The Fohlio Podcast

Artificial intelligence has the potential to transform interior design operations, but lasting results depend on standardized data, connected workflows, and repeatable processes—not AI alone. This course explores best practices for building an AI-ready design and procurement practice by reducing manual work, improving specification management, standardizing product data, and connecting design, financial, and procurement workflows. Participants will learn practical strategies to improve efficiency, reduce costly errors, support brand consistency, and prepare their firms to leverage AI across increasingly complex commercial projects.

Upon completion of this course, the Learner should be able to:

• Identify the operational challenges that prevent artificial intelligence from delivering meaningful value in commercial interior design workflows, including fragmented project data and disconnected systems.
• Explain how centralized specification, product, and project data improve collaboration, preserve design intent, and create a foundation for AI-assisted workflows throughout the project lifecycle - from mood boards and drawings to finish schedule and fabrication product spec.
• Evaluate opportunities to reduce repetitive manual tasks—including product research, specification development, document creation, and procurement preparation—through structured data and connected workflows.
• Apply best practices for developing an AI-ready operational framework that improves efficiency, documentation quality, and decision-making while reducing project risk.

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Discover essential strategies for managing procurement like a pro and learn how the right tools can simplify your workflow. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just starting out, this session is packed with insights you won't want to miss! 

Join Fohlio and special guest, Blima Ehrentreu, CEO and Founder of The Designers Group, as we discuss successful strategies to ensure easy specification of your project's FF&E, OS&E, and Finishes, analyze cost breakdowns, and manage the approval process.

Join us for an insightful episode as we explore the latest trends and challenges in senior living design, from balancing aesthetics with functionality to managing costs and integrating new technologies seamlessly.

Our special guest, Nicole Bergquist, Senior Design Director at Sunrise Senior Living, shares how the company has leveraged Fohlio to overcome these challenges. Nicole provides an inside look at how Fohlio's platform has streamlined their design process, improved collaboration, and enhanced efficiency. She highlights the impact of centralized design information, detailed project documentation, and cost breakdowns in securing financial support and delivering projects on time and within budget.

Tune in to learn how Fohlio has become an integral part of Sunrise Senior Living's design workflow. Discover the benefits of improved efficiency, enhanced collaboration, cost savings, and data-driven decision-making that Sunrise has experienced with Fohlio.

Whether you're a design professional, senior living industry insider, or simply interested in the intersection of technology and design, this episode is packed with valuable insights and practical takeaways. Don’t miss it!

The Fohlio team, along with Tiffany & Co.'s Christina Wang, discussed trends, trials, and triumphs in retail design, focusing on the shift from transactional to experiential brick and mortar stores, engagement-driven concepts, storytelling through designs, omnichannel upgrades, and digital integrations. Also discussed are the challenges faced in managing expectations of different stakeholders in a global company with regional business units and central executive leadership team, and strategies to overcome these challenges and communicate effectively throughout cross-functional teams. Fohlio introduced new features, including product blocks and cross-project reporting, which can optimize the process of assigning products to stores in retail and hospitality industries.

David Fouché gives us a high-level guide to the different phases involved in constructing a building. He also answers the following questions: Which bits of data are involved in each phase? What's the difference between lifecycle and phase-specific data? Why does this matter to designers? Why does it matter to project owners? How does data increase a building's value? 

This episode is best suited for professionals who are new to the industry, and firms that want to expand their services to other phases of the construction cycle.

David Fouché is one of Fohlio's product and marketing advisers. He is also the Senior Architect and Project Manager at MS Technology, Inc., and Owner of Big Green Bear.

Fohlio is a product specification, procurement, and data management software for the AEC industry. With Fohlio, you can manage your budgeting, specification, purchasing, inventory, and product data processes from end to end. Go to https://www.fohlio.com and schedule your demo today.

Travis Reese and Heather Parker will discuss how to:

1. Forecast lead times despite constantly changing circumstances.
2. Stay on top of order tracking.
3. Keep change orders and budget changes at a minimum.
4. Improve coordination with suppliers.
5. Maintain transparency with clients.

We’re honored to be joined by:

• Travis Reese Procurement, Manager @Goebel Design Group. Travis’s expertise is in managing the purchase, delivery, and installation of Goebel selections to ensure efficient, on-time and on-budget projects for their clients. Goebel Design Group is a full service interior design firm which opened its doors in 1901. With over a century of experience and consistency, their design expertise and creative insight provides clients with functional, unique, environmentally sound, and budget-conscious interior spaces. Their specialties are: hospitality, restaurant, corporate, medical, and senior living agendas.
• Heather Parker, Accounting Manger and Project Administrator @OCG Design. Heather has over 10 years experience in project development & management. Working with Fohlio, she created custom configurations that were specific for her firm’s way of accounting and project tracking. OCG is an Interior Design, Construction Management, and General Contracting firm based in the Vail Valley, Colorado, that was founded in 2015. It was created on the belief that the client’s needs should be prioritized and that with open communication paired with proactive management, project goals can be maintained to the benefit of client, contractor, and end user. They take great pride in their ability to effectively manage a wide range of project types running the gamut from Custom Homes, Remodels, Retail, to Hospitality.

Fohlio is a product specification, procurement, and data management software for the AEC industry. With Fohlio, you can manage your budgeting, specification, purchasing, inventory, and product data processes from end to end. Go to https://www.fohlio.com and schedule your demo today.

The current housing market is one for the books: With the median price of a single-family home in the U.S. sitting at $335,000, we’re seeing record highs. Even then, homes are getting snapped up like hotcakes, as houses stay on the market for an average of only 18 days — another record.

On the outside looking in, that may seem like a good thing — but it’s not that simple.  

“We’ve never had a market this hot on the selling side, which is putting huge pressures on the commodities,” according to Jim Watson, Vice President and co-owner of New Atlantic Builders, a semi-custom homebuilder based in Florida. “Lumber’s gone through the roof, and copper’s gone through the roof, and labor’s increased.” 

Listen to the interview to find out how Jim's team is thriving under the circumstances, despite not being one of "the big boys."

Fohlio is a product specification, procurement, and data management software for the AEC industry. With Fohlio, you can manage your budgeting, specification, purchasing, inventory, and product data processes from end to end. Go to https://www.fohlio.com and schedule your demo today.

After a year and a half of quarantine, hotel reservations are climbing back up. Pure Wellness is helping hotels not just book rooms, but increase premium occupancy as well. 

How are they doing it? As it turns out, their hypoallergenic protocol (which already has a strong following in the business travel sector) is also incredibly effective at removing COVID particles.

Fohlio is a product specification, procurement, and data management software for the AEC industry. With Fohlio, you can manage your budgeting, specification, purchasing, inventory, and product data processes from end to end. Go to https://www.fohlio.com and schedule your demo today.

For Earth Day 2021, our panelists discuss best practices for specifying sustainable and healthy materials.

In 2020, carbon in the atmosphere had reached 415 parts per million, up from 280 PPM in 1937. During the same period, the remaining wilderness has gone down to 35%, from 66%.

As designers, architects, and builders who help shape the world for future generations, specifying sustainable materials is one way we can do our part. Governments are also offering financial incentives for sustainable buildings -- a benefit owners are increasingly requiring.

You will learn:

- How to build a healthier and more sustainable materials library
- Requirements for different levels of LEED certification
- How sustainable materials save money in the long run
- And much, much more!

Fohlio makes specification and collaboration at scale easy with intelligent data sharing and a centralized data library. Find out how we can help you grow your bottomline–schedule a demo today!

Get your free trial here: https://www.fohlio.com/​
Check out our features here: https://www.fohlio.com/features​
Schedule a demo here: https://calendly.com/fohlio-call/demo​

We're honored to be joined by:

- Jack Dinning, LEED AP BD+C, WELL AP, designer, researcher, and material-health and sustainability strategist working with Brightworks Sustainability and Harvard University’s Office for Sustainability.  Having began in architectural practice and understanding the impacts that toxic materials can have on vulnerable populations, he now works to create tools and strategies that will empower fellow designers and drive collective progress in the industry.  He has also led educational initiatives with the Healthy Materials Lab at Parsons School of Design, and continues to co-lead the mindful MATERIALS Education Working Group.  His work has earned recognitions including an invitation to the United Nations Global Compact Leaders Summit, the Alpha Rho Chi Medal for leadership and professional merit, and election to the inaugural class of AIANY's Civic Leadership Program.

- Kate Bachner, LEED GA, WELL AP helps builders and owners select sustainable, healthy materials. She holds an MA in Contemporary Art from the Sotheby’s Institute and a B.A. in Art History from Emory University. She has studied the principles of sustainable building and healthy materials at NYU and the Parsons School of Design. Kate is also a licensed real estate agent in the state of California. 

- Dejan Vrljic is a product expert at Mitrex, a solar cladding manufacturer. Dejan is passionate about renewable technology solutions and is thrilled to be a part of Mitrex, a company that will certainly be a part of the long-term solution to the sustainability problems of the 21st century. 

- Esteban Reichberg, AIA, Founder and Principal of EAR Architecture and Fohlio Board Adviser. Esteban earned his Bachelor of Science from Cornell University and his Master of Architecture from Columbia University. He is the recipient of the Latino Leaders of Tomorrow award from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, the EPFL ThinkSwiss Scholars Grant from the U.S. Swiss Embassy and the Building Technology Honors Award from Columbia University’s GSAPP. As a founding member of AIANY’s Civic Leadership Program, he is committed to strengthening leadership roles for design professionals in the public realm.