Design Manager: design management plan-design models

Design Manager: Design Management Plan-design models is the twelfth article of a series of articles about design management in architecture practice. I have discussed in the previous articles what is design management, who is the design manager in practice, what a project or firm design management plan, what are the key functions of the design management plan in practice, what needs to be managed in a firm in practice, and this article is the seventh article on building and writing a design management plan.

Design models, in the design management plan, are the models used to assure the quality of production of a project in hand. The models are also used to gauge and measure the quality of service. The professional bodies in the world specifically in Europe focus on quality assurance and they produce circulars, publications, video training, and programs to develop their employees in the firm. In the following article, we will stand on the difference between architecture and product quality assurance as I have discussed the quality management system and built an indicator in my previous article.

The design management plan includes the design models that are used in the daily work of the architectural design process and combined with the review and checking of production by quality management system. The two models are used and some firms in the world bind their work design models to the RIBA plan.

In practice, the two models, the traditional model and the sequential model, are used but they are not really connected to the RIBA plan. Riba’s plan illustrates the phases of the design and construction of an architectural project. The plan, you can download it here, is a mix of design brief work, HSE requirements, construction and procurement, and planning and authority application approval. This plan does not relate directly to the architectural design process, its quality of production, or the quality of the system gauging the production. The two models are based on the initial academic knowledge an architect obtains when working on one project and when working in a team not even connected to project management knowledge.

When an architect is performing the architecture design activity alone, he is responsible for the whole process of concept design and related tasks, design development and coordination with other disciplines, and the final detail design stage. This is called the traditional model where the architect works alone on the project. If the firm has multiple projects several architects will be working on them. See Figure 1, the traditional model projects, architects A1-A2-A3, and buffer in between the project phases.

I have discussed in the previous articles how the design manager identifies team members and their skills and how they fit every task in a project. Adding to that how the design manager shifts the team member from project to project based on the design management plan skills matrix, I will come to this later article, to complete another task on another project when required. So, several architects and engineers will work on one project in different timelines of the architectural design process and shift them to another project using the two techniques by the design manager indicated in my previous article. This is the sequential design model where several architects work on the project A1-A2-A3 and so on. As illustrated in Figure 2, the sequential model various architects work on the project.

The combined quality systems with the architectural design process, identified by professional bodies, are Total quality management (TQM), Lean Project management ( LPM), Prince 2 Project management (PRINCE 2), Buffer management technique, Value management (VM), Six Sigma business management approach.

I have discussed that architecture is different than manufacturing a Pepsi cola product or manufacturing a Lincoln car. In all cases, this quality management seeks to produce quality products.

The total quality management system was created before ISO quality management 7 principles and now all companies must pass the quality management certification process of ISO to be allowed to operate in all countries in the world. The ISO and this system are not different than the architectural design process in the core areas. Defining customer needs, the team involved in the work, the process used, the decision-making process, and how to improve the design process, management, and evaluation of total design quality.

Lean project management was invented for the manufacturing industry and their goal was to eliminate waste in the manufacturing process. Eliminating waste created through overburden and waste created through unevenness in workloads.

Prince2 project management was created for the construction industry, and it is different than the design quality procedures. In practice, it is not aligned to the architectural design process.

Buffer management technique is adapted from the supply chain industry to mitigate the risk of loss of material, time, and revenue in the manufacturing industry.

The value management system is BS standard to be used with the existing management system. It is the management system that focuses on how to measure value, and what are the functional drivers and objectives to find solutions to increase innovation in business. It has four principles being; strengthening value orientation; applying functional thinking; applying a structured holistic approach; and managing complexity, risk, and uncertainty.

Finally, Six Sigma quality management is a management system that is similar to lean project management. But here the focus is on eliminating defects rather than eliminating waste. Its principles are to define a problem, measure performance, analyse process, improve process, and control the new process to eliminate defects. Figure 3, shows the Six Sigma principles in business management.

The six management systems I have presented that are combined with the architectural design process in practice, as per the professional bodies, are grouped into two groups. One group goal is to increase business and production quality and the second group goal is to increase project production quality.

The design management plan focuses on increasing the quality of the design process production but not the construction activities’ quality. So, these quality management systems serve the company system but not the design management plan. In practice, I have worked as a design manager I have not applied or observed or worked with other design managers that have applied these quality management systems. These systems are rarely used in the design management plan in practice.

The design management plan includes six activities in reality concerning the architectural design process. At the top of the hierarchy of design management is the design manager. The first activity he identifies is the Client needs, project program, and requirements. Second, defining the goals and objectives of the project. Third, selecting the team and the stakeholders involved. Fourth, process, model of design for use in the project. Fifth, systematic evaluation, assessment, and review of the project design quality produced. Sixth, submittal procedures of design and project documentation to client and authority.

The six activities in the design management plan using any design models do not intersect with the quality management systems I have presented but only in the fifth activity. The systematic evaluation, assessment, and review of the project design quality produced within the project architecture design phases.

None of these quality management systems a design manager can use to evaluate, assess, and review the project design production. It cannot be used because the system is linked directly to the business operations and production quality all together that cannot be separated.

Now how does the design manager in his design management plan evaluate, assess, and review the design production?

I will go through the criteria that a design manager uses to evaluate and assess quality in the six activities of the architectural design process. And in answering this question how much the architectural design has achieved in the assessment criteria of every one of the six activities?

One- client needs

Clients seek innovative architectural design, a design that fits the project construction budget, a design that fits the project program in terms, for example, no of specified residential types and units, A design that is not complex and easy to construct within the country available technology and construction methods, a design that provides maximum revenue and have a half-life cycle longer than the normal equivalent in the market, and a design that will not add extra cost in operations for maintenance and facility management.

Two- goals and objectives

This includes client satisfaction with the architecture design starting from the concept design, A concept design that fits the project location context, producing an architecture design that balances innovation and practicality, achieving sustainable architecture requirements, the satisfaction of the end user of the project function, A design that does not require heavy expertise for completing its phases, A design that meets the international standards and local standards and regulations requirements, and a design that leads to another project award from the same client or to be used as a project of achieving excellence in the firm marketing process.

Three- the architecture team and stakeholders

The team who will work on the project with high-level expertise and talented staff, stakeholders who possess a high level of expertise in the field of architecture design, team members who have worked on a similar project and produced the desired production, and other many interpersonal skills.

Fourth- process and design models

If using the traditional model how much support is needed if required that will not affect producing work at deadlines, if using the sequential model how much staff will work on the project, and if they are from other teams or permanently on the team that will not affect producing work at deadlines, the cycle of doing architecture design is followed as per plan within the team members, and how much time is the design management higher level are involved in the process.

Fifth- evaluation, assessment, and review of design production quality

Is the evaluation as per the code of standards? Is the assessment as per company standards? Is the concept design fitting the project location context? Is the project exceeding industry standards of artwork? Did the concept design respond to client needs and requirements? Is the architectural design achieving the planned goals and objectives? Is the presentation work realistic? Is the design produced following the company procedures? Is the design compatible with the structural system? Is the design compatible with the MEP systems and ease of design? Did the team take more time than the planned time to produce the work? Is the architecture design adaptable for change in the future if required or complex design? Are the design drawings of all disciplines coordinated and identical in terms of architecture and structure design?

Six- Client, authority submittals

Are the project submittal deadlines respected or there is a delay? Are the project submittals matching the client deliverables requirements for every stage? Are the submittals following country rules and regulations? Are there any objections to the submittal and how many times do the submittals have to be revised?

Quality management systems are rarely used in practice but only to develop the business system. They can serve in the fifth activity in the architecture design process.

Quality management systems are rarely used in practice but only to develop the business system. Consistency and quality of services provided will be influenced by the effectiveness of the design management model. Quality service can be achieved by giving attention to the following: consistent standards for individual projects, consistent approach to client relations, consistent quality review process, and clear responsibility.

Well-designed and easy-to-use quality assurance system is used as an underlying framework for all the firm’s activities. Such a system provides the firm with: a clear management structure understood by the firm’s employees, a policy and procedure to enable the delivery of the services promised to clients, a training policy for all firm staff, and a comprehensive risk management system.