Critique my detailed brief?

[puntloos]

4 hours ago, Carrerahill said:

All I was saying is that don't make your architect decipher your life too much, I've sat around the board room table for many a kick-off meeting, from a private individual to Saudi Aramco's entourage of Saudi Princes and there is an idea, a seedling, of what they want, maybe something as simple as a sketch to artists impressions and a spec of sorts. I don't want to know that at 08:00 Mrs Jones makes toast while Mr. Jones takes a shower after which he then moves to a seating area to be served his toast. I want Mr and Mrs Jones to tell me they need a shower somewhere a worktop to put the toaster and room or area big enough to house a dining table. 

 

Got it, thanks!

 

4 hours ago, Carrerahill said:

If someone started to go on about life-style I would polity ask them to turn that into a document or even a simple list of what they require for them to lead this lifestyle. 

 

As for the projector, I appreciate things like that must be planned for, but as I said in my post above, "... just make sure any sizes or building details to accommodate these items is allowed for".

 

OK, fair enough, it was just an example really, but just to nail down: ideally even coolin/extraction is needed near the device, hence my point about knock-on effects.

 

4 hours ago, Carrerahill said:

Regarding something like a tap - I would arrange that with the plumber at first fix in his spec.

 

Fair.

 

To re-iterate, my spreadsheet is intended as a master document that contains 'all we know'. Instead, the various specialists probably need a narrowed view, indeed not to bother the arch with a tap etc (just noticing that as a non-expert I actually don't know the knock-on effects of some of our wishes.

 

Thanks again for your thoughts so far! Really great perspective

 

[puntloos]

1 hour ago, jack said:

 

But why would you design a specific element of a house around a specific consumer item that might die within 5 years of purchase? You're better off just saying "there needs to be space, support and connections for a projector", and make sure to provide for the maximum size of any likely future projector. Either way, home cinema requirements aren't something I'd expect a typical architect to know about. 

 

Fair, hence specifying what they need to know to not get this wrong? 

 

1 hour ago, jack said:

 

Our architect doesn't know where/how our taps are mounted. Sure, consideration needs to be given to, eg, sink and pipe placement if you want a wall-mounted tap in the kitchen (good luck finding one of these, incidentally. We weren't able to fine one we liked the look of)

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/i/32896514433.html

 

1 hour ago, jack said:

. But for the most part this is something I'd expect to discuss with the plumber and kitchen fitter.

 

Fair enough, I guess my main point is my own ignorance of which things have deep knock-on effects (and should therefore be accounted for at the design stage) and which things you can add at the very last minute

 

 

[jack]

20 minutes ago, puntloos said:

Fair, hence specifying what they need to know to not get this wrong? 

 

My point is that you're looking at the wrong "they".

 

20 minutes ago, puntloos said:

Fair enough, I guess my main point is my own ignorance of which things have deep knock-on effects (and should therefore be accounted for at the design stage) and which things you can add at the very last minute

 

This is a very important point, and it's critical that you (or whoever) do the best job you can of thinking ahead at the design stage and sorting out which decisions need to be made early and which can - or sometimes even should - be left until later. Again though, my point is merely that a lot of what you're concerned about in this document are not things that architects will generally be familiar with. Maybe you can pay your architect for an hour to go through this document with you and tell you which things he/she can help you with, and those for which you should be looking to others.