Interview with Jamie Williams of Happy Building
Let's meet Jamie Williams, Senior Architect at Happy Building, a Cheam-based architectural design and construction management company.
Hello Jamie, tell us a bit about your background. What studies or training did you pursue to become an architect?
Being a chartered RIBA Architect, I have been through all formal training of RIBA Parts 1, 2 and 3. This involved an undergraduate degree, post graduate diploma and professional exams – a total of 8 years formal training.
What was your career path leading up to your work today?
My current career spans 17 years in industry. The first 14 years was spent developing with a single company specialising in high end private residential, progressing from a Part 1 assistant through to a qualified architect. In 2019 I joined Happy Building to work more closely with construction and bridge the gap that often exists between designing and building.
Why did you choose this profession, and what makes you love your job?
I have always had a passion for creativity and design as well as desire to problem solve. Architecture provides a great combination of these as well as offering the chance to see your vision built. This all helps to work towards seeing your impact on how people live and the changes your designs can make to this.
What are the difficulties that you encounter in your work?
Architecture carries a number of challenges. Design challenges can come from balancing client design and budget requirements as well as meeting the complexities set out within the planning process. This requires a detailed knowledge of the planning process, construction costs as well as a creative eye for resolving these problems.
For you, what is an architect’s main role?
The main role for an architect is to inspire the client to provide the most creative, feasible and cost-effective solution that they can achieve. An architect should set the client huge aspirations but not to the detriment of cost of buildability.
In your opinion, what talent or quality is particularly essential for an architect to have?
For me, the most important quality is creativity. However, this needs to come with empathy and understanding of what is feasible.
What does your job consist of?
Architect’s roles can be varied. For me, it is to influence the initial design concept with an understanding of the site, opportunities and constraints. Once the design is established, it is then to ensure the project can be constructed and detailed correctly to achieve the design idea of both the client and the architectural vision. After this, the challenge is to see the project built out to its full potential working with the contractor and correct finishes to create stunning architecture.
What motivates you the most in your profession?
For me, it is about influencing how architecture and construction can work together to create high-quality, cost-effective architecture.
What project do you remember best?
For me, the most memorable project is the first I ever undertook through the whole architectural process. As a modest single storey rear extension and internal refurbishment, it could have been mundane, however, working with the client we created an exciting, vaulted space completely reconfiguring the ground floor arrangement that changed how they lived in the house.
What is your favourite city?
I’m not a fan of cities. My preference is for town or country living – this can also create bigger challenges for architecture as well.
If you had to build a new house for yourself, what would it be like?
This would depend on where I got to build my house… the main factor would be creating an eco-friendly house that worked with the site / landscape available. I am a fan of modern architecture that represents it’s time but also something that will stand the test and not be quickly visually outdated.
Where do you find your inspiration?
Inspirations can come from anywhere and often transition between architectural types. Seeing how spaces work in a hotel or restaurant can influence how you design a bedroom or kitchen in a house. It can be exciting to take materials from a commercial or public building and see how these can be applied to a residential situation.
How would you define the relationship between an architect and his or her client?
A good architect will create a strong relationship with their client which goes beyond the standard transactional connection most clients have with those they appoint for services. Because of the nature of the work, they will get a detailed understanding of how the client lives or would like to live and how best to design around this.
What are your specialities in your field?
Due to the vernacular architecture, I have previously worked on, I have a lot of knowledge of working on historic and listed buildings. This often related to the need of high end design and detailing between modern additions and historic structures. In addition, with a comprehensive knowledge of on-site construction, my speciality is quickly becoming the cost implications of designs and how to value engineer where needed.
Your favourite mobile app at the moment?
I try to limit mobile time… but to find inspiration I tend to use Pinterest if I need to find something to illustrate an idea.
A little message that you’d like to send to your future clients?
It is important to be honest about your budget with your architect to make sure you can get the best design. Be open about design options and try to prioritise the areas you want to focus your attention. A good architect should present the best options for you to consider and take their advice and you can often get more than you expected.
Anything to add?
Architecture and construction can be a long and stressful process, but clients need to trust in their team to get the best result.