What are the Differences Between an Architect and a Designer?

The average person wouldn't know the technical differences between an architect and a designer because, in the public's view, both design buildings. And while both do design buildings and other structures, they have different responsibilities and provide different services. You can see the clear-cut differences once you know the specifics.

A building designer meets with clients, asks questions, and provides answers based on the client's requirements and vision. The designer will make suggestions for the building design and then create a draft of the concept and determines if these will meet the building feasibility and specifications.

 The key differences between an architect and a designer can be broken down as follows:

The Architect

An architect has a master's degree and has passed the Architect Registration Examination. The education of an architect includes learning the artistic process of designing a building and how to create the building specifications. Architects collaborate with several others on a project, including the designer, contractors, and the building inspector, to meet all codes and regulations. The architect is there to handle a project from the initial meeting to the ribbon cutting.

Even with multiple architect degrees and years of experience, an architect must be licensed and registered with a government architecture organization. An architect's scholastic process will include artisanship and building science, usually within a 5-year period. This degree level has technical design, architectural history, and contract law. An architect graduate will complete 2 years of practical work under a registered architect before qualifying as an architect.

An Architect's Responsibilities

·         Providing fundamental evaluations of costs, work, and timelines.

·         Visiting the building sites to check on progress and meeting plans.

·         Prepare scaled illustrations, either freehand art or CAD.

·         Stay current on building trends, guidelines, zoning laws, and design elements.

The Building Designer

After communicating with the client, the building designer will collaborate with the architects, expressing their imaginative ideas for a building design. They will use the client's vision and thoughts and transform them into an innovative structure draft. A building designer has a working knowledge of building standards and construction regulations and broad knowledge of math, physical science, and CAD. A building designer must be able to adjust designs as the project proceeds and be ready to review the drafts based on the client's needs.

Building designers in the past were referred to as draftsmen, but as their jobs developed, they became referred to as designers. A designer's job today includes designing energy-efficient, functional, and impressive structures.

A Building Designer's Responsibilities

·         Consulting with clients on building use, the plans, and the size needed.

·         Generate proposals that stay within the client's budget.

·         Present the preliminary and the finalized designs.

·         Help the client hire contractors.

 Building Designer Required Qualifications

This position isn't a licensed or registered position, and almost anyone can become a building designer. A building designer isn't always required to have certain prerequisites or qualifications. It is up to each company.

As humans, we are leeches, draining Mother Earth of all things valuable. There are scientific findings that confirm that we have managed to endanger this planet. To save the damage we have done, we have developed a green design architect style to sustain what is left for future humans to enjoy.

What is Green Design Architecture?

Green design architecture is a way of life that supports the environment by utilizing sustainable sources. From construction to energy to updating existing structures and all things in the realm of the architect world by using the new technology available to us.

Green design architecture lessens the impact of civilization by designing more sustainable ways to exist on this planet, but in a way that the creature comforts we've come to accept and know are still available.

This isn't a brand-new concept, though. Innovations of green design architect methods were introduced in the 1970s, like Trombe walls for passive heating and large overhangs to provide shade to interior spaces. These were things we saw as a new revolution and the birth of green design architect style.

If architecture was practicing these things 40-50 years ago, then we are in a better position today with the available technology. We can design efficient structures requiring less energy that can be built in more sustainable ways.

There is a history to green design architecture, and it isn't something brand new. It has always been here. Humans have used it to survive with simple things like opening a window on a breezy day during the summer. We have had green design architects in ancient civilizations as humans found ways to adapt to extreme climates. We have built homes and other structures in ways they could collect and utilize natural light.

Energy Consumption in Numbers

A focus has been on creating, designing, and manufacturing electric cars to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels. Surprisingly though, that isn't the largest energy-consuming thing in our lives. Vehicles aren't the problem, though. The buildings we have built are consuming energy and fossil fuel.

In this country, just over 20 percent of all the energy consumed today is in residential structures, and commercial buildings are consuming over 18 percent. That is almost 40 percent of energy being consumed versus less than 30 percent with our modes of transportation.

We're using our energy resources as we cool or heat the structures we live in, attend school, shop, dine, and work in. As we turn on lights and various other functions in our daily lives, we are using a tremendous amount of energy. With over 300 million occupants in the United States making up only 5 percent of the population on this planet, we are using 15 percent of the energy on this planet.

And a big part of that is through our structures and old-school ways of designing them. This brings to light that we need to embrace more new technologies that will reduce the amount of energy used, thus, focusing on green design architect methods.