This text has been written to give students of all levels an overview of construction practices. Appropriate course titles include materials and methods, specifications, estimating, and principles and practices of building construction in two and four year colleges.

This text is not a how to do it book, rather it is a book on how things are (or should be) done. The intention is not to develop any specific construction skill in the reader. The aim is to improve knowledge of practical methodology, so that middle management can convey the proper information to the artisans who actually build the building.