AIC AO key terms

A communication technique in which the receiver restates and clarifies the sender's message to confirm understanding, using paraphrasing, questions, and nonverbal cues rather than assuming meaning.

Restating another person's message in your own words to verify comprehension and demonstrate engagement, often introduced with phrases such as 'So what you are saying is...'.

The return path in a communication process through which the receiver's response confirms, questions, or corrects the message so the sender can adjust and close the exchange.

The medium used to carry a message, such as a meeting, email, phone call, or formal letter; channel choice affects speed, record-keeping, and risk of distortion.

The formal line of authority defining who reports to whom and the route through which instructions and information should flow within an organization or project team.

Assigning responsibility and the necessary authority to another person to carry out a task while the delegator retains accountability for the outcome.

A chart mapping project activities against team members or roles to show who is responsible, accountable, consulted, or informed for each deliverable.

The number of subordinates who report directly to one supervisor; a wide span flattens the organization, while a narrow span adds management layers.

A diagram showing reporting relationships, departments, and levels of authority within a company or project organization, used to clarify roles and communication paths.

A wall that supports structural loads from floors or roof above it; it cannot be removed or altered without providing an alternative load path, usually designed by an engineer.

The arrangement of framing members, walls, and foundations that together resist gravity, wind, and seismic forces and transfer loads safely to the ground.

The permanent, static weight of a structure itself, including walls, floors, roofs, fixed equipment, and finishes, which remains essentially constant over the building's life.

The non-permanent weight a structure must carry, such as occupants, furniture, and movable equipment; design values are set by building codes for each occupancy type.

A horizontal structural member that carries loads applied along its length and transfers them to columns, walls, or other supports, primarily through bending.

The maximum pressure a soil or foundation material can support without unacceptable settlement or shear failure; it governs footing size and foundation design.

Maintaining adequate moisture and temperature in freshly placed concrete so cement hydration can proceed, developing strength and durability over time.

A field test using a standard cone to measure the consistency and workability of fresh concrete; results indicate water content and help detect overly wet or dry mixes.

The capacity of a material such as concrete or masonry to resist being squeezed; concrete strength is typically stated as the 28-day cylinder or cube test result.

The approximate labeled size of lumber or masonry, larger than its actual finished size after surfacing or jointing, such as a 2x4 that measures 1-1/2 by 3-1/2 inches.

The permissible variation from a specified dimension, alignment, or material property within which the work will still be accepted as conforming to the contract documents.

The written portion of the contract documents describing required materials, standards, workmanship, and testing, complementing the drawings that show size and location.

A digital, object-based model of a facility containing geometry and data used for coordination, clash detection, quantity takeoff, and lifecycle information management.

A modeling review process that identifies physical or spatial conflicts among structural, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing elements before construction, avoiding field rework.

A drawing combining multiple trades' systems to show routing and clearances, resolving conflicts among structural, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing work before installation.

A written modification to bidding or contract documents issued before the bid opening or contract execution, becoming part of the documents and binding on bidders.

A stated cost per unit of work or material, such as per cubic yard or square foot, used to price variable quantities and to value authorized changes.

The systematic measurement of materials and work items from drawings and specifications to produce quantities that are priced in an estimate.

A reserve of money or time set aside to cover known risks and unknowns that are likely to affect cost or schedule but cannot be precisely identified in advance.

A cost-control measure comparing budgeted value of work performed against actual cost and planned schedule, yielding cost and schedule variance indicators for the project.

A standardized account number assigned to a work category or cost item so that budgets, commitments, and actual expenditures can be tracked and compared consistently.

A percentage of each payment withheld by the owner until contract completion or specified milestones, providing leverage to ensure the contractor finishes and corrects defects.

A periodic payment to the contractor for work completed and materials stored during a billing period, typically based on an approved application and subject to retainage.

An itemized breakdown allocating the contract sum to work items; it supports progress payment requests and provides a basis for measuring completed work.

The longest sequence of dependent activities through a project network, which determines the shortest possible project duration; any delay on it delays completion.

The amount of time an activity can be delayed without delaying the project finish (total float) or its successor (free float).

A bar chart displaying activities against a calendar timeline, showing durations, start and finish dates, and often dependencies and progress for easy visual communication.

A hierarchical decomposition of project scope into progressively smaller, manageable work packages that can be estimated, scheduled, assigned, and controlled.

A short-interval, rolling schedule covering the next few weeks that details upcoming activities, resources, and constraints to support weekly coordination and commitment planning.

A method of examining a task step by step to identify hazards and define controls, safe procedures, and required protective equipment before work begins.

A brief, task-focused safety meeting held at the work site before or during a shift to review hazards, controls, and required procedures with the crew.

Wearable gear such as hard hats, safety glasses, gloves, and fall protection supplied to protect workers from hazards that cannot be eliminated or controlled by other means.

A person capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards and authorized to take prompt corrective action to eliminate them, as required for certain high-risk activities.

A documented list of incomplete or defective work items identified near substantial completion that the contractor must correct before final acceptance and final payment.

The stage at which the work is sufficiently complete for the owner's intended use, triggering warranty start, retainage adjustments, and the punch list process.

A written, signed amendment to the contract modifying scope, cost, or time, executed by the owner and contractor after the change has been priced and approved.

A legal claim against property filed by a party who supplied labor or materials and was not paid, potentially encumbering the owner's title until resolved.

A formal written question from the contractor to the design team seeking clarification of contract documents, with the answer recorded and distributed to all affected parties.