Table Number

Discussion

Table 11 – Construction Entities by Function

Definition: Construction Entities by Function are significant, definable units of the built environment comprised of elements and interrelated spaces and characterized by function.

Examples: Single Family Residences, Mining Facility, Local Transit Bus Station, Interstate Highway, Waste Water Treatment Facility, Freezer Storage Facility, Department Store, Courthouse, Hotels, Convention Center

Discussion: A construction entity is complete and can be viewed separately rather than merely as a constituent part of a larger built unit. An office building is a construction entity, but a conference room within the building is a space. Function is the purpose or use of a construction entity. It is defined by primary occupancy, and not necessarily by all activities that can be accommodated by the construction entity.

Construction entities usually also have physical form and location. This table is not concerned with physical form; that is the basis of Table 12—Construction Entities by Form. There is a correlation between form and function; function may dictate form, as illustrated by a baseball park. Other construction entities can accommodate several functions throughout their useful life; for instance, a mid-rise building can have residential, educational, or business functions.

Table 11 – Construction Entities by Function

Legacy Sources: IBC, BOCA, UBC, and other building code occupancy classifications; ISO 12006-2 Table 4.2—Construction Entities (by function or user activity) and Table 4.6—Facilities; and Uniclass Table D—Facilities, Appraisal Institute Commercial Data Standards.

Table 12 – Construction Entities by Form

Definition: Construction Entities by Form are significant, definable units of the built environment comprised of elements and interrelated spaces and characterized by form.

Examples: High-Rise Buildings, Suspension Bridge, Platform, Space Station

Discussion: A construction entity is complete and can be viewed separately rather than as a constituent part of a larger built unit. A skyscraper is a construction entity, but a shaft that extends the height of the skyscraper is classified as a space.

Construction entities classified by this table have a site and physical form. This table is not concerned with function; that is the basis of Table 11—Construction Entities by Function. Tables 11 and 12 can be used together to classify both form and function of construction entities. For instance, a high rise building form can be combined with a residential function to classify a high rise apartment building.

Note that in common usage many terms used to describe form-driven construction entities are also used to describe spaces and/or functions.

Legacy Sources: ISO 12006-2 Table 4.1—Construction Entities (by form), Uniclass Table E—Construction Entities.

Table 13 – Spaces by Function

Definition: Spaces by Function are basic units of the built environment delineated by physical or abstract boundaries and characterized by function.

Examples: Kitchen, Mechanical Shaft, Office, Highway

Discussion: A space is a part of the built environment that is marked off in some way. It is usually a component forming a larger, more significant construction entity.

A space can be delineated by either physical or abstract boundaries. Often these are environmental parameters such as walls and roofs which separate the interior “space” from that which bounds it (other spaces, elements). Other spaces, like an airport approach zone are delineated by non-corporeal, abstract boundaries.

Spaces have a purpose or use. This is their function and forms the basis of this table. Spaces can be occupied by people, things, and substances and serve as mediums for activities and movement.

Spaces also have physical form and this is the concern of Table 14—Spaces by Form. There may or may not be a correlation between the form of a space and its function. Most spaces can accommodate many different functions throughout their useful life.

Legacy Sources: Reference to made to ‘basic human functions and activities’ as might be found in anthropology texts; ISO 12006-2 Table 4.5 Spaces (by function or user activity); Uniclass Table F, Spaces, U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) space definitions, International Code Council (ICC) space definitions, Appraisal Institute Commercial Data Standards

Table 14 – Spaces by Function

Definition: Spaces by Form are basic units of the built environment delineated by physical or abstract boundaries and characterized by physical form.

Examples: Room, Alcove, Cavity, Courtyard, Easement, City Block

Discussion: A space is a segment of the built environment that is marked off from other spaces and elements in some way. It is usually a component part of a larger, more significant construction entity.

A space can be delineated by either physical or abstract boundaries. These boundaries determine the form of the space which can be three-dimensional such as a room, or a mere surface such as a walkway. The form of the space can create a medium for action or movement which is related to the function of the space. Many spaces are also largely unoccupied, but serve a function within the facility. This table is only concerned with form; Table 13—Spaces by Function is concerned with the purpose or uses of a space.

Legacy Sources: ISO 12006-2 Table 4.4 Spaces (by degree of enclosure); Uniclass Table F, Spaces.

Table 21 – Elements (Including Designed Elements)

Definitions:
An Element is a major component, assembly, or “construction entity part which, in itself or in combination with other parts, fulfills a predominating function of the construction entity” (ISO 12006-2). Predominating functions include, but are not limited to, supporting, enclosing, servicing, and equipping a facility. Functional descriptions can also include a process or an activity.

A Designed Element is an “Element for which the work result(s) have been defined.” (ISO 12006-2).

Examples: Structural Floors, Exterior Walls, Storm Sewer Utility, Stairs, Roof Framing, Furniture and Fittings, HVAC Distribution

Discussion: An element fulfills a characteristic predominant function, either by itself, or in combination with other elements; Table 21 is organized by elements’ implied functions. Major elements may be composed of several sub-elements. For example, a shell enclosure might be composed of superstructure, exterior closure, and roofing. Currently, elements are most often used during early project phases for identifying a project’s physical, operational, or aesthetic characteristics. Elements are considered without regard to a material or technical solution of the function. For each element, there may be several technical solutions capable of accomplishing the element function, and more than one may be selected for a project. These solutions are the designed elements.

Many applications exist for element-based classification. OmniClass™ Table 21—Elements can provide a useful way to organize and classify elements at the early stages of a project, before particular or specific materials and methods (designed elements) have been determined, and help to conceptualize the project without the restrictions imposed by any particular design solution. The Elements Table can be used to organize information such that it can be used to stimulate project decisions, record those decisions (and subsequent changes), and can also be used as a basis for organizing documents to form a contractual commitment between two or more parties on a project. These usually take place at an early design development stage, but may occur at any project stage or phase.

Legacy Sources: UniFormat™ (CS1/CSC 1992, 1998), ISO 12006-2 Table 4.7 Elements (by characteristic predominating function of the construction entity) and Table 4.8—Designed Elements (element by type of work), Uniclass Table G—Elements for Buildings, Uniclass Table H—Elements for Civil Engineering Works, ASTM E1557 UNIFORMAT II, A variety of ASTM “format” documents addressing specific classification of subjects associated with these element tables

Table 22 – Work Results

Definition: Work Results are construction results achieved in the production stage or phase or by subsequent alteration, maintenance, or demolition processes and identified by one or more of the following: the particular skill or trade involved; the construction resources used; the part of the construction entity which results; the temporary work or other preparatory or completion of work which is the result.

Examples: Cast-in-Place Concrete, Structural Steel Framing, Finish Carpentry, Built-Up Bituminous Waterproofing, Glazed Aluminum Curtain Walls, Ceramic Tiling, Hydraulic Freight Elevators, Water-Tube Boilers, Interior Lighting, Railways

Discussion: A work result represents a completed entity that exists after all required raw materials, human or machine effort, and processes have been provided to achieve a completed condition. Since facility owners ultimately desire a completed entity, specifiers routinely specify contractual requirements by work result, and minimize the specifying of details about how to achieve that result to contractors.

Table 22 provides a classification arrangement that organizes information most appropriately from the viewpoint of identifying the “results of work” required to provide all or part of a facility. Table 22—Work Results is based almost entirely on an existing publication called OmniClass™, which has been a standard means of organizing construction information in North America since the 1960s. The 2004 edition of OmniClass™ is also the only legacy document that was modified with OmniClass™ in mind, to eventually serve as one of the OmniClass™ tables and be coordinated with other related tables.

A work result may pertain to several manufactured products (an assembly) such as exterior insulation and finish system, or to a single product such as a framed marker board. A work result could also involve only labor and equipment which are utilized to achieve the desired result, such as trenching.

Legacy Sources: OmniClass™ 2004 Edition, ISO 12006-2 Table 4.9—Work Results (by Type of Work), and Uniclass Table J—Work Sections for Buildings and Table K—Work Sections for Civil Engineering Works.

Table 23 – Products

Definition: Products are components or assemblies of components for permanent incorporation into construction entities.

Examples: Concrete, Common Brick, Door, Metal Window, Junction Boxes, Pipe Culverts, Cast-Iron Boiler, Curtain Walls, Textured Paints, Vinyl-Coated Fabric Wall Covering, Demountable Partitions, Pre-Engineered Manufactured Structures

Discussion: Products are basic building blocks used for construction. A product may be a single manufactured item, a manufactured assembly of many parts, or a manufactured operational stand-alone system.

This table provides a basis for identifying products categorized by number and name in a unique location. Table 22—Work Results, on the other hand, provides multiple classifications for any given product dependent upon the application (or work result) the product is employed in. An example is a panel of glass, which can have many work result locations such as in a window, as cabinet shelving, or in an interior sidelight to a door opening.

Basic materials are also considered to be products when they are used in their original form as a component to achieve a construction work result. An example is sand used as a subbase cushion for brick paving. Sand is also a constituent material of other products such as items made from precast concrete. Hence base materials like sand occur both in this table and in Table 41—Materials. The focus of Table 41—Materials is the basic composition and physical properties of materials without regard to composition or use.

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table L—Products, EPIC (Electronic Product Information Cooperation), OmniClass™, ISO 12006-2 Table 4.13—Construction Products (by function).

Table 31 – Phases

Definition: Life Cycle phases are often represented by two terms used somewhat interchangeably in our industry. For the purposes of clarity and standardization, OmniClass™ offers two specific definitions for their usage in OmniClass™ Tables:

Stage: A categorization of the principal segments of a project. Stages usually are: Conception, Project Delivery Selection, Design, Construction Documents, Procurement, Execution, Utilization, and Closure.

Phase: A portion of work that arises from sequencing work in accordance with a predetermined portion of a Stage.

For purposes of usage in OmniClass™ classifications, a Stage is a higher-level of categorization and a Phase is a subordinate level of titling within a Stage.

Examples: Conception Stage, Schematic Design Phase, Bidding Phase, Construction Phase, Occupancy Phase, Decommissioning Phase

Discussion: This table provides the time and activity dimension for the process of creating and sustaining the built environment. A “project” can be defined as a planned undertaking consisting of a process or set of procedures to accomplish a task. In a project’s early context, Stages are identified and defined relative to a specific project and its tasks. Phases are portions of time and activity efforts within any Stage that are usually defined later.

The scope of a construction project can vary from tiny—for instance changing a filter on a mechanical unit—to gargantuan—like designing and constructing a below grade expressway through a dense urban environment. Projects take place over time and are composed of one or more Stages with their subordinate activities—Phases. These occupy segments of time and represent specific activities that occur between changes in substance or process. These Stages or Phases do not endure forever; they are transitory. A Stage is often marked by one or more accomplishments or deliverables. Generating a deliverable constitutes the end of a Stage or Phase. Transition from one Stage or Phase to the next is an indication of accomplishment, progress, or advancement.

Legacy Sources: CSI Project Resource Manual (PRM), CSC Manual of Practice, Total Cost Management Framework AACE International, ISO 12006-2 Table 4.11 Construction entity life cycle stages (by overall character of processes during the stage) and Table 4.12 Project stages (by overall character of processes during the stage)

Table 32 – Services

Definition: Services are the activities, processes and procedures relating to the construction, design, maintenance, renovation, demolition, commissioning, decommissioning, and all other functions occurring in relation to the life cycle of a construction entity.

Examples: Designing, Bidding, Estimating, Constructing, Surveying, Maintaining, Inspecting

Discussion: The Services Table is based around actions, which includes any service exercised or provided that influences the built environment. Services are all of the actions that are performed by the various participants in creating and sustaining the built environment, throughout the full lifespan of any construction entity.

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table B—Subject Disciplines, ISO 12006-2 Table 4.10 Management processes (by type of process), AIA Information Classification System Part 2 Hierarchical Listing May 1, 1989

Table 33 – Disciplines

Definition: Disciplines are the practice areas and specialties of the actors (participants) that carry out the processes and procedures that occur during the life cycle of a construction entity.

Examples: Architecture, Interior Design, Mechanical Engineering, General Contracting, Electrical Subcontracting, Legal, Finance, Real Estate Sales

Discussion: Disciplines are the practice areas and specialties of the participants who are performing services during the life cycle of a construction entity, considered without regard to the actual job functions of individuals or teams, which is covered by Table 34—Organizational Roles. Disciplines from Table 33 can be combined with entries from Table 34—Organizational Roles to provide a full classification such as an electrical subcontracting (discipline) supervisor (organizational role).

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table B—Subject Disciplines, ISO 12006-2 Table 4.15—Construction Agents (by discipline), and AIA Information Classification System, Part 2—Hierarchical Listing (May 1989).

Table 34 – Organizational Roles

Definition: Organizational Roles are the functional positions occupied by the participants, both individuals and groups, that carry out the processes and procedures which occur during the life cycle of a construction entity. Table 34 can be combined with Table 33—Disciplines, to provide a full classification of each participant in the creation and support of a facility.

Examples: Chief Executive, Supervisor, Owner, Architect, Cost Estimator, Facility Manager, Specifier, Contractor, Administrative Assistant, Equipment Operator, Apprentice, Team, Committee, Association

Discussion: The key concepts underlying Table 34 are the scope of responsibility given to a participant within a given context and the participant’s job function, largely without regard to areas of expertise, education, or training. Some organizational roles imply specific areas of expertise, but in general those subjects are addressed more fully by Table 33—Disciplines. A participant can be an individual, a group or team of individuals, a company, an association, an agency, an institute, or other similar organization. Organizational roles, when combined with entries from Table 33—Disciplines, can further define a participant in the process of creating and sustaining the built environment. An example would be an electrical subcontracting (discipline) supervisor (organizational role).

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table B—Subject Disciplines, ISO 1200006-2 Table 4.10—Management Processes (by type of process), and AIA Information Classification System, Part 2—Hierarchical Listing (May 1989)

Table 35 – Tools

Definition: Tools are the resources used to develop the design and construction of a project that do not become a permanent part of the facility, including computer systems, vehicles, scaffolding and all other items needed to execute the processes and procedures relating to the life cycle of a construction entity.

Examples: Computer Hardware, CAD Software, Temporary Fencing, Backhoe, Tower Crane, Site Drainage Equipment, Formwork, Hammer, Light Truck, Site Hut

Discussion: Tools are equipment, implements, supplies, software, and other items necessary for creating and sustaining the built environment, but which do not become parts of the final construction entity. They are used by the many participants to perform various services.

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table M—Construction Aids and AIA Information Classification System, Part 2—Hierarchical Listing (May 1989), ISO 12006-2 Table 4.14 Construction aids (by function).

Table 36 – Information

Definition: Information is data referenced and utilized during the process of creating and sustaining the built environment.

Examples: Reference Standards, Periodicals, CAD Files, Specifications, Regulations, Construction Contracts, Lease Documents, Title Deeds, Catalogs, Operation and Maintenance Manuals

Discussion: Entries on the Information table refer to information resources that can be referenced or created in the creation and support of the built environment. Information can exist in various media including both printed and digital forms. Information can include general reference and regulatory data such as a manufacturing standard, or it can be project specific, such as a project manual. Information is the principle tool for communication during the process of creating and sustaining the built environment. Typically information needs to be filed, stored, and retrieved.

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table A—Forms of Information and AIA Information Classification System, Part 2—Hierarchical Listing (May 1989), ISO 12006-2 Table 4.16 Construction information (by type of medium).

Table 41 – Materials

Definition: Materials are substances used in construction or to manufacture products and other items used in construction. These substances may be raw materials or refined compounds, and are considered subjects of this table irrespective of form.

Examples: Metallic Compounds, Rocks, Soils, Timber, Glass, Plastics, Rubbers

Discussion: This table classifies the basic resources that construction products and tools are made from. The entries describe the basic composition of these substances without regard to the form the material takes. Because many material names commonly imply a certain form, any apparent overlap between this table and Table 23—Products is exactly that, an apparent but not an actual overlap. The entries on this table are names that can be applied to the Property “material,” and do not have expressed forms because they are not intended to represent the actual items used in creating and sustaining the built environment. This table is not intended to be an exhaustive list of possible material names.

Any composition that can be described without implicitly or explicitly defining the form would be included in this table. Forms are characteristics like “board,” “bar,” “sheet,” “block,” and so on. An example of this is “aluminum”—aluminum is a chemical composition. Although aluminum products come in bars, sheets, and other forms, the term aluminum describes the “material” each of those products is made of. Other types of materials included in this table are raw material names that usually encompass both chemical composition and form, because they are found in nature in certain forms. For example, the chemical composition of “sand” is silicon dioxide, but because sand is a naturally occurring form of silicon dioxide and because we use sand as a constituent material of other products, we include it in this table. The fact that sand is also a product used in its own right, in its original form, it will also show up in Table 23—Products.

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table P—Materials, ISO 12006-2 Table 4.17 Properties and characteristics (by type), EPIC (Electronic Product Information Cooperation) “Constituent Materials” table, CI/SfB Construction Indexing Manual

Table 49 – Properties

Definition: Properties are characteristics of construction entities. Property definitions do not have any real meaning out of context—without reference to one or more construction entities.

Examples: Common properties include Color, Width, Length, Thickness, Depth, Diameter, Area, Fire Resistance, Weight, Strength, Moisture Resistance

Discussion: The members of many of the other OmniClass™ tables are construction entities (objects), expressed as nouns (for things) or verbs (for activities). Properties serve as modifiers of these objects—adjectives and other modifiers. This table is limited to properties that are common to, or shared by, two or more construction entities. The names of properties that are unique or specific to a certain construction object do not currently appear in this table except as examples.

Factors are things or characteristics of things that influence the nature of a property and are expressed as nouns. Many factors have a direct relationship to a single property that they influence, which is indicated by the terminology used. Other factors influence many different properties, which together represent the effect the factor has on the object. A factor may influence a property during its design or selection or after construction, as stresses or degrading influences. Because there is not necessarily a one-to-one relationship between factors and properties, this table also includes a classification scheme for factors that influence properties of construction entities.

Legacy Sources: Uniclass Table N—Properties and Characteristics, ISO 12006-2 Table 4.17—Properties and Characteristics (by type), ISO 31-0—Quantities and Units, BS 6100 Glossary of Building and Engineering Terms, EPIC (Electronic Product Information Cooperation), IEEE/ASTM SI 10-1997, Standard for Use of the International System of Units (SI): The Modern Metric System, CI/SfB Construction Indexing Manual, IAI-NA Project Management Domain Specification project