Practice / Project Management
The principal of an architecture firm realizes there is a significant gap between current profitability and annual goals. The principal decides to implement a sustainable strategy to increase annual profitability.
What strategy should the principal implement?
A.Add two new interns to the team.
B.Increase billing rates by $6 per hour.
C.Accept various projects in new typologies.
D.Extend the design team's work to 50 hours per week.
B. Increase billing rates by $6 per hour.
Increasing billing rates will help meet the annual goal without significantly increasing operational expenses.
An architect is calculating the gross area of an office building using the grossing factor.
Which of the following items is a nonprogrammed space that the architect will include in the calculation?
A. Stairways
B. Break Rooms
C. Private Offices
A. Stairways
Stairways are nonprogrammed spaces included in the grossing factor.
An architect is planning a circulation corridor in an institutional project.
According to the ADA, why should there be limitations on the size of wall protrusions?
A. Minimize obstacles for the visually impaired
B. Maximize floor space
C. Maintain required egress clearances
D. To maintain visual security
A. Minimize obstacles for the visually impaired
The intent is to prevent hazards to people with vision impairments who may use a white cane in order to feel obstacles. Since protrusions don't go down to the floor, the walking cane wouldn't detect it and the person may walk into the protrusion.
Following the bidding phase, the owner decides to value engineer the project due to budget overruns. The contractor suggests using vinyl windows instead of the aluminum-clad wood windows that were originally specified. The architect reviews the proposed substitution and accepts it. Six months after the windows are installed, it is determined that their U-value never met the minimum required by code.
Which party is at fault?
A. The Owner
B. The Architect
C. The Contractor
B. The Architect
The architect is responsible for specifying the original quality and allowing the value engineering change.
During closeout proceedings, it is discovered that the contractor failed to complete an item on the punch list. The caulking around several doors was not completed. The architect did not notice the non-conforming work.
Who is responsible for completing the caulking?
A. The contractor
B. The owner
C. The surety
D. The architect
A. The contractor
It is always the contractor's responsibility to complete the work in accordance with the contract documents. Furthermore, according to AIA A201 Article 12, the contractor is also obligated to correct any non-conforming work for one year after the project's substantial completion.
ABC Architects receives the RFP from the Community Development Corporation on March 16 of Year 1. ABC is submitting a proposal as the lead architect for the affordable housing project.
Which one of the following will be an obstacle to the selection of ABC's proposal?
A.Lack of a license in State B.
B.Lack of staff expertise in sustainable design.
C.Lack of experience with housing projects.
A. Lack of a license in State B
No one in ABC Architects is licensed in State B.
A developer wants to reuse an old factory and convert it into condominiums. The crumbling facade will be returned to its original state based on historical photographs.
Which of the following treatment approaches is the developer using?
A. Reconstruction
B. Rehabilitation
C. Restoration
D. Preservation
B. Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation converts a building to a use that is different from its historical use.
An architect is working on a dining space for an intimate restaurant during the design development phase. It is a renovation project where the finished ceiling height will be limited to 10-0", and existing brick walls and concrete floors will remain as interior finishes.
Which is the most appropriate location for installing sound-absorbing materials?
A. Ceiling
B. Furnishings
C. Floors
D. Walls
A. Ceiling
The ceiling is the most appropriate and effective location for installing sound-absorbing materials. This is because the ceiling is a large uninterrupted surface, and along with the floor, is one of the first surfaces to absorb the sound reflections that cause the noise.
An architect is performing a code review for a mixed-use building and is particularly concerned about the wall types required between different occupancy groups.
Which occupancy group requires a rated fire wall between it and every other occupancy group?
A. Assembly
B. Residential
C. Mercantile
D. Business
B. Residential
Refer to Table 508.4 in the International Building Code for fire-resistance ratings between occupancy groups. Even without access to the table, you can deduce the answer to this question because residential occupancies carry a higher risk in the event of a fire because people live and sleep in them. Therefore, separation from other occupancies is always required.
A contract for the construction of a three-story condominium project has been signed based on completed construction documents, but construction has not yet begun. The owner requests major changes to the plan layout that will increase the project cost.
What document should the architect use to accommodate the request?
A.Addendum
B.Change order
C.Request for information
B. Change order
A change order is a modification to contract documents that specify changes to be made, change in cost, and change in time of completion after a contract has been signed. A change order is issued when there is time to propose a modification in cost or time, which is the case here.
The architect is preparing the contract agreement for a food pantry building for a non-profit client.
Which of the following is a supplemental service per the standard agreement between owner and architect?
A. Permitting
B. Owner Consultations
C. Consultant Coordination
D. Programming
D. Programming
Formal programming is listed as a supplemental service in the owner-architect agreement.
An architect is working with a client who wishes to integrate building systems with a system of ponds adjacent to their building site.
Which one of the following site drainage strategies filters wastewater and mimics the function of local ecology?
A. Drainage Basin
B. Drainage Field
C. Constructed Wetlands
D. Swales
C. Constructed Wetlands
Engineered or constructed wetlands can function in a manner similar to natural wetlands -- receiving and processing site runoff or wastewater.
An architect is designing a public high school. During the preparation of drawings for the schematic design phase, the architect is comparing HVAC systems.
In a variable air volume (VAV) system, which quantity remains constant?
A. Humidity Levels
B. Volume of Supply Air
C. Size of Supply Air Ducting
D. Supply Air Temperature
D. Supply Air Temperature
A variable air volume (VAV) HVAC system delivers air at a constant temperature. It is the volume of air that is adjusted to reach desired conditions.
At 85% construction documents for an elementary school, an architect is requesting a cost estimate update.
Which one of the following cost estimate methods should the architect request?
A.Historical Comparison
B.Square Footage
C.Labor and Materials
C. Labor and Materials
This type of cost estimate will provide the most accurate estimate of cost during the late stages of construction documents.
The owner, architect, and contractor are walking the site towards the end of the project. The owner asks the architect when the final cleaning occurs.
What answer should the architect give?
A. After closeout
B. After final completion
C. Prior to Substantial Completion
D. Prior to final completion
D. Prior to final completion
Final cleaning is done prior to final completion. Final completion is when the contractor has completed the work and vacated the premises.
An owner purchases a 45,000-square-foot, three-story hotel with the intention of converting it into an office building. The project will be complex and the owner's schedule is tight. The owner asks the architect for advice on project delivery.
Which delivery method should the architect recommend to the client?
A. Design-Bid-Build
B. Construction Manager
C. Design-Build
B. Construction Manager
Based on the complexity and tight schedule that characterize this project, hiring a construction manager will best serve the owner.
An owner hires an architect to evaluate the feasibility of constructing a new three-story apartment building above an existing cast-in-place concrete parking garage.
Which consultant should be hired first?
A.A geotechnical engineer to evaluate the soil for its capacity to bear additional levels.
B.A fire protection engineer to evaluate the required fire separation from vehicle parking below.
C.A structural engineer to evaluate the existing garage for its capacity to support additional levels.
C.A structural engineer to evaluate the existing garage for its capacity to support additional levels.
The structural evaluation should occur first because that is the least invasive of the steps to determine project feasibility. Once it is determined that the structure can support the new load then the borings and soils tests should be completed.
In designing a LEED-certified building, the architect is taking climatic concerns into account during the overall massing.
In which climatic region is reducing surface area the most effective means for conserving energy?
A. Hot arid regions
B. Cool and cold regions
C. Hot humid regions
B. Cool and cold regions
For cool and cold regions, a compact form which reduces surface area can be effective in retaining heat.
What condition does fiberglass duct wrap primarily control in an air duct system in an unconditioned attic?
A.Condensation
B.Duct leakage
C.Fire spread
A. Condensation
Fiberglass duct wrap is used to maintain air temperature within ductwork and control condensation.
A contractor is excavating a narrow site and has concerns about having enough space to work in the pit.
Which bracing type should the contractor use?
A. Walers
B. Crosslot Bracing
C. Rakers
D. Tiebacks
D. Tiebacks
Tiebacks are the most effective method of bracing to use in a narrow site where space in the pit is a concern.
An architect has just begun their own practice with a former colleague and is considering a variety of legal structures for their new firm. They're particularly concerned with protecting the personal assets of the partners.
What type of legal structure offers liability protection of one partner from claims made against the other?
A. Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)
B. General Partnership (GP)
C. Limited Liability Company (LLC)
A. Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)
An LLP does not protect the partners’ ownership in the firm, but does protect their personal assets.
An environmental assessment shows that a site was used as a gas station in the 1970s. The soil is contaminated with volatile compounds including benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene. Cleanup must be performed before a new project can occupy the site.
What procedure could be used to clean the site?
A. Air sparging
B. Vitrification
C. Passive treatment walls
D. Soil vapor extraction
D. Soil Vapor Extraction
Soil vapor extraction involves drilling wells and creating a vacuum to pull out underground VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) in vapor form.
A flat, open site is being evaluated for a new hotel, and a windbreak will be incorporated to reduce wind.
Which of the following is true regarding air flow around windbreaks?
A. There is positive pressure behind break
B. There is negative pressure at sides
C. There is increased speed before break
D. There is decreased pressure at windward face
B. There is negative pressure at sides
There is negative pressure at the sides and leeward surfaces of a windbreak.
The owner provides the architect with specific requirements for performance and payment bonds for the project.
In which section should the architect place this performance and payment bond information?
A.00 40 00 - Procurement Forms and Supplements
B.00 72 00 - General Conditions
C.00 73 00 - Supplementary Conditions
D.00 50 00 - Contracting Forms and Supplements
C.00 73 00 - Supplementary Conditions
Supplementary Conditions is where owner-specific items are located in the specifications. The Supplementary Conditions section supplements (or changes) the general conditions of the contract. Any owner specific modifications to the general conditions, such as specific requirements for performance and payment bond information, would be located here.
At the time of placing concrete, several tests are being performed on the concrete mix.
Which quality of the mix does the slump test help quantify?
A. Coarse aggregate content
B. Compressive strength
C. Density
D. Workability
D. Workability
The slump test is done by placing fresh concrete in a cone and then removing the cone, allowing the fresh concrete to "slump". The amount of slump is then measured. A collapsed slump means the mixture is too wet.