The 5 important lessons we’ve learned by being on site (almost) every day…
Most architects have a site visit every couple of weeks during the construction stage: they'll meet with the builder, inspect the works, discuss any design or detailing questions the builder may have and so forth. Here at Fluid Studio, we find the more often we're on site, the better and, over the years, we've learnt 5 important lessons by being on site more often. In fact, we're on site (almost) every day! Here's what we've learned...
Being on site almost every day helps us build a relationship with the builders so we can solve small issues before they become huge problems and means we achieve a better end result.
1. The Final 20%
The biggest thing we've learned by being on-site almost every day is how much of the design comes together during this final stage. We've come to realise that a set of drawings, no matter how thorough, will only get you 80% there. There will always be nuances, anomalies or conflicts on-site, especially in renovations, that we couldn't account for in the documentation. Being on-site helps us deal with this situation quickly and with a deeper understanding than we'd be able to garner from some images sent by the builder, for example. So we think the additional time spent on-site allows us to execute these finishing touches efficiently, with flair and finesse, making the final 20% sing.
2. Things you've missed
In the case of renovations, pulling a wall down or lifting those century-old floorboards can uncover things we missed or things that need to be adjusted now that we see there's a huge slab of concrete under your new kitchen. Similarly, sometimes, ever so occasionally, we miss something. Don't tell anyone. Architects, though we sometimes like to think otherwise, are only human. Building projects are complex and multifaceted and, it's true, sometimes we miss things somewhere between the initial site inspections and preparing the drawings. In a typical architect-builder relationship, we have to pay extra special attention on our fortnightly site visits to make sure we pick everything up. But, if we're on-site more regularly, picking up things we may have missed earlier on is a more, dare we say, fluid process. We can adjust our course to stay on track rather than missing our landing site and having to perform a U-turn to get back to where we're going.
3. Opportunity to adjust
It might be a window opening that, if we shuffle it just 200mm to the left will frame a beautiful tree in the distance and block out the edge of a neighbouring building. Maybe it's holding up the shower rose with our taller-than-average client standing underneath to help the plumber rough in the perfect spot for the outlet. Or perhaps it's just noticing some old stone removed as part of the demolition works that inspires a sculpture that will look incredible in the garden. We'd never be able to notice these things in a CAD model or 2D drawing. The observations and adjustments we can make on-site make all the difference to the final project. And, by adjusting the window opening before the plaster goes in or getting the shower head height right before it's all tiled up, we can save you from costly mistakes and avoid the need to do additional work to rectify.
It’s impossible to know exactly what’s happening on site from the office, looking at a set of drawings. Being on site helps us adjust on the fly when needs be.
4. Improve relationship with the builder
Builders love us being on-site because they quickly see that we understand the practicalities and challenges of building and they appreciate the opportunity to work together to determine the best solutions. It means the process is less of a guessing game for the builders and they grow to respect us as a part of the team, rather than suffering the sense of animosity that is sometimes present in an architect-builder relationship. Builders have often expressed their surprise at meeting an architect that can actually do things and build things! That's not to say other architects can't do or build things, but at Fluid Studio we have a long history of practical experience in the building industry and our time on site is an invaluable way to demonstrate this. Building this rapport with builders on-site creates a much stronger team and we find builders are actually more engaged in the project and work hard to deliver a great result for the architect and client thanks to the time we spend on-site. Our builders go out of their way to make a project the best it can be and are open with us about potential problems or possible solutions. It's all part of building a strong working relationship in order to deliver higher-quality homes.
5. Avoid eff ups
Quite frankly, spending additional time on site helps us avoid the odd royal eff up. Perhaps a detail we'd visualised won't quite work due to the realities of the site or maybe a misinterpretation of the drawings led the builder to do something we weren't expecting. Builders aren't mind readers, so they can't always know what we intended if there's a discrepancy between the drawings and the site. But, if we're on site we can quickly see or anticipate any potential issues and formulate a solution on the spot. Builders love this because they don't need to call or email to pester us for a solution, potentially holding up progress, and we love it because it means we can solve problems on the fly and end up with a better result at the end of the day; eff up free.