History

Since 1987, ARCOM has been a key player in the growth and automation of specifications for the construction industry.

ARCOM started as a division of a Salt Lake City architectural firm in the early 1970s. Its first services involved preparing MasterSpec® master guide specifications, developed by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), for use with a mainframe computer to be edited and customized by A/E firms. ARCOM was split off as an independent company in 1987.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, AIA relied on ARCOM for increasing the automation available to design professionals using mini-computers and, subsequently, personal computers for specification production. ARCOM also worked with the Construction Sciences Research Foundation, Inc. (CSRF) in the 1980s to review SpecText® documents and prepare them for translation to multiple word processing formats. In addition, ARCOM developed the first generation of Editspec (microComSpec) software for CSRF’s SpecText and Masterworks software for use with MasterSpec.

In 1995, AIA selected ARCOM to operate all aspects of MasterSpec including the maintenance and expansion of the master guide specifications, marketing and sales, production, fulfillment, and customer support to licensed users. ARCOM has continued to operate and expand MasterSpec for the AIA since then.

In the late 1990s, ARCOM transformed its automation expertise into the SpecWare® suite of industry-leading specification productivity software using its patented structured text technology (Linx). In 2010, ARCOM introduced SpecAgent®, an innovative online specification resource for design professionals that provides interactive integration of specifications with online product information. In 2011, ARCOM acquired the SpecText master guide specification system.

ARCOM is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, where it operates MasterSpec sales, marketing, fulfillment, and client support; MasterSpec research, writing, and editing are conducted in its Alexandria, Virginia office. ARCOM also operates the SpecText Support Center in Bel Air, Maryland, which provides sales, fulfillment, and customer support to SpecText users. ARCOM employs over 40 specification writers, architects, engineers, editors, researchers, software developers, and customer and technical support personnel. ARCOM’s full-time specification writers are the most experienced group of specification writers in the industry, with combined specification writing experience that exceeds 300 years.