What does it look like to work with a structural or civil engineer?
To explain our involvement on the different stages of your project, we have shown what our inputs and outputs would be throughout the RIBA Plan of Work stages and the coordinating Structural Plan of Work.
Strategic Definition (Stage 0)
In this initial stage, the client and architect are developing the the scope of the project. For small projects, this stage could be only as long as a meeting between the client and architect.
Usually, there is little structural or civil involvement at this stage; but if you would like our early input, this would likely be in the form of verbal advice at a meeting.
Preparation and Brief (Stage 1)
Stage 1 is an information gathering stage. For architects, this usually takes the form of discussions with the client to develop a brief, and feasibility studies to test that the site can accommodate the clients’ needs. This client should also appoint a ‘Principal Designer’ for CDM at this stage.
For civil and structural engineers, this stage would involve an initial site visit and organising site surveys, for example: geotechnical (soil) surveys, drainage condition surveys, or structural condition surveys on existing structures.
Concept Design (Stage 2)
The architectural involvment at Stage 2 is typically developing outline proposals for the project, including outline drawings and specification. There may also be an Outline Planning application made at this stage.
Structural scopes can very quite a bit in this stage. We may be asked to produce structural strategy sketches for architectural options, just give verbal input at design meetings, or have no input at all. We would recommend to achieve the most cost-effective solution that some structural and civil input is appointed at this stage.
Spatial Coordination (Stage 3)
The main output from this stage is usually a Planning application. The architect will firm up their proposals and produce plans, sections and elevations usually at around 1:50 or 1:100 scale.
At this stage, civil and structural engineers will produce our preliminary designs. The architect will feed these designs into their information ahead of producing their Planning documents.
Technical Design (Stage 4)
This is the largest stage in the pre-construction design process, covering from Planning approval through to when the project starts on site. Architectural outputs fall into three stages; basic Building Regulations drawings (typically Planning drawings with notes), tender drawings, and construction drawings and specification.
At Build Collective, we typically do one design pass in this stage: our construction drawings and calculations for Building Control. To complete these, we need frozen architectural construction infromation. Ahead of completing our final design, we would usually have input at design team meetings to review details with the other designers.
Production Information (Stage 4.5)
This is an additional stage in the IStructE plan of work to account for the need to coordinate any sub-contractor designed items into the overall structural design.
To give contractors the best opportunity to work with existing contacts and give the client best value for money, our construction infromation won’t usually involve the specification of specific products, we keep our input to broad performance specifications, which the sub-contractors then need to meet with their products. If you would like us to integrate specific products into our designs, that would take place at this stage, once we have received the sub-contractors’ designs.
Sub-contractor designed items could be: staircases and balustrades, temporary works design, reinforcement detailing, trussed rafter or metal web joist design, ICF or large format clay blocks (Porotherm), etc.
Manufacturing and Construction (Stage 5)
This is when the project actually gets built!
Our involvement at this stage would be dealing with any site queries, and attending site meetings. Unless we have a schedule of site meetings ahead of the construction phase, we would typically charge on an ad hoc basis for Stage 5 input.
Handover (Stage 6)
It is at this stage when the client gets the keys to their new building.
Ahead of the handover, we might be asked to produce ‘as built’ drawings, but that isn’t a common requirement on the size of projects we work on.
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