The Architect Is the Hub of Consultant Coordination - and the Quality of That Coordination Determines Project Success
On most commercial architecture projects, the architect engages a team of engineering consultants whose work must be integrated with the architectural design and with each other: a structural engineer, a mechanical/electrical/plumbing engineer, a civil engineer, and potentially specialty consultants (lighting, acoustics, commissioning, vertical transportation, food service, audiovisual). These consultants are typically sub-consultants to the architect - hired by the architect, not directly by the owner - which means the architect is contractually responsible for their performance and for ensuring that their work is coordinated with the architectural documents. The ARE PjM exam tests consultant coordination as a core project management responsibility.
Consultant Agreement Structure
The architect's agreements with engineering consultants (typically AIA C401, Standard Form of Agreement Between Architect and Consultant, or firm-drafted agreements) define: the consultant's scope of services (what drawings and calculations they will produce, at what level of detail, for each phase); the deliverable requirements (drawing scales, file formats, coordination requirements, schedule); the fee (lump sum by phase, hourly, or percentage); and the terms and conditions (insurance requirements, liability limitations, termination provisions). The consultant agreement should mirror the owner-architect agreement in its scope, schedule, and key terms - the consultant's obligations should be consistent with the architect's obligations to the owner for the same scope of work.
Scope of Services Coordination
One of the most common project management failures is "scope gaps" between the architect's contract with the owner and the consultants' contracts - areas of work that the owner expects the design team to provide but that no individual consultant has been contracted to perform. Common scope gaps: specialty structural work (operable facades, complex connection design, custom structural elements); traffic studies; detailed energy modeling; food service equipment specification; audiovisual design; and security system design. The architect must map the owner's full project scope against the consultants' contracted scopes and identify and fill any gaps before design begins - not when they are discovered during construction documents production.
Coordination Process
Effective consultant coordination requires: regular coordination meetings (design team meetings with all consultants, at weekly or biweekly frequency during active design phases); a shared coordination model or drawing set from which all disciplines work; a defined process for resolving conflicts between disciplines (the architect makes design coordination decisions; structural and MEP decisions affecting code compliance or structural safety are made by the relevant engineer); timely distribution of architectural updates to consultants (changes to floor plans, reflected ceiling plans, and sections affect all engineering disciplines); and review of all consultant drawings by the architect before they are incorporated into the permit set or issued for construction.
Key Exam Points
- Consultants: typically sub-consultants to architect (AIA C401 or similar); architect responsible for their coordination.
- Consultant agreements: scope, fee, deliverables, schedule - must mirror owner-architect agreement for consistent scope coverage.
- Scope gaps: areas expected by owner but not covered in any consultant contract - identify and fill before design begins.
- Coordination meetings: regular; all disciplines; resolve conflicts; architect leads.
- Architect reviews all consultant drawings before permit or construction issue - responsible for coordination quality.
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