I never design a building before I’ve seen the site and met the people who will be using it. — Frank Lloyd Wright
Design
management is not just about Design. Let me walk you through the various
aspects of Design Management through 101 vital tips and industry best
practices. In this blog, I will be introducing you to the first
30 tips of effective Design Management.
Design - A service:
 |
| Image Courtesy: Ar. Bansri Pandey |
. Architecture
is a service industry. Excellent service results in an excellent building.
2.
Listen to client carefully to understand his/her needs and aspirations.
3.
Respect seniors, women and people with different cultures and religions.
4.
Ask questions with clarity. Do not use heavy vocabularies and jargons.
5.
Don’t let your ego be an obstacle while considering the client's aspirations.
6.
Don’t trust your memory too much. Taking notes will help you to recall entire
conversation.
7.
Don’t judge and argue on every statement of your client.
8.
Observe body language. Don’t ignore non verbal behaviour, especially when you
are dealing across cultural boundaries.
Preparation of Design Brief:
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| Image Courtesy: Ar. Bansri Pandey |
9.
If you are a solo performer, you will need meticulous planning to manage your
time. If you are running a firm with adequate staff; assign responsibilities
and deadlines to your team.
10.
A good design brief is very important. Prepare a design brief, consisting
client‘s requirements, site analysis, affordability, time scale and available
office resources.
11.
Work out the budget and expected profit.
12.
Take the approval of the brief from your client to avoid the wastage of time
and to avoid misunderstanding at a later stage.
13.
Don’t assume the client will accept everything you will propose; he or she
needs to be educated about the trends, style and technologies.
14.
Use creativity. Explain your design philosophy not only verbally but also
graphically or illustratively.
15.
Don’t try to cut down cost on initial processes. The initial homework will save
a lot of cost in the later stage.
16.
As far as possible, don’t entertain the practice of submitting a conceptual
design without approval of the design brief and agenda.
Analyse the Risks and Constraints:
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| Image Courtesy: Ar. Bansri Pandey |
17.
Discover constrains and opportunities from the design brief.
18.
Evaluate the site condition and its potential.
19.
Carry out the detail survey on the proposed site.
20.
Identify any geological, infrastructure (services), physical, environmental, or
similar constraints present on the site. Develop assumptions and insights based
on facts and information collected.
21.
Don’t forget to take the photograph of the site. You may not get a chance to
see site in original condition later.
22.
Don’t forget to discuss your idea of the design with other members of the team.
23.
Don’t arrive to the conclusion immediately. Allow some time to incubate the
assumptions.
“Analysis
+ synthesis is a powerful approach to getting down to the real users’ needs and
compelling design teams to create truly useful products and services.” says
Lindsay Ellerby
Preliminary sketch design:
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| Image Courtesy: Ar. Bansri Pandey |
24.
Give all the possible time to prepare a conceptual design. You may not get a
chance to experiment your ideas again.
25.
Prepare preliminary economic aspects to work out the feasibility.
26.
Consider all the building regulation laws applicable to the project.
27.
Discuss with your structural consultant and check the ‘build-ability.’
28.
Don’t consume all the available time for the project to this stage.
29.
Don’t draw a rosy picture for your client by using the latest software. Show
exactly what you have to offer.
30.
Don’t hesitate to disagree with the client on any issue at this stage if you
disagree at some point. Your client will appreciate your opinion.
Next Blog: 30-60 tips on Design Management
Further Reading: Managing the Building Design Process - By Gavin Tunstall
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