The Evolve Architectural Design Process

With decades of architectural design experience, our project managers and design team members are leading experts in the architecture field. Your experience as a client working with Evolve Architects is of the utmost importance to us. We mindfully partner each client with the Evolve design professional and project management team that are the best fit for your individual project and unique design considerations. Your project manager will be up to speed on all information relevant to your project when you begin working through the architectural design process. Your project manager is also an expert on local jurisdiction and local amendments to codes that pertain to your project.

Evolve Architects provides timeframes and schedules that we are dedicated to maintaining for our clients. The schedule you receive from your project manager is reviewed by necessary consultants from civil and structural engineers to interior designers. Once the schedule is agreed upon, Evolve Architects meets weekly with you as our client to ensure transparency, communication, and understanding throughout the architectural design process. There are five main phases of the architectural design process: Preliminary Design, Schematic Design, Design Development, Construction Documents, and Construction. Evolve Architects works closely with you through each phase.

Evolve Architects values every client and every project. Regardless of the type or size of your architectural vision, our architecture firm is here for all of your project needs. This starts with the Preliminary Design phase. This phase includes a thorough consultation in which we learn about your needs, your property, your design ideas, and your tentative schedule. We share our architectural design expertise and discuss how our capabilities at Evolve Architects align with your architectural project. We discuss concept design to ensure that we align with your design intent and vision. At this point, we can provide a proposal to do a test fit for your property. This test fit confirms that we can accommodate your architectural design needs and requirements on the given property or job site. With our time-efficient test fit process, we work quickly to provide you with several different flexible concepts from which to choose.

Once the concept is agreed upon, Evolve Architects develops a detailed proposal which includes the type of project, the amount of units if applicable, the project design, and time frame for the architectural design process. Our in-house landscape architects present different zoning options to you as the owner. Once this proposal is accepted, we negotiate a fair building contract. Then we partner you as the owner with one of our expert project managers to begin the full architectural process.

During the Schematic Design phase, Evolve Architects designs a series of rough sketches to illustrate the basic concepts and conceptual design of the project. Our team designs the initial site plan and building layouts during this phase. We propose unit layouts and make sure density numbers work for you as the owner before we document or design finer details. Our in-house landscape architects offer guidance on zoning options and collaborate with our chief architect on building design that best interacts with the surrounding landscape. Our in-house accessibility specialist carefully reviews your project for accessibility requirements for any jurisdiction. This is also the design phase in which Evolve Architects conducts research for local compliance laws and regulations.

Evolve Architects’ Schematic Design proposal includes floor plans for all levels with basic openings and plumbing fixtures, a building cross-section, and a design option for a typical wall section. The proposal also includes exterior building elevations with generic finishes and openings. Once you as the owner approve the Schematic Design proposal, our in-house specifications writer writes a thorough and detailed project manual for your project. Then we move into the Design Development phase of the architectural design process.

Once you as the owner approve the initial site plan, the architectural design process moves into the Design Development phase. Evolve Architects’ nearly four decades of experience is critical in this phase, as our experience enables us to do the job right the first time around. Our goal is to deliver the highest quality work to our clients in a time-efficient and cost-effective way. A member of the Austin Green Building Program since 2003, Evolve Architects focuses on sustainability in our design considerations. We do careful work the first time to avoid reworking plans, which can be a costly addition to architectural fees and a waste of time and materials.

During the Design Development phase, we partner with a civil engineer to develop highly detailed models of all buildings in the project. Evolve Architects’ models are detailed and precise. We send out backgrounds, or architectural drawings, to all necessary consultants. These detailed drawings include a complete floor plan with overall dimensions, structural grid dimensions, interior wall dimensions, technical specifications, and proposed design openings and plumbing fixtures. Our models include detailed drawings as well as a 3D rendering. Landscape architecture backgrounds are included in this architectural design phase. Our chief architect collaborates with our in-house landscape architects to design buildings that best interact with the surrounding landscape with sustainability at the forefront. Once you as the owner approve this detailed plan, we move into the Construction Documents phase of the architecture design process.

Evolve Architects’ in-house services are unparalleled when it comes to the Construction Documents phase of the architectural design process. Our in-house permitting team streamlines the architectural design process for our clients and sets our architecture firm apart from others. Before permitting, we perform an in-depth review of each background drawing as well as a cross-coordination review. This allows us to check different architectural disciplines against each other to avoid problems and ensure the construction process goes smoothly.

Once all project consultants have coordinated backgrounds with construction administration, we submit the permit set of construction drawings to the city or town in which your project is based. The duration of the permitting process varies greatly by location, but at Evolve Architects we utilize every moment of this time. We continue to add details to the architecture background set so that as soon as the permit comes through, we are ready to move into the Construction phase. During this time we focus on construction and constructability of the project, making sure that every detail is accurate and there are no issues between different disciplines. It is of the utmost importance to us at Evolve Architects that each construction document reflects your design intent in the final design. Once the permit has been granted, Evolve Architects conducts a review of the issue for construction documentation, and then hands over the project to the general contractor.

Our AIA construction administration team oversees each construction project, making site visits, submitting requests for information (RFIs), and communicating with you as the client each step of the way. Our construction coordination team has strong, ongoing relationships with a large number of different contractors, subcontractors, and interior design firms. We are able to utilize these relationships to ensure a smooth and efficient Construction phase for any commercial or residential project. This is an asset to you as the owner as your project moves into the construction administration phase and toward project completion.

Evolve Architects continues to stay closely involved with your project once it is in the Construction phase. The general contractor sets the construction schedule and meets weekly with Evolve Architects’ in-house construction coordination team as well as your project manager. This group works together to update construction drawings as needed and maintain the construction schedule.