There was a time when architects, builders and the clients were the only people involved in completing small projects, and that was known as the triumvirate of building. On the larger projects, quantity surveyors and mechanical engineering consultants were brought in to compliment the team. As far as I remember, sometime during the 1970’s, the term “project manager” was coined as a new rank of professional acting as an information filter between the client and the architect; on some varied, fast-tracked projects they also helped the client with issues which wouldn’t be within the architects brief like liasing with the buildings end user.

So what’s happened?! Now bricklayers and carpenters are calling themselves builders, but because they’re ill-equipped to deal with managing the other trades or controlling building costs etc so the “project managers” are stepping in. They’re taking on responsibility for the project being built on time, and to an agreed cost as well as organising the various trades. It seems to me that they have become what we used to call “The Builder”, I think we need this new breed, given that builders who properly manage a project are difficult to come by, and architects have lost their traditional role of contacts management; that’s often because the clients aren’t willing to pay the extra costs that this service brings. It’s interesting because sometimes the client is willing to pay for a project manager instead. Don’t get me wrong, there are many builders who are competent at carrying out the traditional role, we work with many; but with a traditionally competent builder there wouldn’t be any need for a project manager.