Step By Step

Below is a step by step guide which will illustrate what happens if you come to us with a proposed development. The drawings included are taken from a house extension project. Please note that certain building regulations have been revised since the production of the example ‘working’ drawing and therefore some details may not be to current standards.

To view our example drawings you will need to first download ‘Autodesk Express Viewer’, this is a free plug-in and should only take a few minutes to download. Clicking on the C.A.D examples will auto download and install the viewer if you have not done so already or you can Click here to download manually. The plug-in only needs to be downloaded and installed once in order to access all C.A.D examples on this site.

On receiving an inquiry from a prospective client, we will arrange to attend an initial free of cost consultation and site visit to establish the brief and give initial guidance to the proposals.

We will then issue a quotation to carry out the works which can include the design only for planning matters, or design and working drawings for costing and quotations or a fully supervised project.

On the clients approval of the quotation for the selected works, we will carry out all necessary site surveys to include all relevant matters that will effect the design and usually includes internal & external measured surveys, site levels, location of services and utilities and other issues affecting the proposals.

From the site information gathered, our engineers and draughtsmen will produce C.A.D drawings showing the existing site including plans & elevations of any existing buildings relevant to the proposals, as required by planning authorities for most schemes. ( C.A.D. ) or ‘Computer Aided Design’ technology is utilized throughout the design process and is a powerful tool that allows us to quickly develop designs.

Once the existing site drawings have been prepared and checked, the design team working closely within the client brief, expands them into preliminary design drawings showing the proposed additions and alterations.These designs and specifications are passed to the client for approval and may be revised or refined to suit until the client is fully happy.

Once the final design and specifications have been approved by the client, drawings are made ready for the submission of a planning application. Please note that not all developments require planning permission, most internal alterations for example, may not require planning permission though building regulations approval is required in most instances. It is advisable to check with your local authority before works commence. Detailed information about planning policy and building regulations can be found here.

Further to the finalization of the proposed works, the drawings are developed into detailed ‘working’ drawings. Drawings at this level may show sectioned views of a design, and specify the materials used in construction. Typically ‘working’ drawings will be highly detailed and contain important notes to support the written specification. Both documents and relevant drawings are then submitted to building control for approval.

Once planning permission has been granted, and working drawings have been approved by building control, drawings and specifications can then be used by the client to secure quotes from prospective contractors. Clients may allow contractors to proceed with some preparatory elements of a project before working drawings have been approved but it is highly advisable that clients consult with us or the building control department before works commence. We can if asked, assist in putting together tender packages and/or source suitable contractors.

Planning approval and building regulation approval should always be kept safe, preferably together with the property deeds, as these documents will be required should you come to sell the property later.

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