How to Incorporate Interior Designers Into Your Project Team
When choosing your interior designers for your next project, how they work with the rest of your team will be a crucial consideration for you.
The bigger the project, the bigger your team will likely be. Therefore it’s even more critical that everyone involved can work alongside each other in harmony.
The RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) Plan of Work aims to help with just that. It is an industry-recognised organisational tool widely referenced by construction professionals in the UK and provides a valuable framework for defining various elements of any project. It’s a framework everyone can follow to work towards the same goals throughout the project.
By referencing the RIBA Plan of Work within our design process, we can ensure that our work fits in perfectly with the rest of the construction professional’s work, which then ensures:
- We can add as much value as possible in the early stages of your build
- We don’t duplicate work between teams
- We all make design decisions in the right order to facilitate other teams’ decisions
So, how does our design process fit into this plan of work?
Like the RIBA Plan of Work, our design process fits neatly into six stages.
Stage One: The Brief
The first stage of any project is to create a design brief. We are looking to figure out who we are designing the space for, how it will be used, what it should look like, what budget you have, and any other logistical points we need to know about.
This fits into Stage 1 of the RIBA Plan of Work.
Stage Two: Concept
Once we have your brief, we start to work on the concept. This involves space planning. We work from your architect’s plans or a site survey to draw up plans for your space and add all the furniture and fittings you need.
Stage Two allows us to consider the functions of each space, how the furniture will fit, how people will move around the space, and which areas we can use to create unique features within the design.
We also create the design concept for each room, showing the look and feel of each space, the types of furniture we’d suggest, and compiling the material finishes into one area to see how they compliment each other.
This is done during Stage 2 of the RIBA Plan of Work.
Stage Three: Spatial Coordination
While we have our space plans already, there needs to be a stage where everyone’s plans are coordinated. This is what Stage Three is for. As your designers, we won’t be looking to make any significant changes at this point, except for minor tweaks and compromises to incorporate any structural supports or additional requirements for electrical and plumbing.
This is done during Stage 3 of the RIBA Plan of Work.
Stage Four: Technical Design
In the technical design stage, we start drilling into the logistics of how the design will come to life. We prepare all design information, drawings, specifications, and schedules required to cost, manufacture, and construct the project to completion.
We will also look at your materials, fixtures, and furniture so that they can be sourced, ordered, and installed. This stage will overlap with the construction stage (Stage Five) as some elements aren’t needed until later, especially any loose furniture, which will be sourced later into the build.
Stage Five: Project Construction
During Stage Five, we are on hand to complete site visits and check that our design is being implemented correctly. We are also here to help with any bespoke builds, such as joinery and ensure the installation of design features runs smoothly.
This is done during Stage 5 of the RIBA Plan of Work, where the construction work for the whole project occurs.
Stage Six: Finishing Touches
In the RIBA Plan of Work, this stage is the handover stage. As your designer, our job is to have the property fully ready, whether for sale, to move into or for your tenants to move into. We will be on hand to oversee the installation of your furniture and stage and style the home so that it’s “picture ready”.
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We love having a framework to follow that everyone works towards. This means we can ensure our design decisions are made early enough to not have any negative impact later. Ultimately, this saves you money and ensures your project stays on track.
Book your Discovery Call today or email us if you’d like to learn more about how we run our projects.
