Taking short and simple Notes

The human recalling power is rapidly dropping because we are getting used to gadgets and IT. The mobile version of internet gives a small window to peep into information at an instant but recalling that information is difficult through memory.

As Architects our designs are based upon our ability to recall unless you are copying a design from softcopy. As designing is very personal and creative process, recalling ability helps you to validate with codes and required calculations. Taking simple notes while you study the requirements and refer codes help you in recalling the requisites when you sit for designing. Here are some tips in creating short notes.

1. Write a 4 or 5 words easy title of context.
2. Note down keywords of context.
3. Note down clauses references.
4. Put simple sketch in form of doodles.

All above you shall do in your handwriting and this will boost your recalling power. Try compiling your notes into custom reference document if you feel that in future it will be needed more often. (Remember metro design check list I shared  earlier?)

A perfect design is combination of imagination, vision, creativity and compliance. And notes will help you to recall things at right time. With practice these hand notes become mental notes and results pop up when you recall them.

Trust me your mind itself is much advanced than google. Use it more to process knowledge instead of more search !

Recognising and Nurturing Talent

A good team is what it takes to deliver a good project. As a lead Architect on more than 200 projects in my career so far I recruited a lot of staff. Staff I got to work for me came out of three options.  1) Directly interviewed by me and selected  2) Refrences and pressures from friends and power circles 3) Not interviewed by me and provided by Employer directly through HR.

In option 1 where I got staff from my direct interaction and selection, I looked for that spark of talent based on my own reading of the candidate. All projects with such staff happened beautifully and today each of those persons are very well established in their fields due to sheer personal talent. My idea of nurturing that talent was simple. I gave them problems to tackle by themselves. And since they were originally talented with guidance became real experts.

The option 2 people who came by jack, 50% were fired soon as they were neither talented nor hardworking though by nature I am soft and give multiple chances before taking a decision to fire somebody out of job. Other 30% of them are staying in same jobs from a long time as these were just doing enough to sustain their jobs. Once they loose their jobs they start contacting me again. Only about 20% genuine staff responded to mentoring and did good in their careers.

Worst were the cases directly thrown to me without my screening. Here the fate of project depended upon luck. In times of cost cutting and higher rates for real talent you get staff with fuzzed CVs, no experience and shady background. This happened on 2 projects and both went mediocre or with troubles.

It is hard to digest with todays realities, where selection is not filtered, backgrounds are not checked and talent is not assessed, the projects suffer.

Some of you have lead roles to play and I will advise that use a talent selection filter while you recruit.

Talent has a potential, nurtured properly it is good for candidate and organisation both. At other hand the parasites like staff results only in degradation. Talent makes a career of fulfillment. So always recognise talent first, while recruiting.

Put your heart in it

Contemporary workplaces in form of corporate culture is inducing stresses in people lives. What seems good in the begining starts fading into a stressful scenario where plastic smiles, competition and office politics start taking your energies away, making you just a machinery part. Your life, family, health and freedom is the cost you start paying for your job. Work becomes a burden.

My father, who is an highly active person in his retired life gave a mantra for a balanced life based on his experiences of being  in country's highest stressful jobs as secretary to Prime ministers of India. The mantra is "Put your heart in it or forget it".

So at workplace you work with your heart. Tasks are better handled when you put your heart in it. And learn start saying NO to the things which your heart does not accept. Your body and mind needs your inner permission to perform in harmony. If you work against your inner voice conflicts start within yourself first and then stress happens.

So work with your heart and leave everything else which your inner voice does not want you to do. There is no point in living a life full of hidden emotions, jealousy and stress. Listen to your heart, follow your internal peace and enjoy doing what you want to do.

Missing Engineering

Designs without engineered details is a big malpractice going on in metro projects. With copy paste consultants situations which become unsafe due to non engineered designs are arising. Examples of some of these recently faced by me are given below:
1. Somebody copied railing design from Dubai metro but could not copy the engineering. Structural stability not achieved. No capable engineer tried to do the calculations for safety as per code.

2. Entrance SS steel structure - Somebody copying it on the basis of Delhi bus stops. No engineer again tried calculating the forces and wind loads for structural safety.

3. A glass entrance is designed. GFC shows no structural arrangement of fixing details. Writing detail as per vendor is Moksha for the DDC.

Above examples show how DDCs are cutting corners, not detailing with engineered precision and putting public safety at risk.

To whom these consultants trying to fool? Just not to pay for an engineered work, and push linework as GFC is not going to help the consultants. They often are penalised like in DMRC or shouted at by the client in other metros.

Making Mistakes

Making mistakes

I have always loved making mistakes. And there is a good reason for that - the word MISTAKE itself. Derived from the game of Archery where one takes an aim towards target and misses it, is the origin of the word. Mistake thus means missing the target.

Now why I love mistakes is because before you commit one, there is an element of effort in taking the aim. And mistakes are part of the practice. And practice makes a man perfect.

People I interact with, from their mistakes I come to know whether they have been practicing or not. More than often interaction with people also make me realise my mistakes. And thats the beauty of mistakes, because you will improve when you know your mistakes.

Mistakes are to be acknowledged. It is good for learning. Ofen our false ego does not let us see the mistakes and we get offended when somebody else tells us. But when you are really putting efforts in your practice, mistakes are like things which ask you to make adjustments and correct things.

One more secret - it is not only knowing what is correct is important, more important is to know what can go wrong. That comes from experience - THE EXPERIENCE OF MAKING MISTAKES.

The Sustainability of Neglected Hardship

What kind of sustainable existence we are looking for? Some questions which come to mind will shed light on the real issues. If you are reading this probably you are one of the blessed and lucky ones who are on top of pyramid.
1. Are we sure that the food we eat and waste, gets the growers a comfortable life full of basic needs?
2. Why the poor labourers building our metros and luxury homes have no roof of their own?
3. For every diamond and gold ornament worn by us, there is large scale exploitation of miners who toil hard in heat and dust just to make their ends meet.
4. Every glass of mineral water we consume comes at the cost of safe drinking water unavailable to poors, whose water bodies we are polluting with waste discharges.

We keep on making new roads, new metros and new cities. We keep on increasing our comforts, but somewhere some place somebody is affected for our increased consumerism. Our life has become so fast in pursuit of selfish comforts that it is now snatching basic resourses from others. And at the same pace piles and piles of waste is being generated.

The world will be sustainable by caring and sharing. The tribal existence of ethnic groups from thousands of years have not damaged environment at all, compared to what civilised world has done in short time. This puts a question on its meaning of our approach to sustainability itself.

Think!!

The Engine & Speed breakers

Surprised at the title? No body has seen speed breakers on a rail track. Thank God there are none! But I am writing about corporate Engines and speed breakers today. Metro design offices included.

As we all know a train has an engine and boggies which it pulls. There is a track and there are signals. To climb harder slopes sometimes more than one engine is deployed. Now a team leader has a role to play that is of an engine. It pulls the boggies or staff who carry the work load. Track represents the guidelines and systems to keep things moving streamlined. Signals represent self checks for control and avoiding errors.

The team leader is required to be strong, motivating, able to keep the team moving towards target and to lead from from front. An engine has a limited capacity and cannot pull more than stipulated load. Similarly in corporate offices it is seen when workload increases boggies or staff are increased to share the workload but engines are not increased. In many cases the teamleaders start putting obstacles or speed breakers for deployment of new engines or teamleaders despite increased workload only to retain his/her power. The fears that another engine will take over him result in speedbreaker like situation where the workload is not handled in smooth manner and the teamleader suffers lack of energy to cope with pulling of load alone.

This is situation in most of corporate design offices. And once this happens the profits starts going downhill. A good and effective leader will always respect the talent without fearing it, allow it to take role as another teamleader and workload becomes easier to handle. Ineffective teamleaders are afraid, they keep on adding more junior staff instead of new teamleads. This only results in increasing their own workload.

At workplace motivation, appreciation and rewards  are necessary. If a teamleader wants his own growth, he or she needs to allow growth of the team members. Putting speed breaker in way of team ultimately makes the workplace stressfull and in the end non productive. Companies when realise this after setbacks and complaints from clients have already  lost credibility in market and soon their engines are parked. Talent and merit needs encouragement and empowering so that collective energy is harvested in interest of company.

मेट्रो डिज़ाइन में घुसा डर का भूत

मुझे हंसी आती है जब एक अच्छे खासे मेट्रो स्टेशन के डिज़ाइन को तोड़ मरोड़ दिया जाता है। इनमे से एक बड़ा कारण है - डर का भूत। अक्सर ये भूत उन लोगों पर सवार होता है जो ऐसी ऐसी दलीलें देकर डिज़ाइन खराब करवा देते हैं। कुछ रत्न ढूंढ कर लाया हूँ ऐसे महान वक्तव्यों का - गौर करें----
1. अरे भाई ये इंडिया है - हमारे कांट्रेक्टर ये सब नही बना सकते। (अबे फिर ऐसे कांट्रेक्टर क्यों रखते हो?)
2. पिछली बार स्टेशन में पानी भर गया था, इस बार एक बूंद भी पानी अंदर नही आना चाहिये। (लो कर लो बात, हवा कहां से आएगी )
3. कोर कटिंग कर लेंगे बाद में, पहले GFC इशू कर दो (पहले GFC का मतलब तो समझ ले)
4. वेंडर से शॉप ड्राइंग दिलवा दीजिये तो हम डिज़ाइन ड्राइंग दे देंगे (वेंडर को रात में सपना आएगा कि क्या बनाना है)
5. आर्किटेक्ट को कहो कि साइट पर as built कंडीशन देखकर ड्राइंग इशू कर दे (भाई अब तक का काम कैसे करा था)
6. कोई चीज़ राइटिंग में नही आनी चाहिए इशू बंनाने से फालतू फसेंगे (हो गयी क्वालिटी कंट्रोल की ऐसी की तैसी).
7. ये तो फाल्स सीलिंग से छुपा देंगे (लेकिन ठीक नही करेंगे)

सोच है या शौचालय?

Yes or No of Architecture

Architects are creative and emotional. They have ability to convert feelings into spaces and can design spaces to inspire feelings. People with original creativity are repulsed by rejection as it hurts them. This feeling grows stronger when the rejection comes from another professional. Some feel it is part of the job, some take it as personal attack.

I feel that saying "No" to an Architect is unproductive as it slows down or stops the creative process. A "Yes" on the other hand starts things, put motion into creative thinking and lets the process grow.

The virtues of positive appreciation  combined with suggestive betterments bring a positive energy into design process rather than saying a "No". No as such has negativity associated with it and needs to be used carefully. The word no generates fear and hate while yes is associated with gratitude and appreciation.

The choice is ours how to use No and Yes. We have to decide either we move forward or stop in stubbornness.

Atleast you can say Yes if you agree😌

The Purpose matters

Life is not that simple in this era of ultra fast existence. Metro projects and designers working on it are equally affected by the way things happen. Do you like or dislike what you are doing depends upon your mindset. Most often your heart tells you something and mind tells you to do opposite. A conflicting situation. Made worse by egos. I like this, I dislike that, I dont like doing it and I would have gladly done that are daily moods which we all go through. Does this make you at peace or you feel that happiness is lost in this daily grind.

Replace your likes with a *purpose*. Identify a goal for which you feel happy to work. Subordinate your likes or dislikes to your *sense of purpose*. And you will see the difference.

As an Architect when I work, I try to set a purpose or a goal to be achieved at the end of my assignment. To me it is delivery of a successful metro project. Along the way situations happen, clashes occur, tempers flare and what not. My likes and dislikes in form of situations and people try to push me out of my chosen path. But I am learning or trying to practice that I do not loose my sense of purpose. I try to relook at situations again from the  point of view of my own goals. And adjust my actions and reactions accordingly. Sometimes I fail and sometimes I move ahead. But I keep on sticking to my sense of purpose, my ultimate goal. I have found it is easier and happier to follow my own goals rather than working to goals set by others.

Success is still not guaranteed. If one plan A fails, I change to plan B, C.... but try not to change my purpose or my goal.

I have also learnt that the worst situations and worst people give me a chance to learn the best lessons.

And I just shared this one with you. Have a sense of purpose. This is what matters!!

False Projections and Offers

From Reliable sources.

Atleast 3 companies in field of metro consultancy are now involved in unethical head hunting. I will not name them here, but a cautionary note to Metro Architects. Please check with existing employees of a company before you make a switch. It is a fact that 2 companies are either not paying agreed salary after joining or delaying the payments by months altogether. They promise through their HR people and normally have on their targets candidates with good credentials. These companies are using the CVs to capture projects in times of high competition and once they secure the project then they indulge in lowly tactics.

My advise is that if you work for a company which has a name and good reputation, staff are treated well and the company has shown consistent growth, please dont leave it only for money sake. Workplace satisfaction is more important. Also avoid companies which hire new people at higher rate but do not promote or elevate older staff.

As metro consultancy is now project based, the hiring is done keeping in mind the fixed tenures of employees.

I get a lot if requests from young Architects, who are already working for some good firms but want to leave just because of money.

If a company has spent time and money in your trainings and case study visits, the company is serious about you. Your promotion will depend upon your performance.

It is better to stay with a consistent and growing company rather than falling prey to disreputed firms.

These 3 culprit companies are sadly of  Indian ownership.

Billa First safety next

National safety week almost gone. Over the organisations people adorn "billa" or badges with safety first slogan. Over the years safety implementation on sites have become more of posters and badges, that too limited to some few people. What has been actually going down rapudly is real truthful implementation.

No jokes, on any normal day just have a walk on site and notice. As myself an IOSH  trained safety professional my concerns which need urgent attention on metros are:
1. Proper safety induction of all site staff down to the daily wage labourer.
2. Proper PPE to all workers. A lot of manual labourers on site are denied proper PPE and with wornout and torn safety shoes they are at higher risk.
3. Proper drinking water, toilets and shaded resting places for site workers.
4. Hygenic conditions and proper sanitation with mess, entertainment and washing facilities at labour camps with Baalwadi (Childcare).
5. Adequate first aid and medical facilities.
6. Legal insurances in place.

We all talk proudly about nation building but are indifferent towards the unkown worker who despite working on a mega project like metro lives a life exploited by others.

Contractors pass on the risk to subcons and further to small labour gangs. We wear the badges and they bear the hardship.

Why dont you see for yourself sometimes. Talk to a labourer, visit their labour camp once to see conditions, check arrangements on site and come back to read the conditions for safety provisions to be done. The contrast will not allow your conscience to touch that badge again.

Kadwa hai magar sach hai.

My way or Highway Situation

Got this query from a DDC Architect which is self exlpanatory.

"There are many times when things are out of our control. And Client wants to work in particular way and want everything his/her way. He shows The attitude of my way or the highway every time. And you are forced to accept that let's do his/her way and finish it. Then in this situation how to keep yourself motivated to work daily?"

My response to the same:
1. Well, I face this everyday myself and open to suggestions by others.

2. Possible reasons why clients do it in metro sector:-
2.a. Client side is smarter than you, more competent and knows that things can be made better by revising. Client needs faster execution at site and expects constructible designs.
2.b. Client side is biased against you due to professional rivalary and wants you to give up.
2.c. Client side is incompetent, got his/her job without merit but misuses power. Will not take responsibility of his/her actions.
2.d. Client side is trying to delay the project to ensure their jobs for a longer duration tenure.

Now if the case is as per 2.a above, you need to understand clients requirements once again in details, take notes and discuss with your seniors how best to deliver. Try to get an agreement with client on things to be revised before you carry out the works. A good professional client may also give you variation for preferential changes.

However if the case falls in 2.b to 2.d, stop dancing to clients' tunes. Make a record of things which you feel are not alright and put across to client in writing that you disagree with professional reasons. Put responsibility on the person with time and costs impacts and ask his/her reconfirmation to continue. If problem remains unanswered with verbal instructions only, keep sending 2 reminders and finally a delays claim to higher authority with backup correspondence. You may need support of your higher management.

This problem is becoming more and more on many metro projects and we all know the reasons. At times problem creaters needs to be exposed by naming and shaming them. There shall be no fear in a true professional to remove obstacles in path of nation's progress. Do your best, make records and do not accept unnecessary attitude.

Here since metro projects are govt. based and client side actually means responsible persons / private bodies appointed by govt. for project.

Also in worst case it is better to be on highway as it leads to many more ways rather than getting stuck with a dumb head client. Whoever wants myway need to take the responsibility.

Free Offer

Free Offer

We read the news. Govt. has been made to believe  that free things are good and they roll out invitations for free concept planning. Who is responsible?

Hafeez Contractor who offered to design for free? No I do not think he is responsible for this. Then who?

First we try to understand the possible reasons behind Hafeez's (HC) offer.
1. When other Architects were busy churning box like residential buildings in Mumbai in 80s, HC came out with out of the box architectural treatment to his buildings and was a great success.  Others hated him for that and still do. I myself worked on his NRI housing project as freelance job once. HC was a tycoon for Architecture and even featured on National Geographic.

2. When metros started in Delhi, due to technology transfer Japanese MNCs came in and established norms for metros for India. Nobody in Mumbai had an idea how to do metros and metros remained exclusive to select MNCs even for phase 2 and 3. Other cities followed DMRC and same MNCs could be seen there as well. Once again due to qualifying criteria HC could not enter.

3. MNCs started cutting fee and lowered standards as competition grew among themselves. Copy paste increased and no innovation was done. Almost after 20 years of DMRC works quality has become degraded due design and quality management faults. MNCs are hiring untrained staff, no standard procedure and basics are wrong in designs.

4. In the meantime age old Indian railways looks at metros and prepare DDC qualification criteria hard for Indian firms to enter. Indian firms start looking for foreign JVs.

5. From past 3 years, real estate is doomed and Architects like HC sense that without infrastructure projects they cannot sustain.

6. HC starts looking at already built stations, gets hold of design records and knows instantly what is going to sell. There is enough manpower in Indian market to bring with them technical expertise for which he will pay. But his visionary mind has seen that how things have degraded over the years and he will try his luck by putting in innovative aesthetical treatments for which he is undisputed master. Where as the current DDCs are still churning out typical govt. like buildings.

7. Hafeez ensured some work in metros already, now has insight into what can be done to make it more sellable. He is eyeing a larger picture taking advantage of his fame and contacts.

8. Hafeez knows that consultancy in both railways and metro sectors in India are driven by vested interests, already high competition and unproductive Architectural fee as a result of MNCs lowering costs and standards.

9. Hafeez free designs will be with an edge above the current copy paste designs for which he has adequate manpower, whereas other MNCs will have to spend for good concept generation. HC knows it well, done his homework and ready to strike.

10. As a rule he is gambling in this game and will never count his money when sitting on the table. He will count it when the deal comes through. Others will have hard time arranging the gamble money.

Hafeez Uncle (he is very senior to us) at this age has nothing to loose and even his failure to secure railway or metro jobs will have an impact on MNCs but will open doors for some talented guys ready to work in such scenarios.

My advise to people working for MNCs including me - love your opportunities not your company. I am sure when the times are low you are bound to be kicked out first.

Rlys and metros will call for PPP mode of development and contractors will prefer hard working professionals and thats the hope HC has to offer to the country.

Last thing - Successful people are hated for their success by competition. And now arena is open to all.

The Two Elements

Once you are ready with your mission statement to achieve a vision, you need to practice two essential elements during the course of the project.

Josiah Charles Stamp, an English economist once said "It's easier to dodge our responsibilities but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities".

One essential element to achieve the success is *Responsibility*. You need to work towards the goal with total responsibility. I will call it Response - ability. The ability to chose our responses as we work to challenging and difficult situations. Remember you are responsible for your actions and your own success. Never run away from your responsibilities.

Another essential element is *Descipline*. Descpline is simply setting up rules and follow these for time, productivity and quality purposes. A non descplined approach will never result in desired outcome of efforts put. Descipline is not only a personal trait to be developed but it is your life's tool to help you in your pursuits.

As I finish, I sincerely hope that the series of writeups will help people setup things better and with own personal improvisations goals can be achieved as desired.

Working to a vision

We talked about Vision last. How to exactly achieve that vision? Remember that the vision statement provided could be by others and you have with you your imagination and creativity.

You need to prepare yourself for that. Most important is that you understand the vision fully as I told in my last writeup. Next thing is that you concentrate on something before actually working on your design. If you want to be successful, prepare a step by step implementation plan. Defence forces do it, mountaineers do it and sports person do it. And this something is called as *Mission Statement*.

A mission statement shall focus on various steps needed for delivering the works to achieve the vision. A mission statement will get you clarity on the processes you need to do for achieving your goals. Note down whatever associated with the targets comes to your mind. Sequence the steps in a logical manner. Build checks and flexibility in the steps to startover again should you find things not going perfect. Make room for improvements as you move towards writing final steps. Bring elements of joy and pride associated with milestones of your mission statement ensuring that you like what you do. Keep failure as an option and write steps for plan B in case things fail. Review your mission statement twice after you think it is final. Make final adjustments and keep a printout of it in front of your work place. And if you put some time and resources against step, you will have a great mission statement at your hands.

Working to a clear vision with a mission does not guarantee success always but thats the best route to be successful. There are two other elements which you will need to be sure shot successful. 🏆

We will discuss that later...... next time. Or somebody from our group can guess those two things. Try it...

VISION

VISION

We talked about imagination last. We talked how creativity is driven by imagination. There is something above both which is called VISION.

Often we hear of the word and context of Great Visionaries. Often leaders are associated with visionary word. Whether a visionary needs to be imaginative and creative?

No, not necessarily. But a visionary is able to look into the future and takes steps to make his vision a reality. What ordinary people's eyes cannot see, a visionary is able to make that happen.

Having capability as a visionary is a personal trait. Cannot be taught but needs to be developed through self introspection.

For Architects the clients gives requirements and gets a design in return. We write - Issued for clients approval.  Architects seek approval on their creativity and imagination sometimes from a client who is not an expert in both. But still we seek the approval and keep changing things till the time client approves.

Client only approves once he thinks that the designs are in line with his vision. And thats the truth we must accept.

A fine Architect is able to read client's mind and becomes part of client's vision. He is able to channelise the things to suit clients ideas and able to produce a synopsis in form of Vision statement. So understand the vision first and then work to it.

How thats done I will tell in my next write up.

Imagination

You have a super power in yourself, the ability to imagine! Imagination is a magical gift of God to mankind. And the designers who have mastered this imagination are blessed with creativity. It is due to imagination that great works of design, engineering and artwork happen.

How to master imagination for use in your line of design? While 1st year class of basic design is still relevant, I am going to tell you 3 secrets of enhancing imagination..

1. Observe things - Your eyes are far superior to a digital camera and your brain has much more storage capacity than a super computer. Practice seeing existing things in details, vivid colour and have a mental appreciation or analysis of the things you see. Taking notes is not necessarily an option but observe things of your interests in a keen manner. Your mind is able to retain your observations for a life time. What you observe, see and experience forms the basic database your imagination. And thats also sets the limit to your imagination. You mind will only process what it has absorbed. Observe even when you read a book and make mental graphics of what you read.

2. Cut yourself away from noise and distraction - Even if you are in a crowded noisy place train your mind to concentrate on what you want to do without getting disturbed by surroundings. When you practice this a time comes when you and your mind s focussed on the task at hand and you cannot even get affected by noise. This makes your mind recall things and weave the information in a creative way. Dont let your mind be filled with clutter and noise, train it to be free from distractions so that ideas can find a right place to stay.

3. Be child like and play with your thoughts - Let your creative instincts at play. Imagination is minds way of throwing up images based on your observations, experiences and a creative play of collage like combinations of information. Let your mind throw various permutations and combinations of the creative weaves of imagination. Record these and do optioneering of this mental pictures created.

They never taught you this in college but you have this power within you waiting to be harnessed to its full potential.

Try it.... for example think you have to design a new entry structure to a station. Close your eyes and see what mental pictures your mind sends you. These will start coming one by one what you have seen, read and observed. Rest is to be developed through creativity as you refine the imagination process.

Satyakam Garg

Imperfections of Perfect Design

Another delayed flight at Lucknow airport and while we wait my attention goes to a toddler playing. She is unaffected by the delay of the flight, while some started cursing the airline, Indian time system etc. etc. Food stalls see a frenzy crowd around them. There are less seats in lounge than waiting passengers. Most of us are busy on our mobiles like I am now. The kid keeps playing, making joyful noises and tugging at other waiting passengers. Nobody minds that and smile back to kid who reciprocates with more laughter. No pains of past and no worries for future, just busy with present.

God sent us to this world as a living being with design so perfect, its code embedded in our DNA comprising of the minutest atomic structure. Ability to replicate, reproduce and sustain ourselves is the highest order of design code through which life happens. Looking at that kid at her start of life, I felt that God or whatever you call that almighty designer of life, did a fantastic job. Mere emergence of life as a new born brings happiness, which comes from that design. Harmony and love with others of same design is what he meant to do.

As we grow and mature with gained knowledge the ever present happiness starts diminishing. The pefectly designed creation of God starts getting dented with impact of greed, jealousy and ambitions. We start imperfecting ourselves with pressures, worries and fears.

A child has no fear. He will put his hand in fire. Once he feels pains he knows not to play with fire anymore. Thats how knowledge is built up. But to keep on thinking that fire will burn him becomes a worry and develops fear. And fear is not good. The fear becomes an enemy of our own making, only because we over thought on the knowledge.

Thats how our brain changes our emotions and behaviour. Knowledge if used in positive manner will provide happiness and if it results in a worry it gives fear.

Dont know whether my thinking is right or wrong, but penning down the thoughts may seek some answers.

Over the years I have been so abusing to myself, and never realised that my perfect design as a creation of God has been impacted so much by my own ego and reactions I make.

Sometimes, waiting and slowing down shows you the things which we ignore to observe in our fast life.

Metro Condition today

Todays Metro Contracts

DDC side:

1. DDC at PD stage - Promises out of world finishes and presents collage of international references
2. DDC at CRD stage - Forgets presentation, starts compromising as things are to be detailed. Result extra items.
3. DDC at GFC stage - Still struggling to get things correct.
4. GC - comments, comments and still comments.

Contractor Side:
1. At Kick off meeting - Sir we will provide you the moon.
2. At Shop drawing stage - Sir we are waiting for GFCs and moon is very far away to get in time.
3. At construction site - Sir actually the problem is this has to be made constructible... we cannot import in time... moon is no longer available...blah blah.
4. Before opening - Sorry Sir, we are still trying our best to rectify the snags.
5. After opening - Snags still there, Contractor gone
6. GC and client are busy in dealing with variations.

Client Side:
1. At start of project - I want this.
2. In middle of project - Actually I cant pay for this, can you give me this?
3. Before completion of project - I never wanted this, who has done it. Remove it, give me that.
4. After the project - See we finally did it our way.
5. Architects are not invited to opening ceremony.

Metro trains start running. Public has no time to see things, they are busy in reading "Please mind the gap".

Staying true to profession

In todays metro scenario we are seeing some low points where now things have gone pretty sub standard. And so much so that if things are to be audited today 90% of these will fail. There are reasons for it and one is not being true to the profession.

What it means? How one becomes untrue to the profession?

When an Architect does not perform his duties assigned and defaults from his professional responsibility he or she becomes untrue to profession.  Now some defaulting actions highlighted here...

An Architect is hired as part of the project to make the project happen.   Stopping or slowing the project due to following reasons makes the Architect defaulter.
1. By way of vested interest and irresponsible review by Reviewing Architect of GC or implementing agency. Pan India projects suffer because of this. Project will progress fast if reviewing Architect tries to push the things towards completion by improvising instead of repeated rejection. Most GC Architects shoves off the responsibility on DDC.

2. By way of poor design, unsupervised design and non coordinated design. In DDC original design when coordination is missing things go hay wire. Mistakes go either unchecked and delay the project or correcting designs comments after comments delays the project.

3. The attitude problem. Multiple Architects on same metro projects develop an attitude problem and stop looking into merits. Instead they work against each other forgetting that things are not moving.

4. Business model by DDC. Costs are cut on essentials quality checks and manpower often resulting in DDC making submissions half cooked and late. DDC keeps on changing design delivery schedules and project suffers.

5. Poor change management. We talked about it earlier and a simple thing is handled so badly that everybody suffers instead of making money.

6. DDC thinks it is ok if drawings, specifications and BOQs does not match. So much have been cut pasted from DMRC contracts that no design innovation can be done only because Architect never read specs or BOQ prepared by others.

7. Worst part is DDC Architect showing images downloaded from internet in presentations to clients. And their drawings are not no where near to what was shown. Detailing is another problem for which no metro DDC has time.

8. Last but very important. The clients in metro want world class works, go with low specification and costs, play with tenders with vested interest and do poor implementation of works even if design was right.

My messages may be boring, long and irrelevant to most. But almost 30 years into profession has given me an asset of speaking on issues without fear or favour. In todays world, being true to the profession is not easy. But for a better future, being true to one's own being is important. We as Architects are better off financially than most of our Indian population. While we work, we need to think where we are taking India. The road is long and slippery and you need steady conscience as true professional.