Building Design Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Hargreaves Design Group

A Great Set Of Plans

People often ask us,

“What do I get on my final set of plans?”

This is a great question, particularly if you are dealing with a Building Designer for the first time. Every designer has their own level of detail they provide in their finished set.

Clear plans win work

We often win new work based on the clarity & presentation of our drawing set so we have decided to explain what is included in a standard set of construction drawings for a new house.
Stay tuned to this blog to be better informed about what goes into a great set of plans.

Copyright Beware

I am reminded often of the number of people who do not understand copyright law pertaining to building plans.

In short, whosoever draweth the plans – owneth the plans.

If you have your house plans done by a registered Builder of a large Major Builder, even if you handed them your hand sketch, they own the copyright on the plans – YOU DO NOT!
You cannot use the plans they produce for you with any other builder without written copyright release. This may or may not be granted & could leave you with plans you have paid for, but cannot use. At the very least it will cost you good money to release the copyright to you.

Use an Independent Building Designer

However, if you have your plans designed & drawn by an independent building designer, you can use those plans to request quotes from any number of builders & then select the one you like. Whilst the copyright legally rests with the Building Designer, you are free to shop it around to any available builder for a quote without fear of any copyright issues.

Copyright Release

In some cases our clients request we release the copyright to them as part of our agreement. We normally do not have any issues with this providing the design is only going to be used for the site we were engaged to design it on. In all cases the ‘Revit’ file is always retained by the building designer. This file contains intellectual property which cannot be shared with other designers or consultants.

Remember – always us a Registered Building Designer to maximise your future options.

Home Builder Grant Applications Now Open

APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN FOR THE HOME BUILDER GRANT

Head over your the State Revenue Office and apply for the Home Builder Grant to determine your eligibility and potentially receive $25,000!!

Home Builder Grant Victoria

The links are here for the information: https://lnkd.in/g7FtSXk

And here to apply: https://lnkd.in/gNtN_FZ

Home Builder Grant Eligibility

The Commissioner of State Revenue has extended the construction commencement requirement by 3 months. This means that applicants have six months from the signing of an eligible building contract to commence construction. Don’t miss out!

Stage 4 Lockdown – Still Open

We are still trading as usual

With Stage 4 lock down our Pakenham and Ringwood offices will close tomorrow and all staff will continue to work from home.
Most of us have been working remotely for months and we are well placed for business as usual.

Client Meetings

The only real change is all client meetings will be via Microsoft Teams and no site measures can take place for the next 6 weeks.
Over the past year we have made important, pre-emptive improvements to our IT infrastructure, so you can rest assured there will be no interruption to our productivity.

$25,000 Grant has a very tight timeline

Thinking of building?

Many people are now considering renovating or building a new house because of the federal government’s $25k grant initiative. Few people realise the timeline required to get that contract signed before December 31^st 2020. Consider the following timeline if you were to contact us on 1^st July 2020;

Realistic Timeline

Initial phone call to our office about your renovation. (1st July) We advise you to request your plans of the existing house from council prior to meeting (2 weeks wait)
Initial free consultation in our office 15^th July
Quote prepared same day & you sign an agreement to start the design work after some consideration (1 week) 22^nd July
Site measure completed 5^th August (2 weeks depending on workflow)
Existing conditions plans ready (1 week) & another meeting scheduled to discuss the design of the renovation 12^th August
Design sketch completed (1 week) & presented to you 19^th August
Design given the go ahead after some tweaks (2 weeks) 2^nd September
Town Planning Drawings completed & submitted to council 9^th September (1 week)
Council finally approved the planning permit 11^th November (2 months is very short for them considering they are currently working remotely)
Working drawings completed & engineering consultants requested (2 weeks). Plans emailed to client & sent to your builder for quoting 25^th November
Engineering received back 9^th December & forward to builder (2 weeks)
Builders quote received 16^th December (1 week)
Signing of contract with selected builder after making some amendments to inclusions 23^rd December (1 week)
Christmas!

Conclusion

Now this timeline is reliant on the building design company being able to fit you in the workflow during a high demand period as everyone else is thinking the same thing. Also dependent on council approving a permit in 2 months (unusually fast), & the builder having a quote ready just before Christmas in 1 week.

What this all boils down to is; if you want this grant you need to act now!

Call HDG on 03 5940 2340

We cover all of Australia

Designed in our Perth office, rendered in our Melbourne office, building in Queensland. No matter where you are we have you covered.

3D Render of House

Can’t wait to see this 1100m2 beauty come out of the hill.
3D render to come soon…watch this space.

jamie dorrity

2021-09-06

From initial phone enquiry through to completion of drawings to satisfy permit requirements the team at Hargreaves were great to deal with . They were professional and showed a genuine interest in the job and its satisfactory completion in a timely manner . In particular i was dealing with Nick and Rosmy who i wouldnt hesitate to use again or recommend .

Jeremy Wheeler

2019-12-30

I approached Harvan Design to get drawings done for a deck/verandah. I dealt with Nick who was excellent throughout the process; very helpful, friendly and knowledgeable. The cost was very reasonable and plans were completed in good time. I highly recommend Harvan Design for a stress-free and professional experience.

Megan Kent

2019-09-05

We have been working with Harvan Design to create the plans for our first home. Alicia is our building designer and she has been so great to work with. She is really easy to communicate with and always gets back to us by the timeline she advises. She has added some amazing design features and ideas to our plans and really helped us design the best home for us. We are so happy with the service we have received from Harvan Design. Thank you! :)

Craig Evans

2019-07-23

Harvan design have been very professional and helpful especially Scott Ramage who has guided us through the whole planning and pre build process of our extension

Joe Dimech

2019-06-20

Have been using Harvan Design for a number of years, Daryl and his team do a great job on a wide variety and range of projects.

Jason Blackmore

2019-05-30

Highly recommend Harvan Design. Very professional service & expert experience and advice. A design and drafting team that actually listens and considers practical application and cost efficiency of construction for the Owner and the Builder. Keep up the great work team.

dianne van der Velde

2018-10-11

Very happy with Harvan design. They are very polite and very thorough in all aspects of design. If recommend them.

John Lim

2017-09-17

Great company to work with, very efficient with turnaround times and communication. Highly recommend.

Pakenham (03) 5940 2340

Bentleigh (03) 9118 8970

Bunbury (08) 9721 2526

Ringwood East (03) 9870 5666

Hobart (03) 6234 6185

Category: Building Design