Help me with my college assignment

[HawkEye]

Hello chaps.

As pathetic as this might sound to someone who actually knows the answers, I have spent the entire day trying to figure out exactly how this senario fits together.

Here are the details of my assignment:

I have devised a single story rear extension that will be built at the rear of my imaginary house. Lets say for theory sake that the house is owned by John who wants a conservatory built onto his house.

John has been to see a builder who knows an architect that can draft John a plan of the design he wants. The builder says he wants X amount for all the building work. John agrees to the price, and so the Architect sends away the drawings to the local planning authority requested by the builder acting on behalf of the client. The plans recieve full planning permission.

IS THIS CORRECT? IS THIS HOW IT WOULD WORK IN REAL LIFE??

The building gets underway and towards the end of the project John decides that he wants to change the specification of the windows from timber to uPVC. This will require planning permission. So John goes back to the architect who drew and submitted the plans, and says he wants uPVC windows. The Architect comes up with an architect's instruction also known as a variation order.

Now... what I have to do for this assignment is to explain HOW the architect's instruction issued affects the project in terms of design modifications, cost, apperance, and how contractors will need to adopt these changes

I'm not entirely sure if the right people are interacting, and whether John should seek out an Architect, AND THEN a builder. Or whether it is good practice to rely on one builder to do everything, which is usually common practice, but is it right? I'm not sure what professionals would need to be involved either. Would you need a quantity surveory for a small extension? I know you will need a Structural Engineer to calculate the foundation requirements.

I need to write a page for this dung and it needs to be specific to the senario. I think I need to talk about what type of documents would need to change... but what documents are there besides a written contract between the client and the contractor?? My understanding is so sketchy..

I'm in real need of help here as I cannot find anything this basic, everything in terms of literature is about complex RIBA management/ construction projects, nothing for a simple ammendment to a small conservatory..

Any help really really really appreciated.

 

[matthewwh]

Sounds like a job for Mike Garnham, pop him a PM and I'm sure he would be glad to assist.

 

[Anonymous]

John gets the architects fee for changing his mind half way through the build and decides to stick with what he agreed in the first place . The builder doesnt get told so buys new plastic windows and knocks the fella making the timber ones . The builder then goes crawling back to the joiner giving some rubbish about being ill and fits the same windows that John asked for in the first place .

 

[HawkEye]

Don't take the water.

 

[wizer]

John gets the architects fee for changing his mind half way through the build and decides to stick with what he agreed in the first place . The builder doesnt get told so buys new plastic windows and knocks the fella making the timber ones . The builder then goes crawling back to the joiner giving some rubbish about being ill and fits the same windows that John asked for in the first place .

Thanks for the promotion Jase. Why don't you come and say hello?

 

[Oryxdesign]

There is no hard and fast rules. If you want to go and see the planning officer with photographs and hand drawn plans you can do the first bit yourself. You will probably then need a structural engineer and an architect to do the calcs and detailed plans (you may not ned these) Then you can get a quote from your builder. After which you will need to get the job signed off by the building officer who is not necessarily from the council as you can get it subbed out.
My friend who is a photographer for a magazine wanted to do the same thing himself. He asked me for some advice and eventually photoshopped in his extension, providing before and after images. His application has apparently been pinned to the wall in the office as a good example of how to make a planning appllication.

Hope that helps Simon

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the promotion Jase. Why don't you come and say hello?

Ive tried Tom but both my email and name are already taken so i cant get in .


Hawkeye,
In real life the change of material for the windows wouldnt need to go back to the planning dept . They are not interested in the materials used just that they comply with u-value regulations . If it was a conservation area then thats another story .
Some people for small extentions have thier own architect but most builders will reccomend one for the customer to use .

 

[Oryxdesign]

John gets the architects fee for changing his mind half way through the build and decides to stick with what he agreed in the first place . The builder doesnt get told so buys new plastic windows and knocks the fella making the timber ones . The builder then goes crawling back to the joiner giving some rubbish about being ill and fits the same windows that John asked for in the first place .

Thanks for the promotion Jase. Why don't you come and say hello?

I'm not sure if it's a typo or a comment on Your sexuality Tom but he hs written "the homo woodworking"

 

[TrimTheKing]

Don't take the water.

The irony...

 

[HawkEye]

Thank you Oxy and Jfcundercover for making this slightly clearly. Managed to pad out three quarters of a page on this, so hopefully it will suffice. Haven't really got answers to all the questions I have but know enough through research to make educated conclusions. If anyone would like to mention the contracts involved I would appreciate that. These days do builders just write an estimate on a bit of ripped off paper, sign it, and then give it to the client? Or are there certain mandatory bits of paper that are required by law, even for a client - contractor procurement? If so what are these bits of paper? Do building control leave paper work every time they visit the site?

Trim the King what are you implying?

 

[Oryxdesign]

I think these days most builders have a contract, probably a standard document pulled off the net, but it isn't a legal requirement. I would not use a builder without a contract in place.
Because of programs on the telly folks are more enlightened now and estimates are more formal.
I have never been left any paperwork by building control, they never seem to look at very much in detail. I think they pick one thing to be there specialist subject and look at that carefully, sometimes it might be structural sometimes drainage.

I am not an expert in this but I do on average one project per year that requires building control, they have seen the drawings first and I suspect that if I made a design mistake it would be picked up then. I asked the last guy who came round about how he inspected and he implied that you could tell a lot from the organisation of the site.

Hope thats helpful but I'm sure somebody much more qualified will be along soon.
Simon

 

[Chems]

Trim the King what are you implying?

Ask us to do your work for you then be rude. But that's just a guess. I could be wrong.

Mike Garnham is the man you want. You'd need to email him thou as he left the site for a while.

 

[Anonymous]

Trim has it spot on with his description, that what happens.


anyway, the architect will only issue a variation order if he is acting as a project manager on behalf of the client (john) throughout the project.


In the commercial world had this scenario happened the client knows that he/she will have to pay twice for the supply and once for the fit, or twice for everything if the originals had been fitted also.

we had it recently on a big retail store, we had built an internal lobby, all finished, 25 thousand pounds worth of heaters, 15 thousand pound doors, all the steels, electrics, lights, drylining, all painted etc etc (roughly 80 grands worth of work) and 2 days before handover they decided that they wanted to have it outside. We were then issued a signed variation order to rip it all out, so effectively that means upon final account, we will get paid for putting it all in and then ripping it down again.

great huh!!!

 

[HawkEye]

Cheers Oxy. Seems a little like I'm expected to talk about the documentation for a much larger organisation but given the context of this senario it dosen't tie in at all. Its hardly as if a multi-million pound company is going to be doing rear exenstions for a few grand. So I don't think I would be doing the right thing if I talked about quantity surveyors, and architecutal ammendments and all that for such a small rennovation. Keep it simple. Include a few references to building control and the types of communication, verbal written, possible arranged meetings, possible e-mail of a few drawings, dung like that. I should be alright.

Chems. I'm not being rude. Just don't have time to make a laughing stock of myself, especially for people that really have no intention of helping me anyway. Not everyone who asks for advice is some snotty kid who spends most of his day playing xbox and browsing porn sites. TrimtheKing seems to think that I fall into this category. Pardon me for not letting myself be pigeon holed.

 

[HawkEye]

Cheers Mark that's useful. Need to mention cost in terms of the contractor and that he'll be laughing as a result of a variation order!

 

[Karl]

Chems. I'm not being rude. Just don't have time to make a laughing stock of myself, especially for people that really have no intention of helping me anyway. Not everyone who asks for advice is some snotty kid who spends most of his day playing xbox and browsing porn sites. TrimtheKing seems to think that I fall into this category. Pardon me for not letting myself be pigeon holed.

There's a book in the local library - "How To Make Friends And Influence People". You should read it sometime.

Cheers

Karl

 

[HawkEye]

Hardly.

 

[Anonymous]

Chems. I'm not being rude. Just don't have time to make a laughing stock of myself, especially for people that really have no intention of helping me anyway. Not everyone who asks for advice is some snotty kid who spends most of his day playing xbox and browsing porn sites. TrimtheKing seems to think that I fall into this category. Pardon me for not letting myself be pigeon holed.

There's a book in the local library - "How To Make Friends And Influence People". You should read it sometime.

Cheers

Karl

Thats actually a great book, ive read it and is pretty damn fascinating. So i wouldn't knock it hawkeye.

 

[Digit]

The salesman's bible.

Roy.

 

[studders]

[
There's a book in the local library - "How To Make Friends And Influence People". You should read it sometime.

Cheers

Karl

I wonder if they have the alternative "How to get people to pineapple off an leave you alone"?

:lol: