As a business owner who plans to buy and renovate, or build a commercial building to fulfill their business vision, you may very will likely need the services of an architect. Each business is unique and will likely require have very specific space requirements. There are many architectural firms in Calgary, so choosing one will take a little bit of preparation. A business owner will want to ensure they are selecting an architect they can work with and do so in a timely manner to complete the project to get their business up and running. Here are some tips to get you started in the right direction.
Prepare a Budget
As you cost out your business plan and set up how much you plan to spend on equipment, business infrastructure, materials labour and sallies, you should also factor in how much you want to spend on the architectural plans. The more information you can pass on to the architect about how much you have budgeted for your project, the easier it will be the architectural firm to achieve your vision.
Prepare a Wish List
It’s a good a idea to consider not only what you specifically need or ‘must have’, but also to consider innovative ideas or a ‘wish list’ to enhance and improve your business even more. Remember to be realistic as an architect has to work within a defined space and has to complete the project that meets your budgetary requirements. Additionally, there is the building code to consider and zoning requirements which may also factor in the decision making process.
Draw up a Brief
It might even be a good idea to draw up some rough sketches yourself to show how you envision the process of your business vision. Of course, the architect will do their own preliminary sketches and on site before they draw up the plans to ensure you are both in sync. Every business strives to be both productive and more importantly, efficient. Clearly, an office process is quite different from the needs of an assembly or manufacturer. However, the one thing all businesses have in common is that they all strive to produce their service or product as seamlessly as possible. An inefficient design ends up hurting your bottom line because as they say ‘time is money’.
Be Clear on your Time Frame
Neither you nor the architect wants a project to drag needlessly out. When you sit down to discuss your contract requirements with an architect, make sure you spell out your time requirements in the contract. However, remember that some delays are unavoidable, nor does it help if you keep changing your mind during the process.
Qualifications and References
Every architect has to be licensed in Alberta and should belong to a professional association such as the Alberta Association of Architects. Any architect whose services you want to use should be happy to provide you with references. It is also a good idea to contact the references provided so you can better understand the process and perhaps get a better idea of how best to work with your architect. You also want to ensure you have drawn up a very clear contract when you do sign on.
CAA
A good place to start your search and to learn more what you should do to prepare, and find a suitable architect is to check out the Consulting Architects of Alberta (CAA) website to find some very valuable and useful information on how best to use the services of an architect in Calgary.
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