FAQs and Misconceptions

 

Q: What makes a project successful.

 

A: Choosing the correct (competent) team. It is your duty as the Client of the project. 

 

Choosing an Architect at the beginning is the most important part of your domestic project as they will be acting as the Principal Designer taking a lot of responsibility for the rest of the project. The Architect as PD will help you source quotes from competent consultants for the design stages and help you choose the right Principal Contractor for your project. At the end of the project, all parties will need to sign a declaration that they have discharged their duties under the Building Safety Act and the Building Regulations. The Principal Designer, The Principal Contractor and you as the Client.

 

A good Architect is not hung on aesthetics and concept ideas. The design must follow the brief and the aesthetics of the client. A good Architect will make all of the above work within the building regulations guidance, and within the confines of proper and correct design, and within budget (within reasonable expectations)

 

Q: I don’t want to go over budget.

 

A: Setting a sensible budget from the beginning is part of the work the Architect will have to do with the client. Depending on the full scope of the work and the flexibility of the client, a budget will be set in the early stages of the RIBA process. The construction costs cannot be guaranteed 100%. Whoever tells you that, either their profit margin is big enough to be able to absorb all uncertainties, or they will come back and say that the additional cost wasn’t included in the scope of work (which would be correct) 

Surprises can happen on site, especially with older buildings, as opening up work can bring shortcomings to the surface (in insulation, structural integrity etc)

 

For your budgeting purposes you should allow for

• Construction costs (normally given to you exclusive VAT)

• 20% contingency sum on the above costs for on site surprises

• 20% VAT on all of the above (depending on the project, some consultants or workers might not charge VAT - Like for example FAA ltd currently - or some works might benefit from reduced or 0% VAT - this is to be discussed per project)

• Professional fees - Architect 10-12% of the construction fees for the whole process - Structural Engineer 2-4% and some other consultants fees. 

 

All this will be discussed with you during the initial stage of your project.

 

For example if your maximum spending budget is £300k all included, then we work backwards to understand what the construction costs should be and adjust the scope accordingly.

 

We work with you at every stage of the process to ensure that you are comfortable with the design and associated projected costs, and if the quotes come back higher than expected we will work with you to understand the provided quotes and rework the design as needed to make sure the budget is under control before starting on site.

 

Fanis Anastasiadis Architecture Ltd works under the RIBA plan of Work with RIBA contracts in place and monitors the whole process so all additional costs are being scrutinized at every step of the way and every single penny is accounted for.

 

Q: Architects always design something expensive, a contractor can do the work by themselves

 

A: A good Architect will design according to the brief and will follow the Client’s guidance on budget.

 

At Fanis Anastasiadis Architecture Ltd we design with the above in mind. However design solutions emerge during the creative process which we feel we should bring to the attention of the Client. This is clearly communicated during the early stages of the design. This happens for no other reason than to give all options to the client and show the true potential of the space. Sometimes clients who have concerns over overblown budgets, considering horror stories they might have heard from their friends, limit their budget early and sometimes this restricts the possibilities. What we do is provide the best solution to the space as a first iteration, clearly communicating any cost dependencies. We give the opportunity to the Client to prioritise on their requirements and work towards creating a final set for costing. Sometimes clients want to test the actual costs of more things so they can decide better. We always try to have an early costing exercise with a known contractor (who will be included in a tender if it comes to that). Once accurate costs come in, if indeed they are over the budget, with no extra cost from our side, we redesign/remove/amend/optimise whatever is needed to bring the project costs to comfortable levels again.

This also gives the opportunity to our clients to understand what is really important for them in the design, organise their space better and potentially schedule some work for the future. If  we know about potential future interventions we allow for preparatory work in our construction sets so when the time comes for further additions we avoid abortive and costly works.

 

Q: I don't want the standard box extension

 

A: That's what Fanis Anastasiadis Architecture Ltd is all about.

 

We design each project from scratch, with no preconceptions, no ‘easy’ solutions. We base our design on each specific client’s requirements and requests (a family of 4 will have a different design with a couple with pets who wants kids Vs for a couple who doesn’t want kids, and so on) and contextual analysis of the neighbouring properties, the size of the garden, the quality and condition of the existing building, the orientation, outlook, and daylight etc

Each project has a unique approach and solution. You can see from our work on this website, the completely different results (Dulca Road, Mortimer Road, Abbey Road etc) where someone else would easily do a ‘box extension’

 

We design everything in 3D from the start, so we test light, space flow, double height spaces, staircases etc in detail early on and we see how each small action affects the design parameters and we find solutions we might have otherwise missed through initial 2D sketch designs.

 

Q: What does the Architect do apart from the design up to planning

 

A: Your Architect is your representative during the whole process of your project. Ideally they should be the first appointee and the last person to close off your project, but sometimes due to perceived costs, their scope can be limited.

 

At Fanis Anastasiadis Architecture Ltd we offer flexible services and tailor them to your project. Our work can start from RIBA stage 0-2, 0-3, 0-4, 0-5-6 - we prefer not to take other Architects’ designs and work for stages 4-6 only for example. We would only do that for very specific projects. The reason is when we design, from the early stages we consider a lot of things and when we reach the technical stages we already know that things work and are in compliance. However taking on someone else’s design (especially if they were not Architects and they were aware they wouldn’t have to follow up with technical compliance themselves) might involve having to rework some things altering the sense of the design, causing stress to the client that their vision is being diluted etc, among other things, further adding to the cliche that Architects make everything more expensive.

 

Our preferred way of working with our clients is through the traditional procurement process. 

 

• We are your main representatives with all other parties involved. We act as the Principal Designer of your domestic project. We gather all information and vet other parties that will be involved so we know that all are competent and relevant to your project.

• We design your space with you and deal with all statutory issues (planning permissions etc) We are your agent in any interactions with the Council.

• Once all permissions have been secured, We will prepare a building regulations set for checking with an approved inspector and discuss any and all compliance issues and adjust the design accordingly.

• We prepare a fully detailed set for costing and construction and we either go through a tendering process (sending out the set to 4-5 contractors) or work with a chosen one from the start to make sure costs are monitored and under control.

• We create a contract between you as the client and the contractor and then during the construction we impartially administer the contract and make sure everything is collaborative and fair to both parties.

• We help during the construction with visiting the site and solving any surprise issues that may arise. We liaise with the Building Control approved inspector as required to provide them with any additional information they might require.

• We inform our clients regularly of the progress and any issues arising at any point, communicating clearly severity and implications.

• We help resolve any disagreements as soon as possible in a fair and collaborative way.

• We act under the RIBA code of conduct and the ARB code of conduct.