Drafting quote?

I'm looking at doing my own Pergola project (real nice, textured brick piers etc) with gable roof tied into existing roof). Can someone recommend a good draftsman for this very small project in Adelaide?

I agree with this quote 110%

A good Architect or draftsperson will be able to provide a house you will love to live in, something designed for your personal circumstances and designed to perform well also. Bad plans = bad house. You can have the best trades in the world but if the design is poor that is what you will get.


I went to our Architect with a "sketch" of what I thought we wanted. After many hours of talking , working through designs and educating myself I soon realised how wrong I had it. I knew the type of rooms and things we wanted but how it all worked together and made the best use of everything I really had no idea (Although I thought I did at the time )

However it really depends what type of house you are building. If it is very standard layout and you dont want any more then by all means look to shop around price, (Or maybe get a builder to do it) however if it is to be your 20 year house then make sure you get the plans right. We have spent a good 12 months on design and I am so glad we have.

Our build will kick off in a few weeks and the time and thought put in early should save a lot of heartache down the track

The main thing with a Draftperson or Architect I think is to find one you are happy to work with, one who will listen to you but at the same time guide and educate you. Price is important but shouldnt be the deciding factor. We spent a good $15K with our architect but I don't begrudge one cent of that and think we got a bargain. I would (and am going to as a bonus thank you) happily pay her more.

Heck we pay Tradies up to $100 an hour to run cable or water pipes! A good Architect is worth that and more, and as mentioned will save you their fee with accurate drawings and a great design.

HI there

Couldnt agree more with Robs comments. We paid an architect through the flipping nose and ended up with crap plans, although I love the house! I certianly will not be giving my architect a bonus as his plans were so impossible to read that at EVERY stage of the build from first plumbing lay, slab and upwards the tradespeople have battled with the plans.

Go word of mouth every time.

k

Professional services in the building industry are generally terrible, I have only had nightmare experiences with architects, , most engineers have failed me horribly and I have only ever had one good draftee (but we took him well drawn cad drawings and a very clear brief to start with). The house we are building at the moment we designed, drafted and engineered ourselves and it has worked out incredibly well and saved us a lot of money. My 2 cents worth.

Steve

Hi nemisis,
We are in Blackwood and also looking for a draftsman or someone to do some council calculations for a pergola.
Did you find anyone?

Yes I might have found someone. Will PM you when I get more info.

if he drives a barina your getting a good deal, if he's driving an audi your still getting a good deal, though he's just trying to appear successful!!

1984 Subaru Sportswagon.

In all seriousness though;
Design / Drafting is not a black art.
There are two essential rules of thumb;
1-If you know what your want, can sketch or dictate the design, and essentially know how to build, then get a draftie.
2-If you have no idea of what you want, no concept, and no notion of building, then get an Architect.

Pricing:
There are numerous ways of coming up with a price, and everyone has their own preference, I sometimes use a mixture of all of the below depending on the specific job and requirements.
-A percentage of the building cost
-A rate per square meter
-An hourly rate
-A fixed lump sum

Do remember, then ye guys are 'interviewing' drafties/architects/designers, we are actually simultaniously return interviewing you.
If Im sitting in a consultation, and the Client is well on top of their requirements, can sketch or scribble their proposal and shows an understanding of the process, In my head Im formulating a reasonable quote based on their performance, because I will probably end up drafting it once, with maybe a few tweaks to the drawings afterwards.

If Im sitting there and the client was no clue about what they are doing, alarm bells are going off in my head. Im going to end up drawing this thing 10 times, and squander hours and hours trying to get information, decisions, agreement on what the client wants. In this situation my quote swells to suit the clients uncertainty. In some cases I will end the consultation and advise......You need an Architect. And walk away.

In conclusion:
-Shop around, there are lots out there, all with varying degrees of skill, knowledge, pricing methods.
-Do your own homework prior to meeting/engaging an architect/designer/draftie. Have sketches, photos, scribbles, etc ready to go of your requirements.

Hope this sheds some light on this issue.
Pat.

Thanks Pat as I'm meeting a draftsman this w/end coming. Thanks for the tips.

Got a draft of my plan!!! yay! Man A1 paper is sooo cool!
In the end went through an Architect. My extension will be tied in to the existing roof so all under roof. Can't wait to manage this project.

A good architect will definitely pay for themselves, but it depends on the complexity of your build. Some houses are inherently easier and cheaper to build. My place is 3stories on a sloping lot with a 7m fall. The engineering and drainage (had that also done by a civil engineer) was over $6k. I hear about people spending that on their full set of drawings, which I guess is possible, but not on anything that might be complicated or out of the ordinary.

Even with all the engineering I did in advance, I still probably had an extra 45 cubic meters of concrete go into the foundations that we couldn't forecast.

Interesting, I used a designer builder / draftsman and he was able to determine how it should be designed from only a rough idea of what I needed
Although I guess its different for each person and my building was relatively simple, single storey and a flat block

What I find really interesting is how so many people de-value the design process and think that they can do it themselves or rely on drafts people who have no design training. Architects train and study for years in design and construction and can often come up with ideas and solutions that the everyday person cannot. In my experience, if you get a good one that will listen to you, they are certainly worth their fees and will end up saving you money and give you a much nicer house that it is suited to your lifestyle and isn't just a copy of what everyone else has. Most every day people and drafts people don't have the design skills yet everyone thinks that they can do it themselves.

quoted for truth.

to add to this, I find it disturbing with the amount of ignorant people who owner build that blatantly assume the designer takes on complete responsibility on site after the plans are done, and expect the designer to pay for rookie owner builder mistakes between trades, that a qualified and registered builder would normally check for.

It's interesting to read posts where people are comparing Architects with Draftspersons.
Basically, the former takes a commission to take a design thru to completion. The latter is a technician who produces a drawing in order to facilitate the design.
Belittling one or the other is pointless as they have different roles. It is also generalizing all draftpersons as not being trained in design. The best designers are the end users of that product (ie the owner). The best person to help the owner realise this is not always the highest paid or most "trained in design" If that was the case my 20 + years of working with builders, architects and engineers would be worth nothing.
My advice to owners is to find someone you can work with and listen to their experience, rather than asking their qualifications.