The work starts with the production of a detailed building programme by an experienced architect on the basis of the questionnaire.
The sketch scheme is begun by drawing individual rooms of the required areas as simple rectangles, to scale, grouped in the desired relationships to each other and to the compass directions. During this stage, the building commission becomes increasingly clear and a picture forms in the architect's eye. Instead of starting on the drawings, however, on the basis of the previous work establishing the building area, the final position of the structure on the site should be determined. This is often decided by exploring the compass direction, the wind direction, possible access routes, the lie of the land, existing trees and the neighbourhood. Unless the one correct location of the building is obvious in advance, this will require many attempts to exhaust the possibilities and detailed discussions about the pros and cons. These investigations will normally render decision-making fairly quick, and the image of the future building gradually into focus.
And now come the birth pains of the actual design stage, first in the architect's imagination out of their deep immersion in the organic and organisational issues raised by the commission and the thoughts behind them. This creates a schematic idea in the mind of the architect of the overall configuration of the building and its spatial atmosphere, from which can be developed the outline of its appearance in plan and elevation.
On the other hand, according to the architect's temperament, for some a rapid sketch or an intricate scribble is the first product of this birth process. The impetus of the first sketch can often be squandered by unskilled helpers, however. The clarity of this image in the mind normally increases with the experience and character of the designer. Older, mature architects are often capable of drawing the final design layout freehand to the precise scale and in full detail. Some refined, mature works are produced in this way, although they mostly lose the verve of earlier designs.
Once the preliminary design is completed a rest period of 3-14 days is advisable, as this allows detachment from it and permits defects to become more obvious, but also offers suggestions for their remedy, because such a waiting time removes many preconceived notions, not least through discussions with employees or the client.
Now the detailed processing of the design starts, the meetings with the structural and services engineers, in short the determination of the construction and the installations. After this (but mostly in advance), the drawings are sent off to the building approval authority, whose examination normally takes 3-6 months.
During this time, the costs are estimated and the works put out to tender using ready-made forms, so that the tenders are available when the building approval is granted, the contracts can be awarded promptly and work can start. All the tasks described here can keep the architect busy for 2-3 months (for a large detached house) or 3-12 months (for a larger project such as a hospital, depending on the circumstances.
It is not advisable to try to save money on design work, as more time spent on careful preparation at this stage can quickly be recouped during the building phase. In addition, the client saves costs and interest."
What is design? How does design work and what differentiates 'building' from 'architecture'? Reading the text by Ernst Neufert from the first edition of 'Architect's Data', opposite, it is still clear that he is talking about the essential stages of the design process and describing for the reader the human experience of the working method, which we can understand via his encouraging but pretention-free words.
Ernst Neufert's views of the influences driving the creative process in architecture would certainly be different if he wrote them today. In what way and to what purpose, we cannot know, considering the developments in architectural theory in the last 20-30 years. So the current generation is faced with the question, what should be the fundamentals of design, in order to encourage an authentic architectural form?
Design seems to be very easy, and at the same time very difficult, with many influences. But it is always about space and its construction through architectural elements: if a single space is formed by its function, then a number of spaces require overall organisation, a spatial theme. The architectural elements are in accordance with the theme and mould the specific form and the authenticity of style in its time. History shows that a building commission is only fixed to a certain extent in its spatial style. A building type often changes for reasons which do not always have to do with function. A building can offer many uses, because it more than just a 'glove' for the function - which is demonstrated by the long lives of old buildings.
The essential drivers of change in typological characteristics are more often pictorial ideas about the cultural significance of a building, which result in alterations to the spatial and architectural elements. Buildings with a great influence on architectural history mostly have a very precisely emphasised spatial theme, which determines the overall layout. Excellent and masterful can have two different meanings in this case: Reduction in the complexity of a commission to a single simple concept or a combination of themes with great variety.
Design is never academic; works are the result of intuitive processes, in which the entire sensual perception of their creator plays a role. Nonetheless, they make use of an architectural grammar, which is organised thematically rather than stylistically.
The architectural considerations determining a building form a complex system of themes, which arise as knowingly staged or work coincidentally to different extents, but at any rate are inseparably intertwined. The basic elements of an architectural language are to be displayed and implemented according to an architectural grammar. The reference planes are typology, topography and the architectural elements. Each building relates to a location and a topographical situation. These create and offer a topos. It is selected for a function and a spatial typology, and architectural elements provide the stylistic form.