GRAMS joined BOMA's long-standing family of building related standards this June for a number of reasons, BOMA's International Treasurer Kent Gibson tells GlobeSt.com. For starters, there was a lack of understanding in the industry on how to measure the outside of the building," he says--a state of affairs that has caused conflicts especially when a building trades and the buyer and seller come up with different per square foot sales prices. Gibson is also VP of Zions Security Corporation and chaired the BOMA International Standard Floor Measurement Committee.

Another reason why BOMA began to push through the standard was to have it in place as it begins work on other standards--namely those for mixed-use development, retail and multi- and residential use. These standards will be delivered within a few years, he says. Retail and multi-unit should be available in 2010-2011; mixed-use will be coming in 2012.

Now, though, the focus is on getting GRAMS ready for the ANSI--the American National Standards Institute--consensus process, Gibson says. "We will be ready to submit it to ANSI by the end of the year or the beginning of next. This process usually takes six to seven months. After which, Gibson says, "it'll become a recognized standard in the industry." Any readers interested in participating in the consensus process are welcome to contact BOMA, Gibson adds.