Why Everything You Know About London Architects Is Wrong
Designing a house, even in its simplest form, will be the process of creating a number of needs and desires ("We need three bedrooms... we would like a two-car garage"), identifying the parameters and constraints, ("Our lot is only 60 feet wide" or "We only have 200 thousand to spend.") compiling a number of priorities ("A separate Laundry is more vital to us than having a Study"), and after that making a series of decisions and compromises that satisfy the needs while staying in the established constraints. A residential architect is trained to help the future homeowner through these daunting tasks by utilizing his specialized experience and skills.
By creating a well-organized floor plan early within the design stage, the architect can present questions to the home owner and help them to make decisions for a more efficient and cost-effective house plan. For instance, spatial progressions can be studied, like moving from the Garage into the Mudroom then into the Kitchen, might be preferred over walking directly into the Living room from the Garage. Spatial relationships could also be examined, one example is keeping the general public spaces like the Family and Dining Rooms grouped together, and also the bedrooms, bathrooms, and office spaces in more private zones. How the Kitchen connects to the Dining-room, Breakfast Nook, or perhaps a Hearth Room are also extremely important factors to study at this stage of the design. An efficient floor plan will minimize hallways and underused spaces, which eliminates wasted square footage that cost money to build.
After the plan is established, the architect will study detailed drawings of the vertical and spatial dimensions of the house. For example, this could be the very first time that the homeowner can envision interior features like the fireplace and surrounding bookcases and windows, cabinetry, detailed trim like columns, art niches, and crown moulding. They are going to see spatial drawings showing 2-story foyers and rooms with vaulted ceilings. These drawings also help in the selection of materials; "Should the fireplace surround be drywall, wood, stone, or brick?" All of these questions assist the residential architect and client to visualize and appropriately develop every space and surface for a more complete and satisfying home design.
Exterior elevations can even be developed, helping the homeowners envision what their home will look like from the outside. What style will be the house? What is its presence from the street? Does it have a bold roofline, or does it blend in with the surrounding landscape? What will be the most suitable materials for the house's style? Which materials will be the most cost-effective or most durable? These are all necessary design questions that must be answered, and will only be addressed by quality, detailed elevation drawings showing all exterior aspects of the home.
The detailed drawings produced through the residential architect can also save money for the client. Thoroughly executed drawings will resolve more details on "paper" and can minimize costly errors and "do-overs" made within the field by the contractors. The architect shall usually drive the structural design of the house, making an effort to coordinate the structural framing with all of the other systems of the house; like plumbing, electrical, HVAC, as well as the interior and exterior skins. And then finally, the best group of construction drawings communicates better information to the bidding contractors, enabling them to confidently price all facets of construction, rather than just click the following document inflating their prices to cover all of the unknowns.
The residential architect might help with the difficult process of turning the homeowners' dreams and desires in to a functional floor plan, incorporating all of the desired spatial, interior, and exterior design features through an eye towards budgetary limitations. By asking design questions early during the process, knowing materials, the-latest construction technologies, and providing a detailed group of construction drawings, the architect can facilitate a more cost-effective bidding process and eliminate expensive construction mistakes in the field. All of these lead to a better final product as well as a satisfied property owner.
