New Fixed Fee Scale from Victoria's Department of Education and Early Childhood Development
Good news on architects fees from Victoria.
The Association of Consulting Architects (ACA) welcomes the decision by the Victorian Government’s Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) to reintroduce fixed fee scales for architectural services commissioned by the department.
The new process will see Quality-Based Assessment of consultants, together with consultant fees that allow an adequate amount of time to complete commissions to an appropriate standard. The fees have not been published yet, but will be included as part of the fee agreements in the next round of project offers.
The ACA believes that this progressive step will lead to improved outcomes in terms of the design and delivery of educational facilities, to the benefit of all. There is clear evidence that careful selection processes and adequate fees for the design and documentation stages can reduce time and costs during the construction phase and lead to ‘whole-of-life’ cost savings, while ensuring better educational environments and improved learning outcomes.
The ACA is very pleased to have played a role in this important decision, and congratulates Paul Viney, the ACA – Vic/Tas Committee-member who led the discussions between ACA – Vic/Tas and the DEECD. We also recognise Don Burns’ important work in implementing this initiative for the DEECD.
Simon Hanger is ACA – Vic/Tas President.