Grand Designs

[Roger Evans]

I've just finished watching a TV Programme called Grand Designs

a Truly inspirational TV programme (& Architecture)

Google for Grand Designs & you should come up with
Channel 4.com - Grand Designs

This week was a house in Argyle Scotland ~ magic to watch & the web site ain't bad either.

(sorry I tried copying link but wouldn't work)

Cheers

Roger

[Scott D Davis]

link:

http://www.channel4.com/life/microsi...grand_designs/

[Roger Evans]

Well Thank you Scott

You should check out the Archive section ~

Me I'm off to get p.......

[Phil Palmer]

Good programme last night I thought Roger.

A real hands-on type of architect there. It must of been great for him to appear to have designed his dream home although it was not his at the end.
I bet he got a good fee

[Roger Evans]

Good Fee? By rights he should have but I reckon if he totalled his hours
he wouldn't have much more than the min wage & That's a trap I'm trying hard to get out of.

Given the earlier problems I take my hat off to him for rolling up his sleeves & getting on with it

Yes he did design for himself ~ but that's architects for you

What surprises me is that there is no contact link to the guy

Wonderful programme nonetheless

[PeterJ]

I don't much like Grand Designs from an architectural perspective as it needs to be cut to make for good TV and therefore often concentrates on any battle that may have occurred and that will often paint the architect in a bad light.

On the other hand it does make for some pretty compelling TV.

I thought the incorporation of the cruck frame in the design yesterday was a little crook, but maybe that's just me.

[Roger Evans]

OK Just watched the last in the series very interesting.

What stunned me was the cost of the build project albeit it did include some pretty high tech equipment.
175m2 (1885 sq ft) for £300,000
£1,715 per sq m (£155 sq ft)

This design was based on pretty much international construction methods Especially comparable to American Australian NZ so the thought occurs ...

What cost would you guys expect 175 sq m design for reasonably high spec??
For a basic Residential what pre design costs do you work on per M2 / Ft2 ?

It would be interesting to compare

Cheers

Roger

[PeterJ]

£1,300-£1,500 for residential, including kitchen, sanitaryware, external works, services connections OHP and prelimiaries, but this can easily rise to ££1,900 for something bespoke.

I have been doing several precontract cost analysis with a local QS recently and he has given me these figures for the stuff we are working on based on his recent completed work.

These projects are in upmarket neighbourhoods in the south-east. I have found some people getting labout from the south west or wales and putting them in digs or a caravan and getting the job done cheaper, so your local rates may be different. This practice only works for small jobs though and none of my clients have done it yet, thank god.

[Roger Evans]

Cheers Peter
Seems you are getting involved in some nice stuff
Do you fancy posting up some examples?

If you take a look at Home Building Renovating it seems that the designs start from around £750 £850 per m2 for traditional this applicable to the whole of the UK
Last year they were implying a budget cost of £500 / m2
On that basis I wouldn't imagine the house type Martin P posted recently would climb to £1500 / m2

I would still be interested to compare with American / Australian costs
and the rest of Europe for that matter

Cheers

Roger

[PeterJ]

It is good quality residential work, architecturally nothing to set the world on fire, just big, but yes, I'll post an image or two for you. It may take a while, that's all.

I'm not familiar with Home Renovation or whatever it's called, is it a magazine? Is it trade targetted or aimed at the owner/occupier. I find with stuff like that you need to check very carefully what is included that is why I listed everything including kitchen, prelims and OHP. Also with these higher end residential projects you find that the servicing costs rise in proportion with the budget, such that on a recent project we were looking at an installation that was to cost £55k for mechanicals on a house cost around £750k. It was a big house and we were proposing a pressurised water system with constant circulation, after all if you live in a house with a value of £2M plus you want to have instantaneous hot water wherever you are and that is just not achievable with low cost systems.

It may very well be possible to beuild a simple masonry shell, tiimber first floor, ground bearing slab, Redland 49s on the roof and plastic windows for £650-850 or so, but then you need to service it, carpet it and so on and that is where the real gulf seems to lie.