A handbook for planning and conducting charrettes for high-performance projects

Charrettes have been used by planning and design teams for many years. Approximately 15 years ago, sustainability issues were added to the topics emphasized during charrette sessions.

Three highly visible and successful charrettes held in the early s—the Greening of the White House, the Greening of the Grand Canyon, and the Greening of the Pentagon—focused attention on the use of charrettes as part of an integrated design process with a focus on sustainability. Nowadays, numerous federal, state, and local government agencies, military bases and installations, nonprofits, and private-sector owners use the charrette process for integrated, 'whole building', design issues, as well as specific focuses like sustainability and security.

As experience in conducting charrettes has grown, "lessons learned" have been gathered into a handbook to assist others in planning and conducting these events.

This handbook, A Handbook for Planning and Conducting Charrettes for High-Performance Projects , contains detailed checklists and tips, along with a step-by-step process for planning, implementing, and following-up on the charrette. This process is summarized in this Resource Page. Integrated, or 'whole building', charrettes establish a creative environment for identifying and incorporating strategies that result in projects that are designed and built to minimize resource consumption, reduce life-cycle costs, and maximize health and environmental performance across a wide range of measures—from indoor air quality IAQ to habitat protection—while also meeting expectations for security , accessibility , aesthetics , historic preservation , and other design objectives.

There are many benefits of using charrettes early in the design process. Most importantly, charrettes can save time and money while improving project performance.

In general, integrated design ID charrettes:. Once your goals are clear, you should ask a few questions to make sure your charrette will be most effective: If you can answer yes to these questions, you are ready to proceed. Note: The schedule and process outlined below are designed for a charrette that will include outside stakeholders, partners, and experts as well as the project team; a smaller charrette for the project team only would require less time and the process will be simpler.

Charrette work group participants work with the facilitator to capture ideas on flip chart. Develop an Agenda: The agenda should include welcome and introductions, opportunities for VIPs to welcome the group and state support of goals, an overview of the project and goals for the charrette, presentations by experts to support the work to be done, and facilitated small groups with carefully crafted report-out sessions.

Confirm Availability of Key Event Players: Key players will include an overall facilitator for the event, facilitators for small work groups, VIPs to lend credibility and support to the event, experts to serve as resources for the work groups and to make brief presentations to the whole group, and most critically-participants. Finalize Speaker List and Provide Presentation Guidelines: Give speakers clear guidance including length of their talk, purpose, level, and intended content.

Plan enough time so that you can review a draft of each speaker's presentation prior to the charrette to ensure that each talk is on target and can be done in the time allotted. Invite Participants and Track Responses: Participants should include the project team, building or campus users, other stakeholders and partners, and other specific people or organizations related to the project.

Include those responsible for security, accessibility, aesthetics, historic preservation if applicable , and other concerns. Invite decision makers, those who can commit to action during the charrette. A group of 25 to 50 is ideal; more than 50 is unwieldy and fewer than 25 reduces the number of work groups that can be established.

Send a "Save the Date" card to potential participants as soon as the date is chosen, then send invitations when the agenda and other logistics are final. Consider developing and sending out a preliminary questionnaire for completion and submission prior to the charrette. The preliminary questionnaire can cover many time-consuming issues, allowing for more time to focus on critical issues identified in the questionnaire during the actual charrette.

Funding for participation in the charrette should be included in contractor budgets, if possible. Make Logistical Arrangements: Logistical arrangements will include a facility for the event, food, staffing, equipment and supplies, signs, name badges, and exhibits of local green building businesses optional.

Assemble Participant and Resource Materials: All material for participant packets should be identified and collected for assembly and distribution materials could include agenda, participant list, copies of the presentations, project information, and other pertinent resource materials. GOV collections:. Full Record Other Related Research.

Abstract The purpose of this handbook is to furnish guidance for planning and conducting a"high-performance building" charrette, sometimes called a"greening charrette.

United States: N. Copy to clipboard. United States. Federal website i. Print It Feedback. Last Updated: July 31, Compliance Env. Quick Reference. Join Forgot your password? Handbook for Planning and Conducting Charrettes for High Performance Projects Building owners, architects, and engineers can use the charrette process to save time and money by identifying and solving design problems before design and construction begin.

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