Design Quality

The design should be creative, imaginative, sustainable and capable of
meeting delivery objectives. Quality in design and construction utilising
the best of modern methods will ensure that the project meets the needs
of all stakeholders, both functionally and architecturally

• The client will produce a clear brief before design commences
• Designers will be selected according to ability and quality, together with
  other criteria appropriate to the scale and complexity of the project
• Every opportunity will be taken to encourage visionary designs,
  including art sculpture and to provide opportunities for emerging
  designers and artists
• The design must suit the practical, functional and operational
  requirements of the building and meet both the client’s and users’
  needs, to ensure that whole-life value is delivered by addressing
  buildability, maintainability and usability, whilst driving health and safety
  throughout
• Project briefs will specify performance criteria to encourage innovation
  in order to deliver cost-effective solutions, taking advantage of
  opportunities for standardisation, prefabrication, off-site manufacture
  and adopting modern logistics principles
• The design will be tested using third party design reviews and other
  tools for assessing design quality
• IT-based collaborative tools and communication technologies will be
  exploited

2012 targets

Continued 10% increase year on year from 2007 levels in proportion of projects using DQI in Civic (custodial, police, fire, courts and other public projects), housing, and education projects

Continued 10% increase year on year in the number of times the projects above use DQI

Find out more about DQI