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To help you navigate the maze of
designing and building your dreams, click on some
of the articles below:
Good Custom Design Doesn't Cost --
It Pays!
-by eliminating wasteful square footage, such as unnecessary
hallways, allowing lower initial cost, lower taxes, lower
maintenance and insurance.
-by maximizing use of square footage, allowing shared uses for
some areas, and providing spaces for specific furniture and
activities.
-by designing to meet your personal dreams, style, lifestyle and
activities.
-by using room locations, angled walls, and "side notches" to
take advantage of the best panoramic views from inside the home,
especially important for premium lots such waterfront or golf course
views.
-by conforming to the latest hurricane codes to provide
additional strength to your home, and see you safely through any
insurance claim in the event of a hurricane.
-by designing for practical construction, as an experienced
builder who understands the most cost-effective building systems
available.
-by using materials for longer durability and low maintenance,
both for you and a resale buyer.
-by setting your home apart, appealing to a resale buyer, keeping
your price higher and time on the market shorter. (Remember how
often we pay premium prices for designer items, whether or not they
are comfortable or appropriate.)
-by bringing into the home areas such as efficient home offices
or "granny flats," eliminating rental costs, and keeping in-laws or
teens safely close, but private.
-by designing for lifelong independence and accessibility,
concealed by beauty.
-by allowing you to place "extravagance" and "thrift" in the
areas which you choose, during the design stage.
-by increasing your quality of life the entire time you own the
home -- and that is priceless!
Corbin Dozier Design, Inc. -- designing and building since
1977 -- exciting, innovative, unique homes -- never the same
design twice.
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DESIGN-BUILD:
THE APPROACH OF THE
MASTER BUILDER
A Classical Notion of Single Source
Responsibility:
Design-Build is a process that has been embraced by
the world's great civilizations. In ancient Mesopotamia, the Code of
Hammurabi (1800 BC) fixed absolute accountability upon master
builders for both design and construction. In the succeeding
millennia, cathedrals and cable-stayed bridges, cloisters and
corporate headquarters have been conceived and constructed using the
paradigm of design-build. Design-Build
Institute of America
From Concept to Completion
From the time of the Greek Parthenon and the Theatre
of Dionysis, the concept of Design-Build was used to engage Master
Builders for both design and construction of these monumental
structures. These Master Builders accepted full responsibility for
conceptual design and construction performance, molding the roles of
chief architect, engineer and builder into one. There is currently a
resurgence of this concept, with the Master Builder accepting
full accountability from concept to completion.
So Walt Disney’s concept of "Imagineering" is not to
new or unique after all. This is just another word to describe
"Design-Build." In the Disney Editions book, The
Imagineering Way, by the Imagineers, the term is
discussed:
What, exactly, is Imagineering?
Well, mostly, it’s a state of mind. It’s a freedom
to dream, to create, and mostly, to do.
The word "Imagineering" is a marriage of the words
"imagination" and "engineering." We not only dream big but we build
those dreams as well.
We really do make dreams come
true.
So, like the Disney "Imagineers," the Design-Build
firm also faces the same challenges:
...over the years, we’ve found ourselves
face-to-face with some pretty gnarly challenges -- everything from
dealing with major governments to dealing with each other. We’ve
faced technical challenges, emotional challenges, budget and
schedule challenges, and, most of all, the overwhelming reality of
keeping a dream alive in a world of concrete and steel, exit signs,
politics, gravity, and physics.
Over the years, we have found that when
another contractor is chosen, the art behind our designs becomes
lost in the final product. Many contractors lack understanding of
the art within and behind the drawings, and make major sacrifices
with the structure. Materials, quality, structural integrity suffer,
but the art of the final product suffers immensely. Often, as a
result of low-bid selection, the builder only has experience with
tract-quality, T-square homes, and items such as niches, soaring
ceilings, high window walls, round and free-form walls, and large
free-span spaces are lost in his lack of experience. Only a portion
of the intent of the art in a plan can be placed on paper, and the
remaining portion cannot be "downloaded" into another contractor,
especially one with ideas fixed by years of T-square
construction.
Benefits of Design-Build
Singular Responsibility
for quality, cost and scheduling, allowing the owner to
concentrate on his own needs and decisions, rather than
coordination between architect and builder.
Risk Reduction to the
owner by elimination of "Errors and Omissions" statements found on
most architectural and construction documents. This virtually
eliminates Change Orders due to "errors and omissions," as well as
any conflicts and costs regarding responsibility for these in the
design work.
Cost Savings will be
controlled and directed during the design and specification phase
of the project, placing both savings and upgrades in
the exact areas desired by the owner.
Time Savings will be
realized due to the elimination of the bidding process and any
redesign work. Also, subcontractors, materials and equipment may
be procured or scheduled before construction documents are fully
completed, allowing earlier occupancy of the
structure.
Firm Costs are presented
to the owner, allowing the owner and designer to adjust specific
areas of the project before the design is finalized.
Aesthetics are an
intangible benefit which can only be optimized with a Design-Build
arrangement. Because the designer has spent a great deal of time
with the owner, and has interpreted the owner's ideas in the
design work, it is important that this same information continues
on into the construction process, and that the desires of the
owner will not be lost in the transfer from designer to builder.
This is the one benefit that keeps your dream
alive.
Okay, So HOW MUCH?
You've done your
homework, and found that an architect will probably cost from 7 to
12 percent of the finished cost of your project. Since most
architects are not builders, there will likely be some items in
their designs which could cost you an additional premium.
Many architects will only give you one or two redraws, leaving you
with many unresolved areas in your dream. You know you need a
degreed designer, but one with construction experience and knowledge
of the IBC2000 code.
That brings you
to Corbin Dozier, with 3-1/2 years of education in architecture, a
B.A. in Industrial Design, as well as a Graduate Builder
Certification from National Home Builders Association. Add to
that, construction experience since 1977 and a
General Contractor's license, and you have a perfect combination of
education and experience.
But the real
icing on the cake comes when you realize that the design service
will cost you from $1.50 to $3.00 per square foot, depending on the
complexity of your design. You will find that this is
only a fraction of the cost of most architectural firms. And
to make matters even better, we will redraw your floorplans multiple
times, in 3-D, before beginning the
elevations. |
