With design and build, one company takes responsibility for both the design and the construction. LACD brings together the design team, interprets your brief, obtains the consents and manages the construction, so there is one point of contact and no gap between what is drawn and what is built.
Why design and build
- One point of responsibility: design, approvals and construction under one contract.
- Buildable design: construction and structural input from the start, so the drawings reflect how the building will actually be built and what it will cost.
- Cost known earlier: an itemised cost is prepared alongside the design rather than after it.
- Fewer surprises on site: structure, services and finishes are coordinated before work starts.
The design stage, step by step
- Site survey: measured survey and existing drawings, which form the basis of all design work.
- Project briefing: your brief, planning constraints, design priorities and budget.
- Planning options: two or three options, with advice on planning and party wall matters. The preferred option is agreed for submission.
- Mood boards: design options and ideas for key features and finishes, with indicative prices.
- Structural engineering: engineer’s drawings and calculations for planning, Building Control and party wall surveyors.
- Design sign-off: architectural and structural design, brief and budget finalised. Initial interior concepts are presented.
- Interior design: finishes, fixtures and fittings selected. Some decisions are made on site as work progresses.
- Final design and costing: final layouts and an itemised cost for approval.
- Planning application: once submitted, a council decision typically takes 10–12 weeks, depending on the nature of the design.
Construction then follows under the same contract. See construction and project management.
