Top 10 DQI Benefits for Owners:

Before a project is built, owners can use DQI to:

1. Reduce Project Costs—Research shows that using tools such as DQI can reduce project costs 5 to 10 percent by reducing change orders and rework during construction and design. The tools achieve these savings by bringing to light design flaws/potential improvements before construction begins. So do the math: For every $1 billion of capital spent on building renovation and construction projects, an organization can save $50 million to $100 million.

2. Improve Capital-Planning Accuracy—DQI can improve capital planning with a process for setting goals and objectives based on all stakeholder input. The DQI metrics enable large-scale, rapid feedback and consensus creation across competing stakeholder groups over the life of the building project across organizational silos. Establishing consensus on priorities at the onset of the project leads to better needs assessment and mitigates the risk of spending capital on low priorities.

3. Improve Decision Making—DQI can provide a framework and formal method to continually evaluate and monitor priorities throughout a project’s duration. Across a portfolio of assets or projects, DQI enables prioritization of capital allocation and resource spending.

Once a project is occupied, owners can use DQI to:

4. Reduce Operating Costs—DQI helps identify and document cost-saving operational needs from key stakeholders (especially end-users and maintenance staff) prior to engaging an architect. Ongoing operation and maintenance costs of the completed project can be reduced by incorporating this all-inclusive information into the design solution, thereby leading to a truly fit-for-purpose building that has been designed with the needs of those who will be operating, using and maintaining it in mind.

5. Target/Decrease Capital Expenditures—DQI can help prioritize where to allocate renovation dollars both within individual buildings and across a portfolio by identifying facility areas that are both critically important to the business and most in need of a design upgrade. Likewise, owners can avoid or postpone upgrades that will deliver lower ROI. Owners can also identify underperforming facilities that they may wish to shed from their portfolio.

6. Decrease Energy Costs—DQI can help owners optimize space utilization and location of facilities, including right-sizing the amount of space owned and/or leased and targeting more compact building forms to reduce the overall energy use of a building/portfolio over its life cycle.

7. Increase Asset Value—DQI metrics can prove a building is a high performer, leading to more dollars when it’s time to sell.

8. Reduce Occupant/User Complaints—DQI can help owners identify and then improve key areas where stakeholders are dissatisfied with building performance.

9. Gain Portfolio-Wide Insights—Capture portfolio-wide data related to facilities’ capabilities, operations and projects, so as to align the portfolio to meet key user requirements.

10. Go Green—Obtain LEED credits through post-occupancy evaluations and application for Innovation in Design points.

Source : http://hq.construction.com/advice_opinions/0911_Design_Quality_Indicator.asp