Creative partnerships hold the key to building success

With regard to your recent Vox Pop (DW 15 July), I don’t think that it is a question of cohabitation or collaboration from outside when it comes to the relationship between designers and architects.

There are an increasing number of skills required of the architect. Increasingly, their job is to orchestrate consultants, recognise talents and direct them. They don’t have to be able to play the violin, just know what they want to hear.

The success of another design discipline working within an architectural practice depends on how the skills complement each other. In our case, our team of industrial designers take advantage of other

talents by applying them to the construction process.

Understanding the value of graphics does not need much experience. I only had to work with graphic designer Isambard Thomas for a day to realise how little I know about design and layout.

I would recommend that all architects have a graphic designer on hand, whether they are in-house or just down the road.

Eoin Billings

Associate director, industrial design

Grimshaw Architects

London W1