I'm in the process of getting plans together for a small (3m x 1m) two
storey extension. I've had all the plans done, and the architect's just
sent off the building regs application to the LA.

I've just had a letter from an engineer, sent on the architect's
invitation, quoting £450 plus VAT and expenses to specify the
foundations. I hadn't expected this - I'd sort of assumed it was
included in the architect's £1000 fee. Anyway, just have to be done I
suppose, but is the fee about right?

Thanks, Rob

The whole thing sounds daylight robbery to be honest - unless there's
something very unusual about your extension, or the location.

I eventually got rid of my architect and structural engineer - and did
all the design and calcs for a chapel conversion myself. It really
wasn't rocket science - architects use the same specifications over
and over again, and on most domestic works the structural calcs is no
more than plugging a few numbers into a standard formula.

Rob wrote:
I'm in the process of getting plans together for a small (3m x 1m) two
storey extension. I've had all the plans done, and the architect's just
sent off the building regs application to the LA.

I've just had a letter from an engineer, sent on the architect's
invitation, quoting £450 plus VAT and expenses to specify the
foundations. I hadn't expected this - I'd sort of assumed it was
included in the architect's £1000 fee. Anyway, just have to be done I
suppose, but is the fee about right?

We have just had foundations put in for a two storey extension and the
question of foundation depth was answered by our groundwork contractors
in conjunction with the building inspector without involving any type of
engineer at all. But we're in a nice ground conditions and it's a
conventional house.

Do you have a non-conventional design or difficult ground conditions?
(where are you?)

FWIW our structural engineer charges 60 + VAT per hour, so that's a lot
of calculations you're talking about.

Jim wrote:
Rob wrote:
I'm in the process of getting plans together for a small (3m x 1m) two
storey extension. I've had all the plans done, and the architect's just
sent off the building regs application to the LA.

I've just had a letter from an engineer, sent on the architect's
invitation, quoting £450 plus VAT and expenses to specify the
foundations. I hadn't expected this - I'd sort of assumed it was
included in the architect's £1000 fee. Anyway, just have to be done I
suppose, but is the fee about right?

We have just had foundations put in for a two storey extension and the
question of foundation depth was answered by our groundwork contractors
in conjunction with the building inspector without involving any type of
engineer at all. But we're in a nice ground conditions and it's a
conventional house.

Do you have a non-conventional design or difficult ground conditions?
(where are you?)

FWIW our structural engineer charges 60 + VAT per hour, so that's a lot
of calculations you're talking about.

I should add, if you're going for full plans building regs approval, one
approach is to just wait for the building inspector to come back with
their comments: either the plans have enough information for them to
pass or they haven't - they will ask for the calculations they need and
there's no point having them done on the offchance.

In article ,
Rob wrote:
I'm in the process of getting plans together for a small (3m x 1m) two
storey extension. I've had all the plans done, and the architect's just
sent off the building regs application to the LA.

I've just had a letter from an engineer, sent on the architect's
invitation, quoting £450 plus VAT and expenses to specify the
foundations. I hadn't expected this - I'd sort of assumed it was
included in the architect's £1000 fee. Anyway, just have to be done I
suppose, but is the fee about right?

Quite usual for architects to want a structural engineer's views on things
like that. It's called 'covering your arse'. When I had a fairly
involved roof conversion they did just that - but the structural engineer
put the boy on it who treated it as a thesis. Got drawings of padstones
and the calcs for them going to three pages - when the back of a fag
packet calc would have done.

--
*When did my wild oats turn to prunes and all bran?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Rob wrote:
I'm in the process of getting plans together for a small (3m x 1m) two
storey extension. I've had all the plans done, and the architect's just
sent off the building regs application to the LA.

I've just had a letter from an engineer, sent on the architect's
invitation, quoting £450 plus VAT and expenses to specify the
foundations. I hadn't expected this - I'd sort of assumed it was
included in the architect's £1000 fee. Anyway, just have to be done I
suppose, but is the fee about right?

Thanks, Rob

Many thanks everyone - think I'll just try and get a couple of quotes.
I'm pretty sure the full plans have gone off for approval (Jim), so
depending on how long that'll be, i might just wait. No rush.

Rob