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ArCH founded the Certified Residential Architect (SM) focus team system (CRAfts) on 1/4/2013 (January 4, 2013) . Certified Residential Architect is a service mark solely owned by ArCH : Architects Creating Homes, LLC. As of today’s date: 4/22/2017, this system is being developed by ArCH members and the program will be eventually offered to any licensed Architect throughout the USA & World, who wishes to become a Certified Residential Architect (SM).
WHERE TO APPLY FOR YOUR CRAfts designation
Click here: CRAfts™
WHAT MEMBERS RECEIVE
ArCHmembers who successfully become CRAfts designees will be entitled to use the above CRAfts logo and the acronym “CRAfts” after their ArCH designation (e.g.: Frank L. Right, ArCH/CRAfts) and also may use the term “Certified Residential Architect” after their name and/or on their website, business cards, letters, emails and other materials, in a manner acceptable to ArCH.
CRAfts designees will also be listed on the ArCH CRAfts member page, for viewing by the public and also each CRAfts member will have that acronym added after their ArCH indication on the FIND AN ARCHITECT page. Also, when each ArCH member earns their CRAfts designation, a special ArCHforum and ArCHpost will be published on the ArCHwebsite and on the ArCHfacebook page, as a special notice of distinction for you and your practice.
ITERATIONS
This is the synopsis of the Certified Residential Architect program, created by ArCH ™.
The copyright, trademarks, service marks, proceeds & all benefits of this system belong to ArCH: Architects Creating Homes, LLC.
Iteration dates: 1/4/2013, 4/14/2014, 4/22/2017, 9/20/2017
PURPOSE & UNDERSTANDING OF THE Certified Residential Architect SM focus team system.
The Certified Residential Architect (SM: Service Mark) focus team system (CRAfts) was founded by ArCH ™ to provide an educational, testing & certification process to assist ArCH ™ in identifying, educating and honoring those Architects licensed in America (through the auspices of each State Board of Architecture), or licensed as an Architect anywhere else on the planet, who have gained the demonstrated minimal knowledge that they are familiar with the design of residential projects.
It is understood throughout various professional Architect organizations that the design of homes is a complex undertaking. ArCH ™ has come to the realization that there is no program of education, testing or otherwise, that presently presents the specific knowledge of the design of homes or tests that understanding, or that presents any program of certification of such knowledge to the public, once attained, for licensed Architects.
The ArCH ™ Certified Residential Architect SM system was also conceived to assist those of the general public whom are seeking a licensed Architect, knowledgeable in residential architecture. Licensed Architects professing to be experienced in residential architecture, who have the “Certified Residential Architect SM ” notation after their names, helps them identify & convey their status and level of understanding to the public. Without such certification, there presently is no method of communicating this professional level of architectural knowledge.
As ArCH ™ is the only independent professional organization of licensed Architects focused on residential architecture in the USA & World, its membership felt that the responsibility to create such a program should logically be developed, operated and maintained by ArCH: Architects Creating Homes ™ .
DISCLAIMER
In no way is ArCH ™ insuring, licensing, or warranting that any Architect who has passed the Certified Residential Architect SM process will produce satisfactory results for any particular Client or for any particular project. Each Architect and/or his or her company is solely responsible for their work. ArCH ™ is simply endeavoring to introduce some means of identifying at least minimal residential architectural knowledge.
TERMS, TRADEMARKS, SERVICEMARKS, COPYRIGHTS
The following terms are trademarks, servicemarks or copyrights of ArCH ™ :
ArCH ™, Certified Residential Architect SM, Architects Creating Homes ™ .
As a matter of convenience, some of these terms, during the course of the remainder of this program description, may dispense with the indicators of the Trademarks, Service Marks, Copyrights, as these have been established and displayed above.
PROGRAM OUTLINE
The Certified Residential Architect system is conceived as the following:
1. ArCH is a strong proponent that only licensed Architects should be designing homes. Therefore, only licensed Architects will be able to go through the certification process.
2. Any licensed Architect (who first is a member of ArCH) wishing to obtain the CRAfts certification must apply to ArCH, using an online form to be provided on the ArCH website, on the Certified Residential Architect webpage.
3. The application will require that the applying Architect provide:
A. Full legal name
B. Architectural License number, indicating current architectural licensure in at least one State in the USA (or in their other country in the world). Note: this will be verified online by an ArCH CRA member.
C. Digital Photo of face.
D. Name of the company where the Architect works.
E. Degree of Architecture obtained and from what institution.
F. Website URL link.
G. Why the the applicant wishes to become certified.
H. The application fee.
All checks made out to: ArCH LLC and mailed to: P.O. Box 907, Cashiers, NC 28717.
$350 Payable with the application, non-refundable. There is no guarantee that all applicants will pass the testing on the first try. This amount may change over time.
$175 Re-application/ re-testing fee for those not successful in earlier attempts.
$75 Yearly CRAfts renewal fee to cover administrative and record- keeping efforts of CRAfts designees, each year for as long as recipients wish to maintain the CRAfts designation.
4. Application review by ArCH Certified Residential Architect committee members.
5. Approval or denial of the application.
A. For cause.
1.) Unlicensed as an Architect.
2.) Problem with quality of work.
3.) Other concerns.
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2 MEANS OF ATTAINING THE CRAfts (Certified Residential Architect) certification through ArCH:
A. EARNING 10 ArCHdes™ DESIGN AWARDS: through the yearly ArCH sponsored design awards program. Each applicant may enter as many as 5 projects each year in the ArCHdes™ program. In this manner, if all 5 entries happen to be worthy of awards, an applicant could achieve their ArCH CRAfts designation in as little as 2 years (assuming the applicant applied and submitted the additional fees and was found worthy of the CRAfts certification). The thinking behind this method is similar to that of NCARB, which has optional paths to licensure, although the CRAfts program is not intended to convey any sort of legal license status, but rather, is a voluntary program, recognizing the accomplishments of its applicants and members. The thought is that any Architect who is competent and capable enough to earn at least ten ArCHdes™ design awards for outstanding residential architecture will have proven themselves worthy of being called a Certified Residential Architect. This, of course, begins with the fact that any and all ArCHmembers must be a licensed professional Architect, somewhere on Earth, in order to join ArCH first, then participate as an ArCHmember in such activities as the ArCHdes™ program.
B. EDUCATION MODULES: through the Educational & Testing Modules indicated below. Note: this means has not yet been completed by ArCH. Therefore, at the present time, only the method A (above) is possible for achieving the CRAfts designation.
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6. Educational & Testing Modules
The Certified Residential Architect focus team system (CRAfts) is conceived as a series of learning modules, roughly paralleling the “old school” CSI (Construction Specification Institute) 16 to 17 Division format. The concept is to have several pages of information, reviewing items deemed important by licensed Architects practicing residential architecture today. The concept is: to have 16 to 20 online learning sections, with various multiple articles in each, on the ArCH website, then follow with online multiple-choice questions for each section. Perhaps there might be 10 +/- questions per article. The amount of information and number of questions per module can be updated as the ArCH Certified Residential Architect committee members feel is prudent.
LEARNING MODULES / TESTS
Below are the intended subject matter and testing areas (presently being developed into modules):
The intention is that there would be a learning and test question module for each major section:
1 GENERAL INFORMATION
Administrative
Agreements
Record-Keeping
Document Production & Software
Drawings
Specifications
Other
Design
The Process
General Organization
Other
Client Relationships
Marketing
Project Management
Scope of Project
Bidding Forms for Contractors
Permitting
Document Reproduction & Copyright
Warrantees & Closeout
Codes
Shop Drawings, Submittals
Clean Up
Substitutions
Residential Structural Loads
Wind Roof & Seismic Loads
Project Closeout
Health Building Requirements
Energy Star
General Energy Efficiency & Thermal Tightness
2 SITEWORK
Site Design Considerations
Site Clearing
Earthwork
Termite & Ant Control
Landscape Work/ Landscape Design
Paving
Site Utilities
Septic Permit issues
Underground Site Drain Piping
Site Address
3 CONCRETE & FOUNDATIONS
4 MASONRY: STONEWORK, CONCRETE BLOCK, BRICK and related items
5 METALS: mainly structural in nature, such as steel connectors, beams, columns, bolts
6 WOOD & PLASTICS
Wood rough framing: floors, walls, ceilings & roofs, blocking, bracing
Nailing framing members
Connections, seismic connectors, rafter & truss strapping
Timber posts, beams, bracing, connections
Decking
Trusses, LVLs
Wall siding
Cabinetry, shelving, counters
Steps & Stairs
Guardrailing
Handrails
Trim carpentry
Access panels
Reclaimed lumber
Wood ceilings
Wood flooring
7 THERMAL & MOISTURE PROTECTION
Insulation
Fiberglass
Rigid Foam
Liquid Foam
Venting shells
Rimboard/edgeband
Floors
Walls
Ceilings/Roofs
Energy Star, IECC, IRC &ArCH Best Practices
Vapor Barriers
Air Barriers
Drainage Planes for walls
Flashing Tapes
Roofing
Asphaltic Shingles
Other Shingle Types
Other roofing types
Metal Roofing
Ridge Vent
Zinc mold prevention strips
WURM (Waterproof Underlayment Roofing Membrane)
Flashing
Metal edges and intersections
VTRs
Behind wall cladding joints
Soffits
Gutters & Downspouts
Underground Drainage Piping
Sealants
Caulking (interior)
Foundation Wall Drainage
8 DOORS & WINDOWS
9 FINISHES
Gypsum Board
Tile & Granite
Painting
Exterior
Interior
Wall Coverings
10 SPECIALTIES
Louvers & Vents
Exterior Aluminum Framed Screening of Outdoor Spaces
Fire Extinguishers
Toilet Accessories
Towel Bars
Toilet Tissue Dispensers
Mirrors
Shower Doors
Shower Rods & Curtains
11 EQUIPMENT
Kitchen & Laundry Equipment/Appliances
12 FURNISHINGS
Window Treatments
Furniture
13 SPECIAL STRUCTURES
14 CONVEYING SYSTEMS
Elevators
Escalators
Moving Walkways
15 MECHANICAL
15 H HVAC Systems
Dryer Vent Caps/ducting
15P PLUMBING
15G GAS
16 ELECTRICAL (120v and more)
17 SYSTEMS (less than 120v)
TEST RESULTS
The concept is for the testing to be done online, with automatic online scoring of the number of questions answered correctly, with 75%+ being a PASS and anything 74% or less being FAIL.
Applicants would know immediately if they passed or failed. A notice of each test taken will be automatically sent to the ArCH Certified Residential Architect Committee member responsible for reviewing test scores. This information will be entered into ArCH’s CRA computer records. If the grade was a “Pass”, then an automatically generated online certificate will be issued to the successful candidate, for their printing at their end.
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ADMINISTRATION OF THE CRAfts PROGRAM
ArCH will maintain a webpage on their website, with a list of all Certified Residential Architects. It is a requirement that CRA applicants join ArCH. And, as with any organizational designation, maintain ArCH membership to continue usage of the CRAfts acronym and certification.
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END ArCH CERTIFIED RESIDENTIAL ARCHITECT focus team system (CRAfts)
