architecture tips

Communication

The architect is language is essentially visual. Sketches, drawings, images are the tools used to convey design intent to drafters, consultants, vendors and clients. Today technology allows any of these to be easily sent to any part of the world. Why then does communication get listed as a challenge? Let is look at this from another angle Why does a bit of frustration or irritation creep in one gives instructions to one's drafter over the phone? Maybe this question will help further Why do architects form a high percent of business travelers, second to only sales and marketing, in many countries? Think again, the last time when an architect explained his design. He used a mix of 3 modes of communication

(a) Visual, using lines

(b) Words, using voice or text

(c) Action, using hand gestures and responsive action by the listener, in the form of nods, shakes, eye contact, etc.

The last part, especially, is a hallmark of anyone communicating a design or an idea. So, how does Outsourcing deal with this innate need of communication in architectural CAD drafting services?

Time difference

More often than not, the architect and the service provider are in different time zones. Service providers use this as a selling point "we work when you sleep, thus making your office a round-the0clock studio". How about the times when:

It was the last day and we couldn't open the files sent The layers were wrong and we had to redo a lot of stuff just to print The X Ref command is giving an error and I can't solve it. I'm stuck There are some minor corrections. Now do I have to wait a full day? There is a change that is easy to explain over the phone. Is there anyone I can talk to, or do I have to go through the whole routine of red line-scan-email-describe?

Scheduling

A beginner to Outsourcing of architectural CAD drafting services would feel it takes longer to do a drawing, than when done in-house. No refuting that. Here are typical challenges faced in scheduling:

Response time due to time zones Need to write everything down Need to scan red lined drawings and send them through email Time for number of reviews More quality checks happen at service provider's end The smallest of delays by the client are immediately met by a revised schedule and extended deadline from the service provider

Manpower

Typical questions in the client's mind about the architectural CAD drafting services provider

What quality of people does that country provide Outsourcing being cost oriented, would not my service provider pick the cheapest resources? Why would the best brains join a monotonous, non-creative job? How do we know that the team promised (and billed for) on my job has not been replaced by cheaper and less qualified resources?

Confidentiality

The worry about their drawings remaining confidential is a big concern amongst first time users of outsources architectural CAD drafting services, the prime worries being:

The strictness of copyright and IPR laws designs in the service provider's country The temptation of the service provider to use the designs for a local project The chances of one is work being shared with a competitor The chances of one is name being quoted as an outsourcer The chances of one's drawings being shared proudly as samples of work done

The AEC Associates is a design support service provider for all disciplines of the architecture, engineering and construction industry. We will assist you in all your drawing, drafting, documentation, CAD/BIM and value added services.

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A number of questions were featured, that may occur in the minds of the architects planning to Outsource the first time. This article does not intend to directly answer each question, for the simple reason that many of these are particular to the client and the service. In fact it is recommended that the client addresses these questions when hiring his architectural CAD services partner.

In this article, we look at suggestions on how Outsourcing of these services may be done. In this perspective, we do not look at the benefit of the client or the service provider, but more at successful completion of the project.

The Brief

Popularly known as the foundation of client satisfaction in any creative endeavor, the Brief describes the task to be done, covering these aspects:

Expected outputCommitted inputDeadlineMilestonesWork processPeople responsibleFile Transfer Protocols

Documentation

Two simple but valuable quotations from an experienced speaker in this industry are:

Queries, when they arise, must be put up. There is no stupid question, except the one you didn't ask
When in doubt, write it out

Design being a dynamic exchange of ideas, needs query, resolution and suggestion. And these need record and documentation. There are no words that can show the true value of written communication in Outsourcing.

Communication

One of the challenges of any remote working relationship is a sense of loss of control. The digital age is still new, and we need things to be tangible to trust in them. In this situation, communication plays a key role in bridging the gap between fear and feel. These are the different modes of communication used:

TelephoneVideo ConferenceEmailLive chat, like Skype or, at times, a client's proprietary 'chat-ware'Desktop sharing sessions, like GoToMeeting

Process

A good outsourcing relationship specifies not just the goal, but also the methodology in which the client and the architectural Cad services partner will get there. This ensures a smooth efficient, and, yes, profitable journey for both.

Almost every company has a work process of their own. Most of these processes are organically evolved through hits, misses and project demands. But they become habit, almost second nature to the organization and its workers. The architectural CAD drafting services firm, on the other hand, would, perhaps be used to 4 or 5 processes, having worked with those many types of clients.

To ensure a smooth ride, it is important to marry these processes, and customize a process for the project which works best for both.

Back up

Anything that can go wrong will go wrong Murphy's Law.

And a modern corollary of this law is: "Hope for the best, plan for the worst".

Reputations are built on trust, which come from delivering unfailingly. To make that happen, we must plan for failure, and always create a back-up. This has been discussed with an excellent live example from this very industry in our separate blog in this subject.

Project Management

Another key to success in Outsourcing is to treat the smallest of jobs as a project, with a Project Manager in charge, and responsible for:

DeliveryQualityPlanningSchedulingTrackingReporting

Agreement

Conclusively, a smooth relationship rides on a clear agreement on, in this case:

PriceDeliverablesDeadlinesPayment termsDeviationsExitConflict resolution

Each of these will be separately dealt with in separate blogs or articles.

The AEC Associates is a design support service provider for all disciplines of the architecture, engineering and construction industry. We will assist you in all your drawing, drafting, documentation, CAD/BIM and value added services.

View the original article here