Planning on putting up a building (be it commercial, residential, etc…) and you feel it’s the right time? What do you do first as a developer? Who do you contact first and why?
Well, you need to contact an architect. But first who is an architect and why do you need to contact him/her?
According to the Uganda Society of Architects, an architect is one who plans, designs and reviews construction of buildings and the spaces around them. Wikipedia adds overseeing the construction process as a duty of the architect. And according to the Architects Registration Board, an architect is someone who in accordance with the Architect’s Registration Act Cap 269, is responsible for the design, preparation of building plans and supervision of any buildings in Uganda. And should posses a valid practicing certificate issued by the ARB. As of 31st August, 2022 there are 214 architects allowed by the ARB to practice architecture. These were joined by 4 others as of 27th September, 2022.
An architect should be your first point of contact once you have any thoughts of putting up any development and you want it done right. After that first contact, your needs are discussed, reviewed and he will advise you on any supplementary information with regard to what you want and plan a site visit to asses more factors that your site offers, such can be the topography, the views, access points, neighborhood etc, all of which influence the final design. You should always bear in mind that your building doesn’t stand in air, hence the necessity to avoid quacks who want to sell you designs even without knowing what your site offers.
He then focusses on the drafting and getting preliminary designs to discuss with you (the client) and when they are agreed upon, he (the architect) engages other professionals to add their input. At this point if the client has any professionals, he/ she would desire to have an addition to his/ her work, he can connect them to the architect for easier collaboration, though it’s best for the architect to engage the professionals he is comfortable with to archive the best results.
The architect based on his experience and can help estimate the cost of the services involved and the cost of the works but it still remains an estimate though an improved estimate can be provided by the specific professionals to avoid a lot of variations when the construction begins. In addition to that, the architect can guide on which construction techniques to use, materials to be employed, help with the choice of the contractor, estimating the construction duration etc.
The work done will need to get approved by the council or the building committee before and works start at the site and it’s best if all that process is left to be handled with the architect.
Writer is a graduate architect with Gridway Engineering and a Lecturer at International University of East Africa.
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