Do you still use a rotary phone or have you upgraded to a smartphone? Do you use a map while driving or GPS? These may seem like funny questions as it may seem silly to continue using obsolete technologies for reasons other than nostalgia. Why is the design and construction industry still using 2D drawings to relay ideas to clients?

Our design and build industry has been business as usual for the past couple hundred years.  Clients are shown 2D drawings to understand their home or structure and then build based off of 2D drawings. Why is this?

Michael Rath, CEO of Trilogy Partners, asked himself this question in 2008, he was fed up of the old ways where clients had an architect, builder and designer all essentially speaking different languages and not communicating to each other. This old model of how to build leads to projects being over budget, over scheduled and not the exciting and satisfying process that building your dream should be. He decided that it was time to break the mold and figure out a way where he could bring everyone together in one efficient working process. Michael found the 3D Modeling program SketchUp and he knew that this was how he was going to change how things would be done.

Michael wanted to create a collaborative process where everyone works from an exact 3D virtual model of a structure that is to be built. Where everyone involved, especially the client, knows exactly how the structure will look, feel and that every design and construction detail, down to the last nut and bolt, is answered for ahead of time. Ahead of any expensive mistakes! And so, Project Management Modeling was born.

Project Management Modeling (PMM) is a residential BIM (Building Information Modeling) solution combining project management, interior design and BIM that creates the most transparency and best results for our clients while saving money every step of the way.

“I love technology, I love being creative, I love collaborating with my clients and my subs and my engineers and I wanted to create an environment where everyone can do the best work possible and show it with everyone else in a collaborative open environment.” Rath

In most design and construction, especially in the residential genre, an architect will take the project so far and then usually hand it off to the engineer who hands it off to the builder. And then an interior designer steps in and you realize your Grandma’s heirloom bed wont fit into the guest room! The client is looking one way and then the next while those disciplines are not talking to each other. Everyone is separate. “It’s not well integrated. It is frustrating!” There wasn’t a BIM alternative for residential projects and something had to change. For Michael, the clients are the most important thing. “It’s my job, my duty to create the best possible house for them.” And so it was important that he would create a solution in order to achieve this.

It is time for our industry to change. We need to take advantage of technological advances and have a little fun doing it. “We have VR now!” The subs, the builders, and the clients can “walk around” the model of the house to be built and see how it will look. They will witness where they need to make changes as if the structure is already built. This allows for changes to be made quickly and without any cost involved.

By utilizing the latest technologies we are able to avoid costly mistakes, be more efficient and sustainable but also be more creative and trying things we wouldn’t have been able to do before. Can you image having a waterfall in your living room? You don’t have to imagine, we can show you in a 3D Model. If you love it, we can build it! Trilogy’s Project Management Modeling is giving you the ability to try new things, to make a custom home truly unique for our clients. If we have the technologies to achieve great things then why not take advantage of this? At Trilogy, we are capitalizing on these technologies and we want you to join us on this exciting adventure.

To find out more about our Project Management Modeling that combines project management, interior design and residential BIM you can click here or contact us directly. We would love to chat to you.

Trilogy Partners is paving the way for both clients and industry professionals with its revolutionary Project Management Modeling process. Trilogy Design and Build team members have been working closely with Trimble SketchUp team members, building an important relationship between the two companies as they work to further develop the SketchUp based Project Management Modeling process to become an industry standard for the home building industry. 

Today is Part One of a Two part blog post release from SketchUp where Director of Marketing at SketchUp Mark Harrison interviews Trilogy Partners’ CEO Michael Rath. As Rath says in the interview, “a well executed SketchUp strategy, like the one we are using, not only results in a fantastic model, but also lowers project costs. That’s because we resolve construction problems in the model and not on the construction site, and because we embed supervision into the model, we save money.” It’s a no brainer. 

Read more about our Project Management Modeling process and contact us today to start the most creative and empowering process possible to design and build your dream home anywhere in the world! 

Welcome to the future of design and build, where seeing is believing.

SketchUp Blog: Project Management Modeling at Trilogy Partners: Part I

Home builders that have embraced social media in hopes of growing their business have seen great results in the last year. Social Media for Home Builders 2.0: It’s Easier Than You Think, by Carol Flammer, delves deep into the benefits that home builders have seen using social media as a marketing tool. By increasing your visibility online and expanding your audience through Facebook and Twitter, builders are successfully growing their business organically.

The book explains how to use social media platforms such as blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube to get new clients in this difficult market.  For over a year we have invested time and energy on our blog, Facebook and Twitter account. We want our clients to have an outlet to share their experiences and we also want to be able to stay connected to our clients.

1. Proves that you’re a leader and a roll model
2. Demonstrates that beauty is more than skin deep
3. Gives you something to talk and/or brag about at cocktail parties
4. Shows your good taste, common sense, and innate intelligence
5. Helps promote a new, sustainable economy
6. Protects the kritters large and small
7. Proves you’re cool for keeping the planet cool
8. Shows the Kiddies that you care
9. Just plain good Karma
10. Makes you feel good all over

The International Builders’ Show (IBS), the largest residential building industry tradeshow in the world, will be held next month from January 12-15^th, 2011 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. For 67 years, the International Builders’ Show, sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), provides the perfect place for suppliers and manufactures to show their products to builders, architects and developers. With over 1,200 exhibitors and around 60,000 in attendance, this year’s International Builders’ Show will be the place to be in the New Year.

For more information please visit the Buildersshow.com.

The exterior of South Parks’ Trey Parker home that we rebuilt in Kauai, Hawaii is just as extraordinary on the outside as it is indoors. Featuring a miniature golf course,  a tranquil lanai setting and an outdoor rock tub this home is the perfect place to sit back and relax. Takes a look at the photos below.

Trilogy Partners

Trilogy Partners

Trilogy Partners

Trilogy Partners

Trilogy Partners

Trilogy Partners

Trilogy Partners

Trilogy Partners

The American Institute of Architect’s (AIA) latest Home Design Trends survey shows that Americans are showing more concern with affordability and energy efficiency when building their homes. At Trilogy Partners we have been designing and building sustainable homes for our clients in the Rocky Mountain region for a number of years. We build homes using green building techniques and innovative technology.

The AIA Design Home Trends Survey also noticed an interest from homeowners in the area of recycled materials, energy management systems, solar applications, back-up power generators and geothermal systems for cooling and heating. Our recent Zero Net Energy home, which was the first constructed in Breckenridge, Colorado, allowed us to utilize green design techniques to build a more sustainable home for our client. As a full service design and build team we are able to build a home the way in which it was envisioned, from start to finish.

“A sustainable home not only nourishes the planet, it nourishes the soul.”– Trilogy Partners

Courtesy of American Institute of Architects

For more information on our Zero Net Energy Home visit us online at works.trilogybuilds.com or give us a call us at 970-453-2230.

Our partnership with Colorado Building Company (CBC) has been a successful relationship that has led to many award-winning homes.  Colorado Building Company is more than just a construction management company; they are experts at sustainable building technologies such as geothermal, SIP panels, solar system integration and more. Take a look at some of the projects we have designed with Colorado Building Company.

Rounds Road- Photo courtesy of Colorado Building Company

Highlands Drive- Photo courtesy of Colorado Building Company

Caleb's Journey- Photo courtesy of Colorado Building Company

Steamboat House- Photo courtesy of Colorado Building Company

Today we wanted to focus our Team Trilogy series on founding partner, John Rath. John, along with his brother and sister, started Trilogy in 1998. John journeyed to Breckenridge, Colorado after leaving his life producing movies in New York City behind. His love for the Colorado Rocky Mountain Region began in 1983 with his first trip out west. John along with the rest of our Trilogy Team has achieved much success thanks in part to our collaboration with our clients, designers, vendors and sub-contractors. Together we have built homes and communities in which we can be proud of.

Photo Credit: Summit Daily/Mark Fox

We have heard a lot about “woman-centric” builders in the last couple of months. The industry is trying to tap into the minds of female buyers in hopes of getting them to open up their purse strings. Even CNBC and The Wall Street Journal have both written articles about the surge of builders targeting the female market. According to Business Week, women make 83% of all consumer purchases.

Some of the features you would find in a “woman-centric” home include more flexible and spacious living areas, larger storage space (including walk-in closets and pantries) and custom details like crown molding and granite countertops. And of course, my personal favorite, sound proof walls to drown out the laundry machines.

Are these features “woman-centric” or something that you would find in any custom-built home today? And if female buyers are looking for these types of design features, what are the males looking for?