When the time is right to move forward with your vision
Aug 14, 2023
For the last several weeks we've discussed Vision and what that means to your Library design. This week I want to wrap that up by discussing what to do once it's time to move forward with your vision. And also, how to know the time is right.
In most situations, it will be blatantly obvious that it's time to move forward with your vision. For the majority of you, this takes place when the funds are finally available to you. But sometimes that funding might just lie dormant while the rest of your team decides what the next steps are. Unfortunately, most of you don't always know what the next steps should be. I'll lay all of that out for you here, but if you're ready to talk about your own Library project, click the link below and I can help you figure out your next steps sooner rather than later:
Not sure what to do now that your Vision statement is all put together? Schedule a free call with me today and let's chat about it!
In the meantime, I've listed a few guided steps you can take to gain focus and direction with your Library design project.
GET FAMILIAR WITH YOUR PHASES OF DESIGN
There are 5 basic phases of design that you need to be focused on:
- Programming
- Schematic Design
- Design Development
- Construction Documents
- Contract Administration
The two I want you to pay attention to once you're ready to move past the vision-creating exercises you've done are Programming and Schematics.
PROGRAMMING IS EVERYTHING
The Programming phase of design is a tedious and labor-intensive part of your design that is absolutely necessary. You can't skip it. As in, it's impossible to skip it. For starters you've already begun a huge chunk of your programming phase while putting together your vision statement.
This is the part of design where you select a trusted team of no more than 3 or 4 people to begin breaking down the details of what your Library needs and how you can begin to achieve those things. It's in the programming phase that you will eventually write out your Concept Statement.
The Concept Statement is the anchor for every decision you will make along the way as you design your building. Nothing gets by your Concept Statement. If you want to know more about putting together your Concept Statement, schedule a call with me HERE and we can discuss it further.
In order to write up that Concept Statement, you will have to do some serious research about your building. Know what your needs are and what your dreams are. Most of this, as I'm sure you've figured out by now, has been covered in your Vision statement.
Overall, the Programming Phase is a lot of discussions, list making, and organizing. You'll put in a great deal of your work here. So you'll want to plan for it accordingly and make sure you have plenty of time allotted to do the work.
SCHEMATIC DESIGN IS THE NEXT STEP
In the Schematic Design Phase (which we call Schematics in the design industry) you will begin to take all that information you've put together in the Programming phase of design and start drawing up some space diagrams.
You'll begin with adjacency diagrams that will show direction and indirect relationships with each area in your building. For example, you probably want your Adult reading area to be in close proximity with the main work room. And you'll most likely want your Children's area near the Children's workroom.
Those seem to be no-brainers, but what about less obvious connections? Where do you want your staff areas? Do they need to be close to the workroom or should they be far more back-of-house and out of site of your patrons? What needs to be next to the Janitor closet and mechanical rooms? What areas need to be near the breakroom, public restrooms and shipping/receiving areas?
These are all important things to begin considering when designing your new Library space. These questions can be answered in adjacency diagrams that will help you sort out all that information. Once that's finalized, you'll move into circle diagrams that will take that information from the adjacency diagram and put it in a more visually functional image for you to use as you move forward.
The final phase of your diagramming process will be block diagrams where you take that circle diagram and evolve it into a more spatial layout. This is what will eventually morph into your space plan layout. While it isn't exactly a magic formula, it's one that is critical in the entire design process and it will undoubtedly help you to get the best possible use of your future space.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Your Vision statement is just the beginning of the design process. It's critical, no doubt But it's the jumping off point for your entire design. So have a good one. Know what you want and be ready to take the necessary steps to carry it out. You'll be so amazed at what you can do if you just take it one task at a time.
Still confused? Don't be. I can help you sort through all this information. Help is just a click away. So don't hesitate to reach out to me. I'd be more than happy to walk you through the steps when you schedule a call with me HERE.
