Our aim is always to produce buildings that people can enjoy, be that in their contribution to their surroundings, in the resolution of their detail, or in the experience of using them day-to-day.

We understand the importance of responding to context, and of creating something that contributes to a sense of place. Each of our designs is a bespoke solution, but springs from a deep understanding of what is achievable within the constraints of modern building materials and techniques.

Underpinning all of our designs is an understanding of the art of the possible, and we have extensive experience in the delivery of often complex buildings.

Throughout the design stages from inception to completion our technical teams contribute to the design process to ensure that all our schemes are capable of delivery without amendment. Equally our planning teams sit alongside the delivery architects to guarantee that the quality of the initial designs is maintained throughout construction.

A successful project is the result of a collaboration of a team of professionals skilled in their individual fields of expertise, led by an architect who is as aware of the detailed knowledge they lack as they are proliferate in the breadth of knowledge they have.

At ColladoCollins we embrace the role of Design Team Leader, bringing all of our skills to bear in balancing the specialist inputs with the desired outcome.

Our clients approach us with an idea of what they want to achieve, and by when, and we help define and manage a process that delivers on that goal, be it securing a consent that is appealing to onward purchasers or funders, or delivering a building that can be operated and inhabited as a great place to live or work.

An awareness of the cost of construction is essential to our process, and we work closely with cost consultants throughout to ensure that our designs are within the parameters required to maintain viability on every project.

We have a well developed understanding of the balance between cost and value, and the parameters of walls, floors, openings, and materials that can affect the cost and quality of our proposals.

We never underestimate the importance of good time management on a project, and the critical nature of achieving project milestones within the time constraints our clients require.

A fully developed design programme incorporating the activities of the full design team is integral to our process, and essential to our clients in understanding what can be achieved and by when. Prior to the commencement of any project we will set out and agree realistic milestones with our clients and the wider team, capturing these and monitoring them periodically to keep the process on track.

As we move towards a zero carbon future our focus on the environmental performance of a building is ever more important, and we take great care to make the appropriate allowances from day one.

Whether working with existing buildings to minimise the extent of demolition, or new construction to manage the extent of embodied carbon, we concentrate on the real world impacts of our designs and specifications. Simple, robust, and buildable solutions to achieve high-performance building envelopes are key to achieving whole-life net zero carbon designs, and the integration of the right sort of renewables with an understanding of how renewable technologies are constantly evolving is essential to our process.

The ever-evolving constraints of planning policy, space standards, Building Regulations, and Building Safety all inform our design process, and we take great care to ensure our teams are fully apprised of the current and emerging regulatory framework which steers our work.

Understanding the context for our designs goes beyond the immediate built environment of the site, and encompasses the policy and regulatory strictures that apply to the building typology and use. We produce and continually update our internal guidance and standards to accommodate the evolving landscape of regulation, and our success can be largely attributed to our ability to assimilate and understand the impacts these can have on the built environment.