Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Lists of figures and tables
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations and technical terms
- 1 Introduction
- 2 21st-century libraries
- 3 Developing a business case
- 4 Project management
- 5 The design/project team
- 6 Selecting an architect
- 7 Partnership and community engagement
- 8 The design brief
- 9 Design quality
- 10 Space planning and access
- 11 Occupancy and post-occupancy evaluation
- 12 Building libraries for the future – a summary
- Bibliography and further reading
- Appendices
- Index
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Lists of figures and tables
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations and technical terms
- 1 Introduction
- 2 21st-century libraries
- 3 Developing a business case
- 4 Project management
- 5 The design/project team
- 6 Selecting an architect
- 7 Partnership and community engagement
- 8 The design brief
- 9 Design quality
- 10 Space planning and access
- 11 Occupancy and post-occupancy evaluation
- 12 Building libraries for the future – a summary
- Bibliography and further reading
- Appendices
- Index
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
Summary
The design brief is the statement of requirements on which the design is developed. The brief may start as a simple general statement of the project objectives; the ‘outline’ brief. This should provide the basic information required by the architect, but architects will themselves take part in the planning process, creating a detailed brief that will equip them to create the design. This chapter explores the contents of the design brief and the processes involved in creating it, drawing on documents used in actual new library builds as well as technical literature.
Functions of the brief
A good brief is vital – one should never start design work until the operational brief is established and space requirements and key relationships have been set out. The design brief can be useful in many ways. Architects generally agree that the brief can provide:
■ a channel of information between librarian and architect
■ a basis for discussion and joint problem-solving
■ a record of decisions and milestones; this can support continuity and consistency of the project's development
■ a useful evaluation tool, as it includes aims and resources against which designs can be evaluated
■ a useful aid for estimating resources required.
The design brief may also be part of the legal agreement between librarian and architect.
Although it is possible to have a verbal brief, a written brief provides a clear source of reference for all involved. Developing the brief is the most important part of the whole scheme; however magnificent an architect's creation, however skilful she/he may be in solving a problem, the solution is useless if the problem's true nature and extent has not been understood. In most if not all cases, therefore, the brief should be written to ensure that there is a common understanding about what is required. The librarian is responsible for seeing that the brief describes clearly what she/he would like the project to accomplish, for reviewing and signing it off at outline and detailed stages. The architect's team is entitled to have a document which will be their authority to spend valuable time in working in a certain direction.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Better by Designan introduction to planning and designing a new library building, pp. 85 - 96Publisher: FacetPrint publication year: 2008