Architectural Design- thorough and informative design brief

A thorough and informative design brief is an imperative part of the design process. It is an essential point of reference not only for the architect, but for all people involved in the design and implementation of the project. The more information we can gain from the client in the early stages of design, the more effective our decision making and problem solving process will be.

There are two main types of architectural design brief that we will focus on here which in many ways are quite different from each other. There is the private domestic type client that may be looking to have a home designed. They could be someone that has never employed an architect before, and has little or no experience of the architectural design and construction process. The commercial client however, generally is more experienced, and has very different priorities to a domestic client.

Often clients, particularly domestic, may find it daunting to compile a design brief and as such it is important that we, the professionals, guide our clients to give us the information we need.