Documentation

GENERAL Q & A 

1.      The project and drawing reference system at my firm is electronic. All drawing done in practice are saved onto a drive in office, this drive is called the ‘K’ drive. This is a drive that is only accessible from work and any computer within the firm. This is so that if any member of the firm has to switch projects all the necessary information is there; it also gives employees easy access to the relevant drawings. The drawings are listed in folders which are in alphabetical order. The titles of the drawings are related to site area, the client or the name of the project which is then placed under its designated letter. The ‘K’ drive is backed up every month for security reasons and to also save the work in case the mainframe at the firm crashes.

2.      There are a lot of projects at the firm that take time to complete because of it being on a big scale, estates or low cost housing which will be a continuous assessment. The firm is a well known firm in the Stellenbosch area as well as nationally so the firm is always in the know about projects. The firm is also approache a lot by the clients in the area becuase of the this being a well repected firm.

3.      a) There are approximately 50 people employed at Dennis Moss Partnership.

b) There are 6 architectural partners in the firm how manages the work in the firm which includes Dennis Moss as the CEO. There are senior architects how have been working for a considerable time in the architecture profession. There are architectural technologists who have just got there diploma and/or trying to finish their degree in the architectural profession. There are also landscapers as well as an interior designer. There is also a graphics department in the firm that work in sketch up and with graphic programs to give a project a more realistic feel/picture to represent to the client. Town and regional planners are also present at the firm.

c) There are the 6 partners who manage the firm. All employees and their respected given projects report to the designated partner of the project, who is the supervisor of the project. All the work done in any form or another has to be checked by the person supervising the project before it can be submitted.

d)  All of the employees in the firm report to the respected partner of the firm. The work is given from the partner, who is the project leader, to a senior architect at the firm. The project is explained and the senior architect and then it is completely in his or her hands. The partner keeps the senior architect in check to make sure that all deadlines are met with the project. Once the plans, sections and elevations are checked and approved by the partner, a 3D Sketch Up model is then drawn up to give to the graphic department where they will render it so that it will look more realistic to give a clearer picture of how the finished structure would look like. Depending on whether or not the client would like landscaping done, the plan would be given to the landscapers before it reaches the graphic department. The drawings done on Auto Cad are sent to municipality for approval. Once the graphic department has completed the rendering a presentation booklet is compiled for the purpose of presenting to the client. The partner and senior architect presents the work to the client and if it is approved by the client and by municipality construction will commence.