Principal Designer Duties

The principal designer’s role is to plan, manage and monitor the pre-construction phase, to co-ordinate health and safety. The pre-construction phase is defined as any period during which design or preparatory work is carried out for a project, which may continue during construction.

The principal designer must:

• assist the client in identifying, obtaining and collating the pre-construction information
• provide pre-construction information to designers, the principal contractor and contractors
• ensure that designers comply with their duties and co-operate with each other
• liaise with the principal contractor for the duration of the appointment
• prepare the health and safety file

At project set up we…

Provide a schedule on appointment

Develop a good relationship with the client

Ensure you understand the brief

Clarify roles

Hold regular (conference) or attend design meetings

Undertake an early site visit

Raise issues/areas of concern early

Pre-construction phase

Review design programme to date – advise if missing

Arrange a pre-design meeting with the client and the designers

Where possible, seek contractor input during the design phase

Participate in design co-ordination meetings across all disciplines

Actively encourage designers to work together as a team

Encourage the designers to involve end users from the early stages of the design

Embed health and safety into everything

Encourage a consistent approach to how information is provided by the designers

Construction phase

Attend site or progress meetings (as requested)

Liaise with PC for ongoing design

Prepare and or review content for the health and safety file

Identify lessons learned