Detail here relates to all Australian architectural, building, interiors, landscape projects including housing, multi-residential, industrial, commercial.
Construction or building documentation (also known as contract documentation, or simply ‘documentation’) is the designer’s‘ paperwork’ that the builder needs to build a project exactly as planned.
The designer has to draft the detail of the design for the builder to build to the exact design intent, theoretically without question.
The only ‘off-the-shelf’ document not drafted is the standard industry general conditions of contract. Everything else is created from scratch by the designer.
These drafted documents include; the drawings, schedules (lists of materials, colours, finishes, etc), and the specification (the micro-detail tying everything together). These three document types are also required from the secondary consultants.
Typical consultants, depending on the project size and type, are engineers such as; structural, civil, electrical, mechanical, and hydraulic engineers. Other consultants can be used on large projects.
By the time all the documents from the designer and the consultants are complied, there can be a very large number of separate documents. These all comprise the contract documents.
The documents enable the contractor (builder) to price, then build the project, so they need to be very accurate and clear so building can happen smoothly and without any surprising contract variations.
Designers and builders need to be highly trained and experienced professionals, but even so, mistakes can and do happen and it is often the specification that is relied on to solve potentially damaging and costly mistakes. The specification is regarded as most important document.
Don’t skimp on your specifications.
