Posted by  Manuel Oliveros on October 08, 2000 at 13:46:32:

In Reply to:  HELP: The building process posted by Ken on October 07, 2000 at 21:16:39:

Professors can become strange in what they expect as some positive answer to their request; this is even more true about architecture.
You yourself are pointing what happens; someone conceives the idea to build something; this idea in some sense becomes the building itself. With highly educated patrons that have enough time to ensure their idea is developed according to their desires in their own mind and in what they see in the presentation or description drawings of the architect, the building will be as much a son of the architect's intelligence as that of the owner. This applies as well to commercial architecture, where developers are in their field very competent (at least some of them) and so the architect will be having definite limits to h's free rein imagination.
In the practice sooner or later hopefully the architect secures the commission (what may be -quite lamentably but still frequently- after some prelimitanr and not always despicable work) and architectural design proceeds till the requirements of the developer are met. If the commission is important enough the owner will have assistants of h's own that will ensure all is going in accord of h's best knowledge and intention.
The phase of construction design is usually merged with archiotectural design in minor works, and may times subsequent in other works of bigger size.
With growing specialization, the architect is relinquishing more and more of its field to competing specialized professionals (it was an architect who laid one pontoon bridge for Darius invade Greeece, and near all bridges in Spain were signed by architects till the start of the XX century); this process is a natural outgrow of the unmanageability of the knowledge attained by humans by any single man, and so it must not be taken negatively. In any case, this means that the owner of h's managers (sometimes one leader or senior architect) must ensure proper coordination is established when developing construction design drawings, where many other complementary projects (even if in some cases under the same umbrella of one Architect-Engineer services provider) are incardinated: mechanical equipment, communications, Heating and Air Conditioning, Lifts, Cranes, Prevention of safety hazards, etc). The construction drawings of the signing architect usually serve as the root project, being subject to public approvals (construction permit or licence), usually in front of some local authority, typically the council of the town. All other complementary projects are subject to their proper review and approvals.
Builders then bid the project's construction, one wins, and construction starts, which may or not entail the undersigning by someone in the council of the in place layout.
During the works, various professionals according to their competence, review what is being built, quality assurance being checked usually with the help of firms or institutions to such purpose established. Many times as result of need or competence any of the parties in the construction projects changes are devised, and if decided to perform, new designs by the entitled competent professional are made, a process in which both the respect of that approved by the public institutions and price must be very carefully considered. Payment is usually performed as the works proceed, as some development of the inital budget, changes taken into account.
This process should warrant that the wishes of the owner and the warranties required by the public bodies for everybody are respected.
At the end of the works, al the entitled professionals usually sign documents certificating the fitness for purpose of the building.
Special insurance warranties, and contractual ways of reception are incardintaed in both law and contracts, to ensure the building will constitute some valuable asset to the owner and the community.

And if you are one good architect, you win over all this, and deliver a beautiful building, within and without.

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