National Master Specification
competitive landscape shifts with
new CSC strategic alliance
Canadian Design and Construction Report staff writer
The competitive landscape for distribution of Canada’s
National Master Construction Specification (NMS) has
shifted with the decision by Construction Specifications
Canada (CSC) to end a 15-year marketing alliance with
Digicon Information Inc. and enter into a new
agreement with Building Systems Design
(BSD). Digicon responded by setting up its own
master licensing agreement with the federal
government’s National Research Council
(NRC), which authors the NMS.
A third business, Innovative Technology
Inc., based in Ottawa, also has a license to
distribute the NMS, along with a marketing
alliance with the Royal Architectural Institute
of Canada (RAIC).
NMS provides a standardized foundation
for Canadian construction contract
documentation and components from it are
embedded in virtually every significant construction
project in the country.
CSC executive director Nick Franjic declined to explain
the reason for the change in the strategic alliance, saying
he wishes to focus on the future and BSD’s new service
offerings. A CSC news release says the association and BSD have
joined forces to “expand access to premier software,
educational resources, and master specification content,
including the NMS, the most comprehensive master guide
for Canadian projects.”
CSC says it will continue to offer CSC NMS products
and service not only to its spex.ca clients but all NMS
users at www.SpecMarket.com.
12 – Winter 2018 — The Canadian Design and Construction Report
The new alliance, which started on Jan. 1, replaces the
alliance with Digicon, which had been delivering the NMS
through the SPEX.ca website. However, SPEX.ca
continues under Digicon’s control, and Digicon president
David Watson says the NMS will continue to be available
through that site.
CSC says BSD “is a leading provider of
specification content, software and
advanced specification and
interoperability solutions to architects,
engineers, specifiers and building owners
in the construction industry. With BSD
being focused on bringing technology to
market that drives collaboration,
simplifies design and increases efficiency
for all stakeholders in the design and
construction process, CSC sees this
North American alliance with BSD as a
perfect fit with CSC’s mission.”
CSC says it has been a provider of the
NMS for more 40 years and will continue
to deliver it to the North American construction industry.
“WWW.SpecMarket.com broadens access to high-
quality content for firms working in the United States or
Canada,” CSC says. “With BSD’s SpecLink Cloud platform,
customers will have access to the right content for the
job, whether public or private, and SpecLink Cloud will
become the first database solution to enable access to
robust Canadian and U.S. content within the same
platform.” “CSC and BSD share a vision for delivering innovation
and advancements that not only enhance the quality of
design and construction, but also drive efficiency
throughout the process,” CSC says in its announcement.
Digicon’s Watson said in an email: “I’m not in a position
to comment on it (the end of the strategic alliance) except
to say that I’m quite disappointed.” A few days later,
Digicon issued a news release confirming it has entered
into a direct license with the NRC to deliver the NMS.
Until the split, anyone wishing to purchase a license for
the NMS could choose between the CSC/Digicon or
RAIC/Innovative Technology offerings.
“Innovative Technology (www.SPECedit.com) and the
RAIC (www.raic.org) remain the only Canadian distributors
of the NMS in English and French for Word and the
popular BIM-connected SPECedit specification editing
software,” said Innovative Technology president Michael
Thornber. “We continue to be strong players in the NMS
market as we expand our technology to include new
features in the NMS as they become available.”
In a note to members, CSC’s Nick Franjic wrote that
the decision to end the alliance with Digicon “was not
taken lightly and CSC is ready to work with Digicon
Information Inc. to ensure Spex.ca customers are aware
of the change, know their options and are treated
respectfully.” The NMS is the most comprehensive public works
master specification in Canada and is designed to assist
firms with a robust specification-writing guide. BSD also
owns and maintains a master specification guide for
private construction projects, available within SpecLink,
which the company says is “the industry’s most
comprehensive, database driven specification software
for efficient and accurate specification writing and
production.” “CSC has shown a clear commitment to industry
advancement and professional education, and has been
an NMS provider for over 40 years,” BSD chair Chris
Anderson said in a news release.
“We’re thrilled to collaborate with CSC to broaden
access to high-quality content for firms working in the
United States and Canada. With BSD’s SpecLink Cloud
platform, customers will have access to the right content
for the job, whether public or private, and SpecLink Cloud
will become the first database solution to enable access
to robust Canadian and U.S. content within the same
platform.” “BSD’s vision for advancing construction specifications
aligns nicely with our mission to provide progressive
education and opportunities for the design and
construction community,” said Franjic. “We are excited to
work together in bringing CSC members and the
Canadian construction industry a trusted source for
comprehensive content and innovative software to make
their day-to-day jobs easier and more efficient.”
In a statement, Digicon says, “With this direct
relationship with NRC, owners of the NMS, Digicon is
now able to accelerate its innovation plans and will
continue to lead in providing quality NMS support
services.” “We have an exciting future ahead here at Digicon and
will be sharing news on coming developments very
soon,” Digicon’s Watson said. “We would like to take this
opportunity to thank all of our loyal customers for their
continued support.”
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The Canadian Design and Construction Report — Winter 2018 – 13