Assembling A Collaborative Team - Other - Page 50
Assembling a Collaborative Project Team
The brief as the WHY component
For simplicity and clarity, Assembling a Collaborative Project Team considers
the brief as the WHY component. The reasoning behind this is that the briefing
process summarises and concludes all of the discussions with the client.
For example:
• Why is a new building required?
• Why is only a particular part of the site being considered?
• Why is a traditional project team preferred?
• Why is a three-year period from commencement to project handover crucial?
• Why are fortnightly meetings proposed?
Who should prepare the brief?
An important initial consideration is deciding WHO should prepare the project
brief. Professional clients may have the in-house capability or may use external
advisers to assist them in the process. The brief that they prepare is also likely
to be more detailed and require longer to develop. There are advantages in using
an architect, perhaps a RIBA Client Adviser, to prepare the brief. This would allow
initial Feasibility Studies to be prepared in parallel to test the robustness of the brief.
This adviser might also be retained to comment on design proposals prepared by
the appointed architect as part of a traditional or contractor-led project team.
Depending on the circumstances, and certainly on smaller projects, it makes
sense for the brief to be prepared by the architect who is also appointed to
develop the design proposals. In many situations this is sensible, as there is a
fine line between the design work required to carry out the Feasibility Studies
necessary to ratify the Initial Project Brief and the emergence of a Concept
Design. Moreover, the briefing process and the close liaison with the client
inevitably results in a good understanding of the project, acting as a natural
springboard to the Concept Design stage. Architects joining the project team
at Stage 2 may query strategic matters or require clarification of certain
decisions before they are confident that the brief is robust. There will inevitably
be a learning curve. These are further conundrums for the client to consider.
The remainder of this chapter considers the following client issues:
•the project brief bridges the first three stages of the RIBA Plan of Work 2013
– the reasoning behind this arrangement is set out below
•the Project Budget, which is crucial as it has a fundamental relationship with
the Concept Design proposals
•the information exchanged at each stage, which can vary depending on
numerous factors, including the client’s requirements and the questions that
they may need answered at a given stage.
www.ribaplanofwork.com
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