CLIENTS ATTRIBUTE

ARCHITECT DEALING WITH DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES

Submitted by
Manisha dhiman .
b.Arch 3rd yr.

ARCHITECT AND CLIENTS

The client is the life line of the architect and he must have a client to set his
professional wheel in motion.
Rules of conduct for architect are as follow:

If
If in
in private
private practice
practice to
to make
make
know
ones
client
about
know ones client about the
the
conditions
conditions of
of engagement
engagement and
and
scale
scale of
of charges
charges and
and to
to agree
agree
that
that these
these conditions
conditions shall
shall be
be
the
basis
of
his
appointment.
the basis of his appointment.

Not
Not to
to sub-commission
sub-commission another
another
architect
or
architects
the
architect or architects the work
work
for
for which
which he
he has
has been
been
commissioned
commissioned without
without prior
prior
consent
of
the
client.
consent of the client.

He
He is
is prohibited
prohibited o
o give
give
discounts
,
commission
discounts , commission or
or
other
gifts
or
inducements
other gifts or inducements for
for
the
the introduction
introduction of
of the
the client
client or
or
to
obtain
the
work
he
must
to obtain the work he must
maintain
maintain a
a high
high standard
standard of
of
integrity.
integrity.

Even
Even though
though he
he has
has been
been
appointed
by
the
client
appointed by the client and
and he
he
is
his
paymaster
,
yet
he
is his paymaster , yet he has
has to
to
act
with
fairness
and
act with fairness and
impartiality
impartiality when
when
administrating
administrating a
a building
building
contract.
contract.

ARCHITECT AND HIS EMPLOYEES ,

ASSOCIATES AND CONSULTANTS
1.

CONDITION OF AGREEMENT

SCHEDULE OF PAYMENT

SCOPE OF WORKS
The architects shall provide
services in respect of the
following works:

SITE EVALUATION AND

ANALYSIS

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ASSESMENT

ARCHITECTURAL WORK AND

SITE DEVELOPMENT

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING
WORK

SANITARY , PLUMBING
,DRAINAGE ,WATER SUPPLY
AND SEWAGE WORK

ELECTRICAL WORK

HEATING, VENTILATION AND

AIR CONDITIONING
WORK( HVAC)

ACOUSTICAL WORK

LANDSCAPE WORK

INTERIOR DESIGN

GRAPHIC SIGNAGE

STAGE 1

On submitting
conceptual designs
and rough estimate
of cost.

10% of total fees is

payable

STAGE 2

On submitting the
required preliminary
scheme for the
clients approval
along with the
preliminary estimate
of cost

20% of the total fees

is payable

STAGE 3

On incorporating
clients suggestions
and submitting
drawing for approval
from the client
authority if required.
Upon
clients/statutory
approval necessary
for commencement
of construction ,
wherever applicable.

30% of total fees

payable

Upon preparation of
working drawings
,specifications and
schedule of
quantities sufficient
to prepare estimate
of cost and

45% of the total fees

Is payable

STAGE 4

35% of total fees

payable

CLIENT TRAITS

1. Involved in the process

Good architecture is the result of a
back and forth process, needs
versus wants. Clients that
participate in the process of
evaluating and setting priorities are
in a better position to make a
diminishing scale of values. This
type ofclientinvolvementhelps
create ownership of the process,
and ultimately the end product.

2. Understand their budget

This is not the same as knowing
your budget. Its sort of glass half
empty versus glass half full
mentality but with money. One
has an empty budget bag that
they think they can put stuff in until
its full; the other has a bag with
their budget in it and they take
things out until the budget is
expended. It might seem like the
same thing but its not. The group
putting stuff in the bag will
continually try to jam more stuff in,
well beyond when the zipper will
close .

. Whenever we have clients that stress

quantity over quality, its a harbinger of
things to come. Its not the clients job
to know what things cost, but when
they keep increasing the square
footage of the project, or continue to
add program requirements without
ever thinking that these things have
costs associated with them, its shows
that they arentthinking about the very
base fact that everything has acost
associated with it.

3. Challenge the norm:

The best projects are a result of clients
who push the envelope, those who are
not interested in what everyone else is
doing but rather interested in getting
something that is uniquely theirs.
Again, its an indication of ownership,
both in the process and in the result.

4. Willing to Change
These clients will listen to the advice of
the experts they have hired. Just
because you have lived in a house your
whole life does not necessarily make
you qualified to design one. Lets take
a look at the simplest of spaces the
bathroom. In a nutshell its a toilet, a
sink, a shower, bath or some
combination of the two. Used one
before and you pretty much have
theessence of the thing.

Let interject some variables; finish materials, cabinetry, door locations (one door from a hall or single
room or shared access between multiple rooms), accessories (bath towel, hand towel, toilet paper roll,
etc.) do you have a warming drawer (like you might see in kitchens), is the mirror configured to not
steam up, or is there a TV behind a portion of it? I could keep going on and half of this list involves
technologies that werent available a few years ago. We even joke with some of our clients that we get
at least one

6. Expectations change as the process evolves

This is really about enjoying the process. Part of the design process will be discovering the unexpected;
which is really the best, most excitingpart. Some clients get as excited as we do when there is a
struggle to find a better way, to explore the possibilities of what we think we know. There is typically a
Ah-Ha! moment when things come together and the results look so obvious and simple, you wondered
how it was that you only just know figured it out. These are great moments and are always the best part
of any day.

7. Flexible
. There are too many moving parts with dozens of separate individuals working on a project for there
not to be misunderstandings, gaps in the documentation or even omissions. A goodproject requires
The by-product
this collaboration
that
as the
project
is getting
built,
things will
require
the
everyone
workingoftogether
towards ameans
common
goal,
agreat
project
requires
everyone
to be
on the
inputpage
of theand
individuals
working and sometimes thatinput requires change. Clients who understand
same
collaborating.
the value of collaboration have the ability to be flexible its anextension of teamwork.

Enjoy the construction process

Instead of waiting for the project to simply be done, the clients who come out and do more than
project their lives into the building. They want to understand and see whats happening. Whenyou
see clients on the job-site, some might think, oh no, what are they doing here. Its awesome, lets
walk around and see how things are turning out. Its really enjoyable explaining what people see on a
job site (see that piece of wood right there? Thats a fire stop). The construction process is another
part of the process and like clients who are as involved during the building as they were selecting
appliances. In some cases, Its enjoyable when the clients come out to the job-site during
construction a lot more.

10. Owners with Ownership

This is sort of the tally line for the entire list. Clients that go through and invest themselves into this
process validate the end result because they didnt just order this project, they helped create this
project. Being involved and knowing why a thing exists they way it does, helps support its
justification for being that particular way. Every owner I know who has committed themselves to the
experience through their involvement has turned into my greatest advocate. I believe this to be true
because they choose to get involved and be a part an act of creation but they didnt just place an
order for a product, they came along for the experience and the product just happened to be the
A client's role
end result.
Be as clear as possible about what you want to achieve, what you need and what you can afford.

Don't hesitate to ask about the client/architect agreement before you sign the contract to clarify what
will be done for what cost

Changes are best made earlyso make sure your architect explains early sketch designs. The later in the
process that changes are made, the more likely it will have a cost implication.

Be clear about the responsibilities of the architect, builderand sub-contractors.

If your architect is administering the building contract, avoid three-way confusion by dealing with all
queries through your architect who will deal with the builder.This ensures your early discussions on what
you wanted from the project are built-in all the way through.
Keep your own notes of meetings, either in the office or on site.When decisions are flying, it can be
useful to record them.

Talk about timetables; be aware that many factors can affect these including delays in Council
approval, unseasonal weather, disruption in thesupply of materials and delays in construction due to
matters outside the control of the architect.

Don't hesitate to ask questions, be involved, but allow your architect to do their job.

Be aware of your rights as a consumer of architectural services. Professional conduct of architects is

governed by the NSW Architects Code of Professional Conduct.Familiarise yourself with the Code
which should be provided to you when you sign the contract with your architect. You can find theNSW
Architects Code of Professional Conducthere.

If you have a problem, firstly talk to your architect and try to resolve these problems. Be open. But if
you have a complaint or need adviceabout the professional conduct of an architect, contact the Board.