Design & Documents

CSI MasterFormat

Also known as: CSI Divisions

The standardized numbering system that organizes construction specifications into numbered divisions and sections.

MasterFormat, published by the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI), is the standard that organizes project specifications into a consistent set of numbered divisions — Division 03 Concrete, Division 09 Finishes, Division 26 Electrical, and so on. Every spec section (like 08 71 00 Door Hardware) has a predictable number.

Because everyone in the industry uses the same map, MasterFormat is how estimators build budgets, how buyout is organized by trade, and how cost codes are structured. Learning the divisions is one of the fastest ways to stop feeling lost in a set of specs.

Related terms

Submittal

Product data, shop drawings, or samples a subcontractor submits for the design team to review before fabricating or ordering.

RFI (Request for Information)

A formal question from the contractor to the design team to resolve something the drawings or specs don't clearly answer.

Schedule of Values

A line-item breakdown of a contract's total price, used as the basis for progress billing.

Buyout

The process of soliciting, leveling, and awarding subcontracts and purchase orders to turn a budget into signed contracts.

From term to skill

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