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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Arcbazar - Connecting Designers and Clients

Labels: arcbazar

I am very excited to share this website with you all. One of my professor's, Dr. Imdat As, brought this to my attention along with a friend of mine who gave me the info to post here (thanks Maria!). I already signed up and cannot wait to have some time to submit designs. Basically, clients post competitions and set rewards. Designers submit their designs and the client gets to chose and rank the designs.

What I like about this idea is the scale of it. It appears most of the projects are small scale residential and commercial projects. Essentially, the clients who always tend to hire the contractor before the architect... These are also perfect size projects for Revit to really excel... I think the video and description below explain it well. Also, it is totally free for designers to sign up!

Welcome to arcbazar.com!

We created the first-of-its-kind online competition webpage for small to medium scale design projects to allow an easy and fast connection interface between clients, young architectural designers and contractors. We developed the idea for arcbazar.com after realizing that all too often clients could not find an easy and affordable way to find competitive architectural design services. At the same time, designers have a hard time to connect to clients and use their design talent. Therefore, we set out to create a simple, easy-to-use platform that serves and connects the triumvirate of clients, designers and contractors.

Founded in 2010, arcbazar.com is owned and operated by a dedicated executive team and web-developers. Our aim is to help our peers, young designers and architects finding exciting design opportunities from design conscious individuals. Our name arcbazar, is inspired by the idea of a bazaar for architecture – a vibrant space for exchange and negotiation of design services. We are based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and are working around the clock as we prepare the matching of designers with the exciting projects of our clients.

We are eager to answer your questions about arcbazar.com, so feel free to contact us via or check out our FAQ page for more information. We are excited to welcome you to arcbazar, and to begin connecting clients with talented designers and dedicated contractors!

Click here to sign up now and start designing!

I immediately figured this could start a debate as well... so please, feel free to comment below on your thoughts about the site...

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FairFees4all · 696 weeks ago

Umm...this may be my all-time least favorite post of yours - and that's saying a lot because I really, really like you blog.
In Arcbazar's FAQ's, they suggest a "client" set a 2% fee of total construction costs for prize money, 60% of which is awarded to the winning designer = 1.2% fee. For 1.2% fee, the designer submits DD level docs to be handed to a contractor for construction.
So, for example, on a $40,000 job a designer gets 60% of $800 = $480 total.
In my experience doing custom residential to DD level = about 40% of total fee using hand or Autocad. With Revit it's more like 50% or more because more time is required upfront in earlier design phases.
What this means is that for a $40,000 job, the "designer" is getting paid close to the minimum wage. Not a good deal for the designer - or the client for that matter...you get what you pay for.
Then there are liability, and copyright issues. Who does the as-builts for a remodeling prior to design, are they in digital form?....I could go on and on....
Bottom line, bad, bad idea for the profession of architecture.

6 replies · active 696 weeks ago

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TheRevitKid 72p · 696 weeks ago

Wow... I did not see that in the FAQ... I was unaware of the suggested prize amounts, etc... I assumed that the delivered design was in a conceptual phase and once awarded the designer got the job. How else would a project go through without CD's?

I am sorry the post disappointed you. But hey, 1 out of 701 posts is not a bad ratio ;) I hope you continue to follow the blog regardless.

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TheRevitKid 72p · 696 weeks ago

Also, can I get a job where you work?! 40-50% fees is unheard of around here!!!

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FairFee4all · 696 weeks ago

I wish!!!! Fees for full professional services (predesign through contract admin) are typically 10% for new construction and 15% for remodelings/additions due to unforeseen conditions requiring time during construction. We almost always bill hourly and almost without exception the fees end up in that % range.
If a client wants less than full service - say just through SD - we can break that out knowing from past billing history that phases break down as a percent of the total full service fee based on % of total construction cost as follows:
PD/SD = 20% of full service fee
DD = 20% " ".
CD = 40%
Bidding and CA = 20%
Add those up it = 10-15% of total construction costs.
Revit changes those % per phase with more upfront work saving time in CD's.
Hourly rates for someone trying to make a living vary from $60 for the avg. Joe to $150+ for a high profile firm. Keep in mind taxes, insurance, rent, and all the other expenses that go into running a business and $60/hr = 45K per year. Not much considering the cost of an arch degree!

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TheRevitKid 72p · 696 weeks ago

Ohhh I thought you meant 40% for the fee lol... I see what you were saying now.

I understand your feelings about the fee structure and how it effects the industry. It is bad enough the fees keep getting lower and lower. On the other hand, if you look at the scale of the projects on the Arcbazar site they are very small. They are probably the projects that people would never pay 10% to the architect on top of the construction cost and contractors fees... So, in reality, either the builder will simply build it with some crap drawings and his "imagination" or the builder will call a starving designer who will but a set of drawings together for next to noting anyway....

I think the issue that arises is the societal loss of value of what an architect does... That is what we really need to get back.

Would Arcbazat help or hurt the issue??

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FairFee4all · 696 weeks ago

Hey, I do pro bono work for people or organizations that truly need help but can't afford it - that's ethical. But someone using Arcbazar is making some coin - I'm just not sure who. It's certainly not the architect. Is the contractor obliged to offer the client a deep discount on their profit, too? Are clients accepted on a needs basis? It doesn't appear so. If that were the case, then this model would have merit. As I understand it, it doesn't pass the smell test...something's amiss.
So who benefits? Who loses? Who are these people at Arcbazar and what motivates them?

How can this discussion get to a broader audience?

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TheRevitKid 72p · 696 weeks ago

These are all very good questions. I could post this discussion on the front page to see what others think...

I also think you should email the team at Arcbazar as well. I will be seeing my professor on Tuesday and I can discuss it with him as well.

I am sure your concerns are the same as many.

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Danny · 696 weeks ago

In the FAQ it says there is a limit of 5 designers per competition yet there are 45 "designers" on one. No thanks.

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Mark · 695 weeks ago

I like the idea! As mentioned above there are many problems; even their video seems to cheapen what designers have to offer. When I first read your post I thought it sounded interesting, perhaps there is a market for this kind of work but the format and pricing model seems off. The "clients" will end up getting 1st year students trying to make beer and supplies money, which will in turn give designers an even worse wrap. Also, what about liability? And who will be there to make sure the GC isn't cuttin corners..........could go on for ever!

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Tuesday, November 22, 2011