Refurbishment and Restore Issue 13 2018 | Page 77

To meet the above design requirements, the architect created a sympathetic design extending at the rear and into the loft area to create additional space required without making changes to the front façade and ensuring that it met all the planning requirements. This enabled the property to obtain planning for conversion into five stunning apartments. The next step was to ensure good quality delivery on the refurbishment. The last thing any architect wants is to find that the quality of the construction and of the finishes are below standard and a disappointment to the client. Monitoring performance is an important part, but a principle guiding factor is to question the building contractor right at the start, during the tender process, about the systems they have in place to monitor and control quality. As they say ‘the devil is in the detail’ and in reality that is what it is – paying undivided attention to the detail – so that you work with someone who believes in this and delivers. with the modern to achieve this stylish conversion and to create a modern-day living space. The house that was not in a good state of repair and a successful renovation was achieved through the utilisation of the specialist skills of our Kisiel team. The front façade was restored, and meticulous work was carried out on the porch entrance which was carefully restored, matching it to the original porch on the adjoining property. Where period features had been removed, such as the tiled flooring in the hallway, they were re-instated. This is an excellent example of the old mixing seamlessly Budgets are an important factor on a restoration as special materials can be required, and the cost of a more specialised workforce can edge costs up. Being clear about the costs from the start is an essential part of meeting client expectations of their financial commitment. At Kisiel Group we believe in being transparent with the pricing in our estimates, giving a detailed breakdown and allowing for contingencies by anticipating potential additional costs. We all know that cheapest is not always the best, but it is about optimising the costs of the construction phase, warranties and allowing for future maintenance requirements. Having said all of this, the most important part of any project is ‘the end’. And what better end could you have than the work of the Kisiel Group team being nationally recognised in March 2018 through winning the National Federation of Builders Awards 2018 for the category of ‘Refurbishment of the Year’. www.kisiel.co.uk www.refurbandrestore.co.uk - 77