Getting on the Same Page

摘要

It's no secret: More than ever before, the design, engineering and construction of custom watershapes of all sorts is a multi-disciplinary undertaking that involves project teams that might include architects, landscape architects, engineers, geologists, interior designers, suppliers, contractors and subcontractors, among others. Certainly, there are still many of you who work start to finish on projects as solo, self-contained operations, but even a brief survey among top-level watershapers these days reveals that many (if not most) are working quite frequently as team members in close concert with other professionals. This is nothing short of an evolutionary step in watershaping - one that carries broad implications. For starters, many have told me that the role of the water-shaping consultant, designer or contractor is now frequently on par with that of other players on the team - a trend Brian Van Bower explores in his column this month, beginning on page 12. In fact, Brian points out the increasing frequency with which he's hearing about projects where watershapers are the driving forces behind (rather than adjuncts to) overall landscape designs. Likewise, in situations where watershapes are integral to structures, more and more watershapers are working with architects from projects' very first stages.