DIALOG to Integrate Commercial Canadian Content into BSD’s SpecLink Cloud

Building Systems Design, Inc. (BSD), provider of master guide specification content and software for the architecture, engineering, construction and owner sectors, is collaborating with Canadian-based architecture and engineering design firm DIALOG  to convert the BSD’s SpecLink’s content for the Canadian market for inclusion in SpecLink Cloud, the company’s database-driven specification platform.

The complete architectural catalog will be available in English by spring of 2019.

DIALOG and BSD first collaborated when working with the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) and Construction Specifications Canada (CSC) on MasterFormat updates. BSD’s director of AEC Content, Chip Bullock, developed the idea of offering Canadian content in SpecLink Cloud with DIALOG’s Keith Robinson, head of research and development, specifications in Edmonton and fellow of both CSI and CSC.

BSD’s Director of AEC Content, Chip Bullock.

“Together with DIALOG, BSD is committed to giving the Canadian market access to the country’s best content within the industry’s most advanced specification platform,” said Chris Anderson, CEO of BSD, in a company release. “We are the first company to offer an intelligent software-based solution with best-in-class Canadian content created in partnership with the leading specification experts in Canada.”

DIALOG’s specification team is working with Bullock to adapt SpecLink’s extensive content for the Canadian market. Beyond terminology, language and units of measurement, DIALOG’s team will convert complex codes, standards and formatting.

“BSD’s best-in-class master guide content has been harmonized with the Canadian Construction Documents Committee (CCDC) documents, construction industry standards, terms and Construction Specifications Canada’s best specifying practices, including consistent imperative mood language throughout,” said Bullock.

Keith Robinson, head of R&D, specifications, with DIALOG.

“The way I see it, DIALOG working with BSD helps the entirety of the Canadian specification writing community,” said Robinson, citing SpecLink Cloud features like editing by inclusion, BIM integration and cloud collaboration. “The tools that BSD provides will allow for much more in-depth specifications, which will be useful to the contractor and will preserve the design intent in a way that the content currently available to us does not.”

“SpecLink’s content and the way it’s organized will absolutely improve the quality of specifications,” continued Robinson. “It actually has usable content that people can read and understand. BSD’s approach to describing products and associated properties will be an eye‑opener to many specification editors.”

Earlier this year, BSD formed an exclusive alliance with CSC to provide Canada’s National Master Specification (NMS), the most comprehensive master guide for Canadian public works projects, at www.specmarket.com.