A concept design defines a proposed design strategy and broad outcome for a site.
It seeks to explore the opportunities possible to achieve the client’s vision, brief and budget, whilst addressing the site’s physical constraints and statutory and other requirements.
It involves extensive client discussions, discussions with the relevant authority, undertaking a detailed site analysis, preparing sketch designs (which are working drawings that explore a variety of arrangements and scenarios) and presentation of a preferred design solution. This usually takes the form of plans or drawings and sometimes includes design strategy reports. Depending upon the type of project (e.g. subdivision, private dwelling, streetscape) the concept plan may show the locations of certain uses, access points and circulation routes, pavement and other surface finishes, critical design levels and proposals for plant species and materials to be used.
Concept plans and reports which are prepared for inclusion with a development application provide the level of detail specified by the relevant authorities development controls and landscape guidelines or that are deemed necessary to sufficiently demonstrate the proposed design solution / strategy.
Some recent examples of conceptual designs prepared by design team ink for inclusion in development applications are: