Division 17 update

After evaluating proposals for changes to Construction Specifications Institute's (CSI) 2002 MasterFormat, including the possible addition of a separate Division 17 for low-voltage wiring, the MasterFormat Expansion Task Team has made its final recommendations to the CSI executive committee, which was expected to meet late last month.

The task team proposes that CSI expand the MasterFormat to include divisions for computer and communications systems, mechanical, electrical and plumbing, heavy civil construction and process engineering. If approved, the new MasterFormat will have more than 40 division numbers, but only about 20 would be in use.

"We've concluded that adding divisions is better than trying to fit it all in the existing 16 divisions," said Expansion Task Team Chairman Dennis Hall in a CSI press release. "The task team's plan is to leave Divisions 3 through 14 pretty much alone. What it all means is that those now using MasterFormat would be able to keep using it much as they do now, and many types of projects that could not use MasterFormat will be able to use it in the future."

The details of how many divisions and their content remain to be worked out, Hall said. He noted some divisions are proposed but not completed to provide room for revising MasterFormat in future years as construction products and technology evolve.