APDC

Welcome

The Alaska Professional Design Council (APDC) is an umbrella organization that provides a forum to coordinate and complement the efforts of its member societies, especially in areas of public policy and education. Each of the member societies has 2 seats on the APDC Board of Directors, which governs activities and policies.

The APDC Board maintains close contact with the state Board of Registration for Architects, Engineers and Land Surveyors (AELS Board), monitors legislation in Juneau, and works with other agencies and organizations in Alaska to weigh in on issues affecting professional practice, when there is a unified voice among members. If member organizations are not in agreement, APDC encourages all societies with an interest to provide feedback directly on behalf of their members.

Alaska Designs is the primary tool used to communicate among member organizations. With a circulation of about 1,500, it is distributed to almost every architect, engineer, land surveyor, landscape architect, interior designer, and professional services marketer in Alaska. Advertising is a great way to reach APDC members and support the organization. Recent issues are available through the top icon in the right border.

Members of Alaska Professional Design Council are the Alaska Society of Professional Engineers; Alaska Society of Professional Land Surveyors; Alaska sections of American Society of Interior Designers, American Congress on Surveying and Mapping, American Institute of Architects, American Society of Civil Engineers, American Society of Landscape Architects, American Council of Engineering Companies, and Professional Engineers in Private Practice; and the Structural Engineers' Association of Alaska.

Announcements

2010 Fly-In: The annual Legislative Liaison Committee Fly-in to Juneau will be Wednesday and Thursday, February 10 & 11, 2010. Please contact Dale Nelson or John Walsh to sign up for the LLC email list. The LLC meets via teleconference every other week during the legislative session to coordinate and track issues of interest leading up to the fly-in. Contacts are Dale Nelson, danelsonpe@earthlink.net, 907-751-8474 (office), 321-0983 (cell) and John Walsh, jmwalshco@gci.net, 523-8140 (office), or 321-0983 (cell).

Owner A-E Contract Committee: APDC offers a unified voice for Alaska design professionals with regard to professional services contracts (prime agreements). The APDC Owner A-E Contract Committee serves Alaska design professionals in several ways:

Avenue for conversation among peers regarding common challenges
Development of fair practice guidelines
Education through publications and seminars
Review letters to Owners regarding problematic public contract terms
United advocacy for major issues affecting APDC members
Close coordination with APDC Legislative Liaison Committee

Frequent points of focus relate to issues in negotiating professional services contracts such as indemnification language, copyrights, ownership of documents and work products, fair use of electronic files, and insurability questions.

Participation is open to all interested APDC members. Email Info@apdc-ak.org to request current contact information for committee activities.

Successful change to Alaska's indemnification law: On February 26, 2008, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin signed into law a new landmark standard for Architecture/Engineer indemnification liability in public construction-related professional services contracts.

Previously known as HB-151, Alaska Statute (AS) 36.90.300 requires that all public construction-related professional services contracts in Alaska must include uniform indemnification hold-harmless provisions on a comparative fault basis. See "Alaska sets standard for fairness in A-E contracts."

Key information related to Owner A-E Contracts is available at the following links: Glossary of Contract Terms; Sample Contract Provisions; Alaska Statute 36.90.300 Indemnification.

Title / Site Control Frequently Asked Questions: This document, endorsed by ASPLS, helps design professionals and landowners alike understand and avoid problems associated with land title and site control issues. Document is available in Adobe Acrobat format: Title/Site Control FAQ.

APDC Career Center: APDC introduces a new way for employers and design professionals to connect: The APDC Career Center is an important online resource for the Alaska planning and design community. The APDC Career Center offers many exciting features for job seekers and employers alike. Check out the main pages below:

Direct links to other pages for Job Seekers:

Direct Links to other pages for Employers:

Business Classifieds: APDC still offers business classified advertising on line as well as in the Alaska Designs newsletter. Ad copy may be placed in either location for the base rate of $20/inch ($17 for Sustaining Members) or both locations for 1.5 times the base rate. Ad copy will be measured as if for newsletter placement. Electronic ads will be posted on or before the date the newsletter is mailed and remain until the next newsletter is posted, unless requested otherwise. See the bottom icon in right border. Contact the webmaster for information.

See the most recent Calendar of APDC Member Organization events on the last page of the latest newsletter.