Architecture Practice
2040
If we move 25 years back from now, 1991, India became
liberal. Economic reformation in the country led to major changes in the field
of Indian architecture which took its first step into a race called
globalization.
Twenty five years from then, we see globalization at its
peak today and we are stepping into another realm of experiments. Talks on go
green, go digital, smart cities have already set their space in the field.
Experimentation on design, materials and construction is the trend. As we move
further on this path, architecture continues to absorb this technological
impulse and strives to become adaptive, responsive, transformable, intelligent
and customised. These new conceptions of architecture are accompanied with new
terms like liquid, hybrid, virtual, trans, animated, seamless, interactive,
parametric, machinate and self-generating, thus producing a new architectural
culture- the trend.
PRACTICE
I wish to run my firm in two parallel branches. The first
one targeting elite costumers and luxury projects (hotels, malls, resorts,
villas and interiors etc.). The motive is to earn good money, strictly not
compromising the quality and idea. Extracting the best out of latest technology
and surprising my clients with the possibilities shall be the motto of my team.
Testing our capabilities and experimenting with new to get breakthrough ideas
shall be the intent of participation in competitions. The other branch will
deal with conservation projects. The intent is to serve the idea of retaining
the essence of old amidst the new and explore on how the two interact. Projects
based on this conception like memorials and museums shall also be a part of
this firm.
JOURNEY
Architecture travels with time. As time changes, the change
becomes the face of architecture of that time. It’s a clear representation of what
surrounds it at the moment, with some breakthroughs that mark the beginning of
another change (can be observed in the past e.g. architectural competitions).
Today, there is an urge in society which is making people more active,
involved, connected and responsive. Change in thoughts are reflected in
demands. Architecture is a service that intends to envision these demands with
the capability of creating innumerable images, one of which is perceived as the
solution. This one solution changes with time, so does architecture.
As an architect, I imagine myself serving my clients,
exploring possibilities, creating and proposing new visions for my client. As
per practice, over the past 25 years, technology has crawled into the
profession to the extent that it has initiated the use of BIM (Building
Integrated Modelling) software for handling projects in firms today. Further,
the use of technology may get intense and involve better hands on experience of
architects on technology to work on designs that involve parametric, dynamism
etc.
STUDIO ETHOS
We believe in exploring via experimenting. The studio shall
serve as an inspiration for my team. It should reflect the latest technology in
most creative ways which shall be updated timely. Interactive sessions,
brainstorming, time bound tasks/creative competitions on special occasions
shall be well integrated in my studio to keep up the creative spirits.
No compromise in quality, time management shall be the top
most priority, stay informed and well connected, stay updated, and enjoy the
process of design (interaction, changes, brainstorming, team work) shall be the
attitude of my team.
DESIGN COMPETITION
- IGNCA Design competition: 1986, first open international competition organised by Indian gov.
- SPIRETEC Competition: 2010, open international competition organised by Spire World
- Silvassa Institute of Higher Learning Design Competition: organised by Dadra and Nagar Haveli PDA
- New Collectorate at Silvassa Design competition: 2013, organised by Dadra and Nagar Haveli PDA
General Assessment:
The 'Technical Document' or 'Competition
Guidelines' is issued to those applying
for the competition on submitting the required fee (mentioned in the document).
Council of Architecture (COA), recommends the registration procedure of a
architectural design competition in a three part process (under 'Architectural
Design Competition guidelines'). The 'technical document' is set by the
promoter* to convey the same registration process to its competitor*. General
information on promoter, cost of document, registration fee, honours or prizes
set, purpose of competition, scope of design, eligibility, deliverables,
procedure of submission, due dates, deadlines and terms and conditions, are the
main contents of the document. Cost estimates, specifications and estimate
based on the specifications are also a part of
competition submission.
Architect is required to submit
qualification, certificate of registration under COA, and 'Partnership Deed' or
'Certificate of Memorandum' in case of a firms or company participating in the
competition.
After agreement with the conditions
provided in the above document, the person has the choice to 'register' for the
competition (online or at the office as stated in the document). An
application, documents for eligibility and registration fee are the general
requirements. On passing the eligibility criterion, the competitor is provided
with a Unique Registration code (URC) to retain anonymity for the competition.
As per the design competition guidelines
set by COA, the prize money and the assessors' fee is based on the built up area
of the project involved. (Schedule 5&6)
The winning entry is further posted as the
project director for the construction of the project or under assistance of a
local architect.
Questions:
- Is it mandatory for all architectural competitions in India to follow the guidelines set by COA? For conducting a competition, for selection of assessors of the competition or professional or technical advisers (if any) etc.
- Does the architect/competitor has the right to reproduce the same design/a art of design somewhere else, provided that it is not among the winning entries?
- The 'Terms and Conditions' in competition document often states 'the design submitted shall be the property of the promoter and the participants shall not have any claim over the designs submitted'. Again, e.g. the SPIRETECH Competition guidelines say, 'By entering the Competition and without more, each Entrant grants to the Promoters an unlimited and irrevocable license to copy any submission as well as to use the submission in any way that the Promoters deem appropriate, including educational, commercial, or any other use. More thoroughly, without further authorization or any compensation owed to or due, the Entrant grants and authorises, and the Promoters shall retain, a perpetual, non-exclusive royalty-free license to use any submission, or any revision, alteration, change, or similar thereof, at the discretion of the Promoters, for any purpose.' Does this not violate the architect's ownership of copyright which he holds to his works whether executed or not?
- Design competitions offers opportunity to the new and often initiates heated debate over the results. Today, the market is filled with budding architects which makes the design competition highly competitive. With the alluring opportunity of executing the project, the use of power in hand by the already established architects is inevitable. Does this make today's architectural competition a propaganda which is capable of extracting maximum pool of ideas at the lowest rate instead of being a fair event?
NOTE:
*COA Guidelines identifies the following (in brief):
Safeguards interest of both promoter n competitor
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PROMOTER
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COMPETITOR
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TENDER
1. India Pavilion, 62nd Summer Fancy
Food Show in New York City (USA) by Indian Trade Promotion Organization
(ITPO). STATUS: ACTIVE
2. Construction Of Police & Irrigation Office, Gomti River Front, Lucknow by UPRNN. STATUS: Submission Ended on 13-05-2016
3. Construction of PWD Inspection House, Etawah by UPRNN. STATUS: ACTIVE
My Understanding:
Tender usually refers to the process whereby the government
invites an offer, bid or proposal in response to an invitation or request or
tender. It is an opportunity for suppliers, encouraging competition and
providing a greater pool of offers to select from.
The organization requesting for tender will select the type
of tender.
Factors to consider when choosing a procurement option
| Procurement options | Factors to consider | |
| How well defined is the project? | How well defined are the bidders? How much work will proposals require? | |
| Single-stage: RFP | Project scope is clear Service options have been well-defined | Number of interested bidders is limited Potential bidders are known and identified In this case it is not necessary to identify interested bidders or to reduce their number |
| Multi-stage option 1: RFQ + RFP (with or without RTP) | Project scope is not clear, extensive discussions are needed to finalise the service option | Potential bidders are known and identified, but Number of interested bidders is large Considerable effort required by bidders to submit proposals In this case RFQ is useful to reduce number of bidders. |
| Multi-stage option 2: EOI + RFP (with or without RTP) | Project scope is not clear, extensive discussions are needed to finalise the service option | Number of interested bidders likely to be limited, but Potential bidders not yet well known or identified Considerable effort required by bidders to submit proposals In this case EOI is useful to identify interested bidders. |
| Multi-stage option 3: EOI + RFQ + RFP (with or without RTP) | Project scope is not clear, extensive discussions are needed to finalise the service option | Uncertainty about the level of interest in the project – unknown if interest is limited or large Potential bidders not yet well known or identified Considerable effort required by bidders to submit proposals In this case EOI is useful to identify interested bidders and level of interest; RFQ is useful to reduce the number of bidders if necessary. |
RFT: request
for tender, RFP: request for proposal, RFQ: request for qualfication, EOI:
expression of interest, and RTP: request for technical proposals.
The request for tender is prepared and is circulated as NIT (Notice Inviting Tender) for public advertisement or an E-Tender for online.
Tender Document:
The tender document, in general, includes the
following:
- Description of goods and services to be procured.
- Eligibility Criteria: conditions of tender, technical qualifications, financial qualifications, experience, licences, turnover, registration documents and EMD (earnest money deposit): 2-5% of estimated value.
- Evaluation criteria: the processes of assessment.
- Schedule of requirements: Submission content and format (if any), deadlines of submission, start and end date of bid, details of payment
- Draft Conditions of Contract
- Forms: tender acceptance letter, format for other requirements.
Tender Process:
The tender process in brief is as follows:
- Estimate (Quantity and amount)
- EOI: Expression of Interest- to identify a list of interested firms
- RFP/RFQ: Request for Proposal/Quotation
- PBC: Pre bid conference
- NIT: Notice Inviting Tender
- Approval
- Notice/Web Publicity
- EMD: Earnest Money Deposit
- Bidding
- TOC - Tender Opening Committee (Technical Bid also known as Pre-qualification: Company Profile and legal information)
- Approval
- TOC - Tender Opening Committee (Financial Bid)
- Approval
- TEC (Tender Evaluation Committee)
- APPROVAL
- PO- Purchase Order
- Award of Contract
- Security Deposit
- Agreement
- Refund of EMD
- Notice/Web publicity about award of contract.
Evaluation Process:
EMD, Technical Bid and Financial Bid analysed by Tendering Committee.
Basis for bid evaluation
The final selection of the preferred bidder is based on the evaluation of the bids. This can be on the basis of:
- Quality cum Cost-Based Selection (QCBS) – Evaluation based on the cost committed by the bidder and the technical qualification of the bidder
- Quality-Based Selection (QBS) – Evaluation based on the technical qualification of the bidder
- Least Cost Method (LCM) – Evaluation based on the cost of the completed asset or cost of service committed by the bidder
Selection Criterion:
The lowest bid with apt quality gets selected. Other
criteria’s include experience of bidder.
Indian Architects Act 1972
Clause 21:
Minimum standards of architectural education
Interpretation:
The Council of Architecture sets out the minimum qualifications for architectural educations across various institutes in India. It looks on and scrutinizes the basic infrastructure, faculty, course, et al of various institutions of architectural education through Executive Committee and decides on the fate of the various COA certified courses offered by the institution.
Clause 22:
Clause 22:
Professional Conduct
Interpretation:
The rules and regulations for setting up as well as running a Professional Practice is given up in a well-defined set of definitions by the Council of Architecture (COA). It is provided in a detailed form, by the COA under Architects (Professional Conduct) Regulations, 1989 and includes various topics on the issues of professional conduct as well as misconduct.
These regulations are to be followed by any firm practicing architecture, or any of its allied fields. It includes what may define it to be a good practice as well as a law to be followed by the firms.
-Shikha Kaul
A/2518/2012
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