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Description
In order to get a better understanding of what it is like to work at a firm, you first have to understand that there are different types of firms and depending what type of firm you work for, your experience may vary greatly when compared to the other types. Now, generally speaking you can group a firm by its size, or by the type of work that they do - and will get into that in just a moment, but before we do, it’s important that you understand what kind of work needs to be done in a firm before understanding how each type of firm handles the work.
Generally, work done in a firm can be divided into 4 phases
Now let’s go over each one and see what they mean.
Schematic Phase
This phase can be a little complex sometimes because the client might not agree with some (or all) of the decision you have made and you will need to spend some time altering your design before it is accepted. Once your proposal is approved by the client, you move on to the next phase.
Design Development Phase
The design development phase is a phase that, just like its name suggests, is used to develop the design further. You’ll have multiple meetings with the client while defining your design to make sure they are on board with it; once they accept the proposed design during this phase, it’s time to move to the next phase called the Construction Documents phase.
Construction Documents Phase
This phase doesn’t necessarily mean that you are done designing, but instead it is a phase where you will tie most of the loose ends that you didn’t during the first two phases. Here you are creating a set of plans and documents that will serve as a manual to be used to build the design. This set will ultimately be given to a contractor, who will use a team to put together the building that you and your team have created.
Construction Administration Phase
The last phase we are going to take a look at is the construction administration phase.
Different Types of Firms
So now that you have a better understanding of what an architecture firm does during a project, let’s take a look at the different types of firms that there are, and how each of these firms handle each of the phases.
Efficiency based firms work on projects like parking garages, retail stores, and warehouses. They are able to develop designs and plans at a faster and less-expensive rate.
The Experience-type work on projects like schools, museums, and hospitality related projects. They are able to use their experience to work on very complex program.
Expertise-type firms include, just like the name suggests, expertise in an architectural category. Zaha Hadid, BIG, and Frank Gehry are three firms that could be considered expertise type firms. Clients tend to seek them out because of their expertise and ability to create unique projects
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