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State of Ohio / State Architect's Office
General Information
Mission Statement
The State Architect’s Office mission is to effectively and efficiently lead capital planning, design and construction of public facilities through quality service, expertise and knowledge sharing.
Our Services...
The State Architect's Office (SAO) establishes the procedures and policies for the effective management of virtually all state-funded capital project design and construction except K-12 schools. Additionally, SAO manages projects for any state agency, institution, board, or commission that requests it. During fiscal year 2007, SAO managed 215 public construction projects with combined budgets of $689 million. Nearly all of these are multi-year projects.
Payments to contractors for the fiscal year totaled more than $80 million; payments to architects, engineers and construction managers were nearly $10 million.
Major projects involving SAO included:
SAO also updated and enhanced The SAO Manual and State of Ohio Standard Requirements for Public Facility Contruction documents by working in collaboration with the Office of the Ohio Attorney General. In addition, SAO released a single prime version of its contracts for projects totalling less than $50,000.
The office has one other service unit, the SAO Energy Services (SAO-ES). This section provides state clients with certain energy engineering design as well as energy auditing and contracting opportunities for the cost-effective, efficient use of energy resources for state government facilities and operations.
SAO-ES administers a grant-funding program for energy-related conservation initiatives on applicant projects. The award-winning unit has earned national recognition for its pollution reduction and energy savings programs.
In fiscal year 2007, SAO-ES received a 2006 Governor's Award for Excellence in Energy for its part in a project at Southeastern Correctional Institution. The award, announced Nov. 16, 2006, honors individuals, businesses and organizations that have implemented innovative approaches to promote and utilize energy efficient methods.
SAO-ES shared the award with the insitution as well as the Ohio Air Quality Development Authority and The Limbach Company. Together they implemented an energy efficiency project that was administered through a performance-based contract and financed through air quality bonds. Under the performance-based contract model, the project pays for itself in energy savings and requires no additional investment by the state.
The performance-based contracts managed by SAO-ES during fiscal year 2007 are projected to reduce energy costs by $3.4 million annually and more than $34 million by the end of the 10-year contract period.
The three performance-based contracts administered by SAO-ES during fiscal year 2007 were at Southern Ohio Correctional Facility, Columbus Developmental Center and Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. All of these projects were in the construction or design phase during the fiscal year.
In addition, SAO-ES completed three capital projects during the fiscal year. Capital projects are financed by an energy conservation fund. The projects and their projected 10-year savings are as follows:
SAO Directory
A complete listing of all SAO personnel with phone numbers and e-mail addresses.
SAO Organizational Chart
A table of organization outlining the management structure of the State Architect's Office.
SAO Core Value Statement
A description of SAO's management philosophy.
State Architect Biography
State Architect Craig Weise, AIA, CCM, PMP
Higher Education Segment
Higher Eduction Segment Manager: Ned Thiell, AIA
Customers: Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS), Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT), and Higher Education.
Corrections Segment
Corrections Segment Manager: Kevin R. Russell, AIA
Customers: Detention Facilities (Ohio Department of Rehabilitation Correction (DRC) and Ohio Department of Youth Services (DYS))
Agency Segment
Project Services Manager: Crystal Canan
Customers: All other state agencies.
Office of Energy Services
Customers: All state agencies.
Project Profiles
A listing current and past projects administered by the State Architect's Office.
