Every design gap on a construction project is found eventually. The only question is when. Found during a design review, a gap costs a marked-up drawing and a conversation between consultants. Found on site, the same gap can mean an RFI, a stopped trade, a variation claim and a programme that starts to slip.
That is why the design review is one of the most important tools in design management. It is the moment someone stops producing documents and tests whether they work together.
Where the gaps hide
Most design gaps are not caused by poor consultants. They sit in the spaces between consultants, where each party has reasonably assumed that someone else has it covered. A thorough review typically looks for:
Coordination clashes. Structure, services and architecture that do not agree, such as ceiling zones too shallow for the ductwork drawn in them.
Consent gaps. Conditions of the SSDA, DA or CC that are not reflected in the current drawings, or have no one responsible for closing them.
Buildability problems. Details that look resolved on paper but cannot be sequenced, accessed or built as drawn.
Scope gaps. Items that fall between consultants' briefs and are not in anyone's deliverables.
Procurement traps. Long-lead items and specialist packages whose design decisions are needed earlier than anyone has planned for.
Why an independent review finds what the team misses
The project team is close to the work, under deadline, and focused on its own discipline. An independent reviewer has no drawing to defend. The review reads the full set against the consent and asks the questions that get skipped when everyone is busy: who owns this, does this agree with that, and can it actually be built?
With more than 20 years in design management and registration as a NSW architect, that is the discipline I bring to each review.
What it means for builders and developers
For a builder, a review before tender closes or before mobilisation shows what the documents have not resolved, while there is still time to price it, clarify it or fix it. For a developer, it provides an independent view of what is being handed to the contractor, and where the exposure sits.
A review will not make a design perfect, and it does not replace the responsibilities of your consultants. What it does is give you a clear, prioritised list of what needs resolving before it becomes a site problem.
The Design Review: price and timing
Introductory fee: $4,500 + GST for your first project (standard fee $7,500 + GST)
Timing: findings and registers within 5 working days of receiving your documents
Best suited to: projects in design, tender, procurement or early works
See what the Design Review includes
Emanuel Solomovic | Registered Architect NSW (ARB 7154)
Email: info@emanuelsolomovic.com.au
Mobile: 0433 289 251