We all talk about it: Sustainability and Transparency in the workplace. This is how an Architect’s Office stays open in this ever-changing business climate. Next year JHAI will have sustained 30 years of continued assistance to our clients.
All companies are accountable for their own and their office's efficiencies, in business and in their services. Creating an integrated building design that includes sustainable designs needs the same amount of care. When you are on the job, the time card and what you did are used to invoice projects. If it is not well documented then the client will want further descriptions of the services performed. If you do it right the first time, then everyone on the team saves time and everyone on the design team will get paid faster. The same is true for a building's utility performance.
We all know about the scope of services and functional requirements for building design projects, especially if the services are for a green design project. Financing and assessment criteria must be understood from the start. What kind of sustainable energy and other utilities will be saved and at what cost? Architects need to know what building components will be affected and how much will that save the client? What is the time frame for the ROI (Return on Investment) upfront and in the future? What are the social responsibility and common beliefs of the entity the design is for? The game plan is just like a company’s mission statement or financial plan and sets the direction for the choices one makes planning for the completed project.
Disclosure and Optimization affect the way one communicates their actions. Being on an integrated design team lets everyone see the quality of each other’s work on an ongoing basis. You need to make decisions, execute, complete, and do it right the first time. Backing up too often affects everyone on the team. With full disclosure, in the “days of optimization”, the legal arm is even more pronounced and the issues of pour judgments and rework need to be defined early in the services agreement to keep a team functioning at a high level. No one should be scared of their own team or their sponsors.
Sustainability and Optimization are not just in the project delivery. Every product researched and specified needs full disclosure. From the raw material extraction, through production, marketing, delivery, installation, de-installation for reuse, and all the way from cradle to the grave. There are changes to the way we all live, work, and communicate. The new business climate is here!
