Digital Dryshack #52: OmniClass for Job Cost

A colleague and friend of many years, Dominick Rose of CDM Engineering, introduced me to several months ago to the Omni-Class standard of construction classification. Omni-Class is a well-organized, multi-faceted methodology whose goal is, by its own definition to, “describe the Built Environment.” A lot of smart people spent a lot of time designing this elegant schema, and it works. It uses multiple tables, each a wholly separate, organizational hierarchy, classifying various facets of construction differently. To name just a few of its several tables: Table 11 (Construction Entities by Function), sorts completed projects by function, assigning a numeric index to each primary type, (maunufacturing, education, medical, etc.) with a subset within each major type to all the numerous minor facility types and uses. It’s a well-designed method of organizing the entire spectrum of facility types; all neatly finished and ready for us to use. Omni-Class includes the complete 2004/2010 Construction Specifications Institute’s (CSI) Masterformat index in its entirety in its Table 22 (Work Results). In its Table 21 (Elements),  is the complete Uni-Format index, (with the significant improvement of an entirely numeric form. In my opinion, alpha indexes are klunky and cumbersome). Last and certainly not least of its advantages, Omni-Class is an open standard, not requiring membership or usage fees. Several other tables use alternate classification methods to achieve different organizational results, providing the most comprehensive set of options anywhere.
So whether you’re looking for a better job cost tracking system, (consider an adaptation of Table 21 or 22), or a historical estimate-tracking database, (Table 11), you likely will find Omni-Class to be the definitive resource you’re looking for to get you started on the right foot. (And thanks, Dominick!)