Braun, HKS director of human resources, spoke at the KA Connect Conference held April 27-28, 2011 in San Francisco.  His session topic was “Creating Organizational Learning Agility.”