About SON ARCHITECTS

We begin every project with an initial meeting, either at our office, or on your project site. This meeting serves as a foundation for the entire project, offering opportunities to discuss your interests and what you would like to achieve for the project. Some items that we will discuss are your site characteristics, feasibility, proposed scope of work, and what to expect throughout the project. Quotation from SON Architects will be provided after this meeting with detailed fee schedule, required consultants and project proposed timeline. After acceptation of the quote, we will start to conduct site measuring and gathering information for existing property. In many projects, a site feature survey and/ or site establishment survey conducted by a land surveyor, is critical to commence the work. Additionally, a structural engineer’s involvement might also be needed to some renovation projects to ensure that the existing building structure is suitable for the proposed extension.

The typical scope of work for this stage includes design sketches based on site measure, photographs, design brief from the initial consultation, and an initial respond to planning scheme requirements. The outcome of this stage normally includes master site plans, elevations, materiality selection, options for design styles. Throughout the process, we consider factors such as site constraints, function, aesthetics, energy efficiency and value for money.

With the approval of the concept design, we will commence to refine and improve the initial concept sketches, preparing detailed master plans, elevations, and/or sections and/or perspective views, and submission for planning permit. This stage involves increasing the level of detail on the drawings, ensuring that every aspect is thoroughly considered and comply with local regulations and zoning laws. We focus on fine-tuning the scope of work to streamline the approval process, saving both time and costs in the long run. Additionally, we make modifications and improvements as we dive deeper into the design. SON Architects will submit the planning permit application on behalf of you as our client and respond to local council’s request for further information. 

After obtained planning permit, SON Architects will prepare the design for construction with detailed drawings including plans, elevations and sections, together with other details and schedules that are crucial for the construction process. The documentation during this stage will integrate reports and documents from other consultants but not limited to energy report, civil/structural engineer and mechanical engineers. On behalf of you, SON Architects will manage and coordinate the work provided from all the secondary consultations.

During this stage, our goal is to ensure your project is built to a high standard, on time and within budget. This phase typically begins with the tender process, where we prepare a detailed tender package and invite selected builders to quote on your project. We assess the tenders alongside you, ensuring clarity on scope, costs, and timelines, and support you in selecting a builder that aligns with your expectations. After signing construction contract with chosen builders, SON Architects will assist you with the process of acquire building permit through recommending building surveyor and working with them to provide additional information. 

Once a builder is appointed, and building permit obtained, we move into contract administration, where we act as your representative throughout construction. This includes preparing and revising the building contract, conducting regular site visits, and ensuring the project stays on track with the approved design and documentation. We work closely with the builder and consultants to resolve any issues that arise, ensuring construction runs smoothly and you’re kept informed every step of the way.