Painting over the cracks

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Bringing together two industry experts on opposite sides of the field is no easy task. Each has their own specifications and there are always mixed feelings about who should have the greater authority.

Victor Low-Foon, design manager at Highgate Interior Design, believes interior designers and facility managers do work together because facility managers invariably have to approve the designer’s specifications and generally get the final say.

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Highgate has experience in commercial, retail and hospitality projects and provides refurbishment solutions to clients who need to upgrade their premises and compete with new buildings. According to Low-Foon, it is a practical requirement to liaise with the facilities manager, and common sense normally prevails.

But James Day, general manager of Smashing Cleaning Services, disagreed. Day would like to see improved relations between interior designers and facilities managers, claiming not enough feedback is given.

“Given the right size, a shoemaker will try on a pair of shoes he has made, in the same way a chef will taste the food he has prepared. A car designer most definitely gets to drive the car he has manufactured, and go and ask the engineers who helped design the Jabulani ball, the ball used for the last World Cup, whether they actually kicked it. Of course they did. As we all should,” said Day.

“Our own business requires customer feedback on every job done. So why is it that architects and designers never seem to ‘test-drive’ their own buildings, obtain valuable feedback, and improve their product?” he asked.

Low-Foon admitted when he chooses materials for a project, facility managers are not his main priority – although he does think about their concerns. “As a professional interior design practice, we provide our clients with practical and aesthetically-pleasing solutions with consideration for the existing fabric of the building.

“Not only do we consider the importance of fulfilling our clients’ wishes, we also have a duty to care for the environment. We, as a practice, concentrate mainly on the interiors, but we do need to consider the practicality and maintenance issues for the facilities manager.”

Ben Corrigan, partner at the Dubai-based design firm, Bluehaus Group (opposite), agreed.

He said in recent years, facilities managers have become more involved in the initial design process, which is a welcome development and an indicator that the local market is maturing, he suggested.