Bringing The Design Brief Onto The Building Site

When we get to construction, we have a written project brief describing what the client wants in the finished house. We also have all the conversations that went into it. To me, carrying that understanding onto the building site is one of the biggest advantages of how we work at Den & Burrow.

We designed the thing. We know the model inside and out, including the nuances that will matter when it’s time to frame, run electrical or do the plumbing. We thought about those things before they went into the plans. Now we’re executing them in the field.

I don’t think there’s a better team to communicate that intent to the trades than the people who designed it. We know what’s on the paper, and we know the conversations behind it.

During design, we’re sponges. We soak up the client’s wishes, thoughts and desires for the house. After so many conversations, we have a sense of how they’re likely to respond when a decision comes up. That understanding helps us interpret the plans with their priorities in mind.

In that sense, I think it’s like having the client on site without asking them to be there all the time. The brief gives us something concrete to return to, and the conversations give it meaning. That’s the value I see in keeping the people who developed the design involved when it’s time to build it.