A Decent Meal

by Marvin Kemp, AIA,  CSI, CDT

I recently completed a long and arduous project. It was a renovation at a major university's residence hall that was primarily to provide air conditioning. Despite being an almost purely mechanical project, my firm was hired to lead the design team. Since it was a residence hall, construction could only take place during the summer months when the building could be vacant which led to numerous changes in the construction manager's field staff and the university’s inspection group. About the only constant throughout the project was the CM's senior project manager, the university’s project manager, the design engineers and myself.
 
Across the project, I built a good working relationship with the CM’s senior project manager. At times, our relationship was tense, but for the most part, we got along with each other and worked towards a common goal. The same could not always be said for the CM’s field personnel, especially during this final summer. The field staff this summer was very green and fairly combative in how they dealt with me. The senior PM was involved in the project but not on a daily basis.
 
On the day I certified Substantial Completion in August, the university organized a luncheon for the project team. As the team sat down at one large table at the restaurant, the university's PM gave us a strict “no talk about the project” message: we were to enjoy each other’s company and end the project on a high note. It was a pleasant luncheon and we talked sports, family and what projects we were moving on to next. There was some gentle ribbing and the usual digs about alma maters, shared clients and construction versus design.
 
Following the luncheon, I began to think about how nice it was to spend some time with the Owner’s team, the Builder’s team and our team. We truly enjoyed each other’s company and walked away as something more than colleagues, but perhaps not quite friends. I began to think about all of the western traditions that revolve around a meal: some religious and some cultural. Shared meals seem to be a part of our culture that should be recognized and embraced.
 
I wondered aloud why we waited until the project was over to enjoy a meal together. If not a meal, perhaps we should have met at a diner or coffee shop and at least had a cup of coffee and got to know each other. I thought back on other times across my career when tense moments were diffused across lunch or when a reasonable understanding was created over a cup of coffee. It seems the decent thing to do, rather than instantly jumping into the adversarial relationships that have governed our industry for far too long. We all talk about the "Come to Jesus" meetings but why not the "common grounds" of a cup of coffee?
 
I have another project that is just about to start construction. We have a meeting on Monday morning. I think I'll take my own advice and ask the contractor's team out to lunch.