As mentioned in Reflection 1, a brief site analysis is always needed to properly understand the scope and feasibility of a project. In this reflection, however, the site investigation and evaluation is what happens in Stages 1 to 3 of the project. This is where all statutory and zoning scheme knowledge is required. It is when you start to ask questions such as, “Will the project require a rezoning, EIA or TIA? What are the height restrictions, setbacks or heritage status? What is the contextual and climate impact? Previously many of these questions had to be answered at the municipality, however, now most areas have zoning websites. These websites will include information on the current zoning of a site, heritage status, property ownership, erf numbers and site area. It is now also possible to download the SG Diagrams, title deeds and most other information required to formulate an accurate analysis of the site. We typically use ‘Cape Town Farm Mapper’ for our western cape projects and have a ‘Windeed’ subscription to request title deeds. Once all the information is received, we will then proceed to the SDP (site development plan). This plan will show the proportions, location and impact of the buildings. This requires the bulk, coverage, FAR and parking calculations, to make sure that we fit within the zoning requirements. This SDP will include a basic level of materiality and aesthetics to give a high-level description of the design intent. Council will scrutinise this to make sure it either fits with their town planning or other requirements. While this is underway, we also meet regularly with the client and consultants to workshop the design concept and understand the services required. The space required for these services needs to be incorporated into the design and it also determines if the current bulk infrastructure needs to be upgraded. It can be a substantial cost to improve the site’s bulk services. In these meetings, we will also show Lumion or Revit 3D images and flythroughs to give the client a good understanding of what we have envisioned. I have generated countless amount of 3D flythroughs and renderings over the years. I have included some of these in the slideshow below. This is a great way to sell your design to the client, get everybody on the same page, and/or use it for marketing material to anchor potential investors or tenants. Once the design is finalised or close to complete, the QS will be able to take all the information we have generated and come up with an elemental costing/budget. The outcome of this will inform us if the design proposal is feasible, as well as answer any questions which were budget dependent. This budget usually defines the project cost which will then be used to finalise the professional teams’ fees and cash flow, completing the appointment through the PROCSA agreement, which I mentioned in my 1st reflection. The cash flow is generally related to the project program which the project manager will put in place. I have done a program for a few projects in the past, but it has always been high-level. I have included an example in the slide show below. I have never had to generate a GANTT chart myself, as our projects are large enough to always have a project manager in place. I generated a GANTT chart for practice assignment PS1.3 and was surprised at how much I knew from years of studying these charts. |
Seth AlfinoProfessional Architectural Technologist working in Cape Town, South Africa Blogs |