Getting an architect

Druidyourlookingfor

I have a question 🙋🏻‍♂️. When architects go MIA, radio silence, or evaporate!!!? Is it because the project doesn't suit and they want rid of the client so they stop all communication?

I have paid my architects to get planning permission with drawings and permission was granted but now I have not heard sight nor sound from them?

This was during lockdowns but I would of thought a courtesy of what the actual **** happens next?!? Stumbling block was finding people to cost the build but the search has now turned into them vanishing off the radar.

So I know there are architects and professionals in here and I get that you can't tar them with the same brush but I want to know is this the REAL culture bearing in mind this is my second architect in a row that has had the same attitude.

What should I do next, I don't own the copyright of drawings do I?

mickdw

Well firstly you got the service you paid for so you have not been burned but it is pretty crap of them not to follow up and at least advise that they are not in a position to undertake build stage works.

Just get someone else and carry on.

C. Eastwood

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119365851#Comment_119365851

You have Planning Permission. You need to move on and construct your building.

Your present Construction Professional (CO) apparently is not will to work with you, could be the fact that they are too busy.

You need to pay your present CP in full and part amicable.

Any CP who hold Membership of any of the Professional Bodies are precluded in accordance with their Code of Conduct from working for a Client until they are satisfied that the previous CP has been properly discharged.

Your Previous CP holds all your Planning and Design Drawings in AutoCAD, and hopefully your present CP will email the AutoCAD Drawings to your new CP.

If not the new CP will have to redraw all of the Planning drawings etc in AutoCAD.

The AutoCAD drawings are required for a Commencement Certificate.

Make decisions immediately and move on and get building.

Druidyourlookingfor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119371797#Comment_119371797

Can the current CP refuse to release the drawings to us so we can move on for any reason? As I have said they have been paid up to date at this point.

C. Eastwood

The only way to find that out is to get the new CP to phone your previous CP, requesting a copy of your AutoCAD Drawings, followed up by an email.

Do this immediately.

sydthebeat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119371999#Comment_119371999

usually the provision of pdfs is what happens when another CP comes in during a project.

some CPs might be happy to pass on the CADs, a lot wouldnt be though, especially if its a particular singular design.

copyright extends to the client for the use of the design on their build only (ie under license). The actual copyright of the design lies with the creator.

giving the CADs leaves a lot more possibility of the design being reused (or augmented in a manner), therefore most designers only provide the pdfs of the design for use by the client.

Druidyourlookingfor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119370396#Comment_119370396

"pretty crap" is putting it mildly

mickdw

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119372282#Comment_119372282

Well you maybe don't grasp that these are very much separate stages so it's not really unusual to change providers.

You have not been conned or anything like that.

Of course there is a small chance that the original guy has made a complete mess and is gone awol for that reason.

Druidyourlookingfor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119373375#Comment_119373375

I never said I felt conned or anything and I know about the stages as is our contract, it's how they communicate or rather not communicate is where I have the issue. I don't even have anyone lined up because I still don't know what has actually happened with the Architect. It's been all emails sent and nothing coming back. What drives me nuts is that they have turned us into nagging clients when its coming up to a year since the last email from them. So we have been patient but now it's time for phonecalls to escalate things. Is it the culture of this sector?

sydthebeat

no its not the "culture" in the industry.

However by the same measure as is felt in a lot of other industries lately (service industry, airlines, public services, transport, imports etc) there is a lack of workers so perhaps this office is so busy that it cannot take on new work?

you havent phoned them in a year? why not?

Druidyourlookingfor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119373688#Comment_119373688

Its not quite a year yet but alot has happened in the past few months. Like you said, they quite possibly did have staff shortage issues. We had another wee addition to our family just to pile more pressure on a house that badly needs renovation. So our focus was obviously not on hounding them for an update on the phone when all we wanted was a reply back to an email on status of the project. Here we are speculating when all they have to do is communicate their issues why it has stalled!?!! It's just bloody manners at this rate.

sydthebeat

I'm still confused though

You refer to "update" and "status on the project" but yet you've already said that what they were engaged to do was complete.

So there would be no "update", and the "status of the project" would have been 'complete' a year ago, according to what they were engaged to do

sprucemoose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119373688#Comment_119373688

i dunno, theres a bit of truth in that being kinda the culture though i think. out of the various tutors i had in college, id say id describe only about 10/15% as anything other than rude/ignorant. having worked in offices of various scales since then, id say it is/was about 50-50 in terms of colleagues, i think architecture might be one of those professions that just attracts those kinds of people. or maybe the education culture is so toxic it creates these people. or maybe im just cynical, who knows

anyway, in all seriousness construction has been unbelievably busy over the last few years so that probably has come into it. but it comes down to what was agreed at the initial stage op, was the architect engaged just to obtain planning permission or were they to be involved in the construction stage too? or was it to start with planning and then be re-evaluated once the first stage was completed? if they were to just be involved in the planning stage then, while theyre being rude, they dont really owe you further communication to be honest.

fliball123

If I was you I would leave any building works for 18 months or so. With the recession kicking in by the end of the year you will save at least a good % on the cost

sydthebeat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119374101#Comment_119374101

Seen interest rates lately??

fliball123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119374122#Comment_119374122

and have you seen the price of building materials and other expenses related to construction work (oil/gas, etc). These commodities will not stay that high for ever and the fact is interest rates rising will mean more people pulling out of doing construction work as it has just become even more expensive if they need loan so it might mean less work going around and some actual competition.

Druidyourlookingfor

Agreed, Materials and labour right now make it a hostile time to do anything in construction and the budget would have to be pulled apart but life has to go on, can't stay paused forever. We hired these people to go all the way with this. The payment for each stage was agreed once they completed each stage so it was never a case of "just get us to the planning and then we will see", we were promised that the design would be carried through to construction. I guess I'm negative because this is the second architect, the first one was in early 2019, an absolute disaster and had nothing to show us at the start regarding drawings because he didn't communicate with his surveyor and when it came to us seeing what he came up with he was a mess and had nothing and blamed the surveyor. The house could of possibly have been half built or even started before covid arrived. If we are getting a new architect it will be wifey who is picking them because I'm 2 for 2 with the arseholes. Rant over.