Tony skinner
Hi, and welcome to the podcast channel podcast my business. And today we have Ruth Newman from Ruthnewman.com.au. And it’s a word that some people might struggle with architectural or architect. Do you get people struggling with that word?
Ruth
You definitely get people struggling with that word? And even spelling that way?
Tony skinner
Yeah, it’s is it Greek or Latin?
Ruth
I’m not really sure. People get very stuck with that.
Tony skinner
Yeah. When I saw the architecture, I thought I’ve got to go for that. So there we go. All right. Excellent. Architechts are important and we had the bushfires earlier in the year. We’ve got other things happening. What What is the purpose of or of an architect
Ruth
The purpose of an architect So it probably depends in which sector you’re talking about. But pretty much it’s the purpose of an architect is to bring your design to life to find what it is that you are trying to design, whether it be a house or an opera house or a retail shop, or a hotel, for example, is to bring that all to life, make it comply and get it built for you and manage the process and get everything done for you.
Tony skinner
Fantastic, okay, so if I want to build a new home what’s that show? grand designs, It’s the original one from England. Boy, is he that host a bit of a nob?
Ruth
He knows his stuff
Tony skinner
I do like the show. But interestingly, he’s an interior designer, not an architect.
Ruth
Yes, yes. So he Obviously he has an interest in architecture and all that sort of stuff and and what the process is, quite a lot of times on grand designs, there’s an architect initially, but they aren’t involved with the process going forward. And ideally, an architect is involved with the whole process so that you have integrity of the design and all that sort of stuff.
Tony skinner
Right, and I believe it helps to set quantity surveying as a separate role, but I guess I’m just a home I’m an architect would fulfill that role as well.
Ruth
Thank you, or you definitely work with a quantity surveyor just check the pricing as you go along. It’s often a good idea to use them. A lot of people use builders, which then potentially can waste the builders time. Whereas if you pay a quantity surveyor to get the indicative costs in the first place, then that’s another way to monitor your costs.
Tony skinner
And I’m sure builders wouldn’t just guide you to their mate. Where they get stuff from get some money on the site? I’m sure that doesn’t happen. 
Ruth
No comment
Tony skinner
exactly as it I’m sure it doesn’t happen. So I think so the main purpose of architect is to help you translate your design into reality. What about the same with renovations? Is it the same
Ruth
Pretty much is the same. What happens in the renovation space often is that people know what they think they want. And so then you would go to them and say, we want to put a deck at the back and we want to move the kitchen and we want to do this and we want an extra bedroom and an extra living space because kids are getting older. And they have in their, in their head the idea of what they want so often they will then ring somebody who can come and build that exactly what they’ve said. But there may be better options. So with with us, for example, we would then come come in and say, Okay, we’re going to draw what you’ve said. But in the meantime, I’ll also draw three other ideas of what you could potentially do that will still give you that outcome that may work better for you. So it’s trying to give them different ideas in the space that they’ve got and what can often what can be approved a council approval and other things as well.
Tony skinner
Well, that’s a tricky thing, isn’t it? I mean, councils take their time to put in the approval and wait for the neighbors to have a whinge and backwards and forwards and then you go, Well, you can’t have that anyway.
Ruth
Quite often. Well, that’s that’s actually is the big trick is put when you put something into council put something in that complies if it complies, and you’ve done everything that you’re supposed to do under the dcps and le P’s and which other control plans that Council have if your design complies with everything and you notice means it really doesn’t matter. Because you’ve done everything you’re supposed to do. If you put something in that doesn’t comply, then the neighbors have a reason to complain. And then council asked me to change it.
Tony skinner
Yeah, yeah, but it’s gonna block my view. It’s gonna overhang so I’m used to sunbathing outside. So I don’t want you to add that extension to put on the second floor, all those sort of things.
Ruth
Yeah, they definitely those complaints come up all the time. But again, if you’ve done if you’ve built or designed your building to be two meters higher than it’s supposed to be, council are going to come back and say, well, you’re blocking the sunlight. You can’t do it. But if you designed it exactly how it’s supposed to be, and there’s not really a complaint
Tony skinner
Okay, I’m talking about that. We’ve got this other wonderful amount of money the government is putting out at the moment to encourage more building and renovation. Wow, I was getting excited. An apartment on the North Shore. And I thought, well, I need to do a little bit of work in the kitchen, kitchen benches and some retiling and whatever, nothing major, and I thought, Oh, you’re a beauty, I’ll get some money from the government for that. And then unless it’s going to cost me $150,000, I get nothing.
Ruth
Exactly. I think the the intent of the thing is a good idea. But it’s going to be a very difficult thing for most people to either apply for or be even eligible for. You really need to have had your, if you needed a DI for example, you really needed to have that already approved and ready to go and be in the process of talking to builders really design a contract, ready to be doing the construction certificate, all the other extra bits and pieces that need to be done, and then have acquired already design and then not earn more than $200 $200,000 a year if you’re a company So you need to have all of that, I think lined up now within the next couple of months to be able to apply for and then it’s only there for seven months. So it’s a difficult piece of legislation. And I yeah, I’m not sure that anybody’s really got their head around how it’s gonna work it.
Tony skinner
Yeah. Now, in your website you mentioned you’re on architectural concierge. So what is an architectural concierge?
Ruth
So we design document and deliver your architectural present. It’s It’s similar to a concierge at a hotel so we market ourselves that anything that you need for your project, we can find them. So if you needed a bottle of wine at a hotel, the concierge will tell you where to go and find it. If you need some tiles and you don’t and you want some recommendations on where to go and get tiles and good suppliers and And sort of thing we’ll find them for you or further. We can take you there and work with you if you want, or we can just find them and thank you on your merry way to the theater. So it’s that’s really how we what the concierge service is similar to a hotel concierge
Tony skinner
as far as an ask you for some tickets to the to a concert, but of course, that’s something down the track as well. Yeah, seriously, it’s Rona made life very, very interesting. So, okay, it’s just you that you’ve been practicing for quite a few years. What got you into architecture.
Ruth
I wanted to be an architect when I was a kid. So I, I loved going to buildings. My parents just bring up Sydney all the time. And we’d go and look at buildings and look at the Opera House being built and all that sort of stuff. And then I went to high school and did texturing and absolutely hated it. So then it was off. applied. And I didn’t want to do architecture when you get to 12. And you’ve got to fill out all those forms and do everything else. Newcastle University was on a separate floor. So I applied for architecture at Newcastle University just for the hell of it. And then when, you know six months later, when you get all the office, I was offered architecture. And that was the one. Yep, I’m going to go and do that. And I loved it from the first lecture. absolutely loved it. And that’s it. And I really only applied for it because I wanted to do it when I was a kid. 
Tony skinner
That’s interesting. So did you play with a lot of Lego when you were a kid?
Ruth
Right? i still love lego we have a Legoopera house sitting out in the foyer.
Tony skinner
Wow, okay. And what’s the other one mechanop?
Ruth
I didn’t like that one so much.
Tony skinner
yeah. I was like preferred mechanic senior. more intricate and and a bit more technical than Lego. But hey, but unlike an architect and us, so maybe the Lego connection? Yes, a bit better. Excellent. Okay. All right. Thanks very much for your time on that, Ruth. So people can get a little bit more information from you by booking an appointment on your website, and it gets some 15 minute session. Is that right?
Ruth
Yes. So it goes straight to a calendar booking to book a call with us to talk about either a new project, or what difficulties you’re having, or that we can help with the actual project itself or if we need to refer you on to someone else who can help you. We have had calls in the past where we’ve needed to refer people to landscape designers, architects. So that’s what that calls for is to understand what your project is, whether we can help you whether we’re a good fit, and it’s all obligation free.
Tony skinner
Fantastic. So if you’re looking at building a new home or some extensions, then definitely you need an architect. I mean, you’d be insane not to do anything without one.
Ruth
We also work in other spaces. So we do quite a bit of retail work. And something that somebody didn’t know that we did the other day. We were busy designing barbecue shelters for a caravan park. And somebody had no idea that architects could potentially be doing that style of work. So it’s an interesting field because, yeah, you’re not restricted to just one area.
Tony skinner
Well, it’s interesting. I’m looking at some of your clients and you’ve worked with animal referral hospital, an old client of mine. So he will fit outs and it is a small world I thought, Oh, wow. Okay, there you go. That’s one when they moved to the new premises in new the flow into the markets.
Ruth
Yes, that’s that one.
Tony skinner
Yeah, okay. I remember when that first opened.That was a few years ago now. And good. Okay, so you do all sorts of things. There you go. Fantastic. All right. Great. Thanks for your time, Ruth.
Ruth
Thank you very much.