People profile: UK Director Richard Daw on exciting developments in the Build-to-Rent and modular sectors

Richard Daw came back into the Chapman Taylor fold in 2021 with a particular focus on helping to grow Chapman Taylor’s residential design capability in Manchester. In this profile, Richard talks through his sector expertise and explains how his upbringing has shaped his career choice and his approach to leadership.

How did you decide upon architecture as a career?

I’ve always known I wanted to be an architect. There’s a photo of me aged about four, with my dad, as he’s examining drawings. He worked for a small specialist building restoration company based in Essex called Bakers of Danbury. They worked on some very prestigious projects such as the restoration of St Albans and St Paul’s Cathedrals. Our house was always full of amazing hand-drawn pictures of stained-glass windows and stonework detailing, so I grew up enjoying looking at nicely drawn information. My gran was an artist as well. My interest in drawing and architecture was embedded from a very early age.

Throughout my teens, all my work experience was with my dad’s company. Doing labouring, lifting bits of lead from roofs. One summer I spent chopping up bits of chalk, in a field, in Essex. I’d start with a grapefruit-sized piece and finally segment it into pieces the size of nails, all the while listening to the Ashes on the radio, in the sun. Now, when you look at St Alban’s Cathedral tower, it glints white with all the little bits of chalk and it’s nice to know that all of them were chopped up by me. It was my early handiwork.

I went straight from school to study architecture. I did an HND first in Northampton then transferred to Leeds Met to do my Part One, then Westminster in London to do my Parts Two and Three. I lived in London for about 12 years and most of the first architectural practices I worked at were based in London. I worked for Peter Tigg Architects in Holland Park, the Amos Partnership in Tower Bridge and Assael Architecture in Wandsworth. I worked on mostly residential projects, medium to high rise residential and mixed-use schemes in London.

Where did you go from there?

For seven years I designed primary and secondary schools with Lungfish. Mainly in Bedfordshire because the county changed from a three-tier education system (with a lower, upper and middle school) to two-tier, just primary and secondary. Therefore, all the school facilities had to be rethought out. I delivered around 50 new schools. Also, I had the opportunity to work on SEN schools, which was fascinating. We designed elements such as immersive 3D rooms where visuals on the walls are transformed using video and there is accompanying audio. It’s great for SEN pupils, to be able to use technology to take them out of the day-to-day environment. We could transform the classroom into a beach, for example. The use of technology in architecture is quite incredible.

“Nowadays we’re designing models using VR that can transport our clients and end-users into the design. I think technology is one of the best strings to our bow right now.”

I worked at Chapman Taylor about five years ago, and during that time I worked on a huge project in Istanbul - 23 buildings of luxury apartments. It was immensely rewarding and a great project. It was inspiring working with a Turkish architectural practice for all Municipality coordination. We were designing buildings to increase sea views to maximise value and we also took on the challenge of renovating some existing historical buildings on the site.

I was given an opportunity to join a new co-working business start-up. It was a chance to transfer my skills into a new business, but although fascinating there wasn’t enough design influence in the role, so ultimately my skillset was underutilised. That period also coincided with furlough, COVID-19 and all of the challenges that posed. Getting to know that sector inside out has been really useful, however, and I’ve been able to bring that knowledge to Chapman Taylor

What is your role at Chapman Taylor?

I’ve been brought on board to grow our residential design capability, in our Manchester studio.

We do an awful lot of mixed-use schemes, and now in particular we’re working on many Build-to-Rent projects. Working from where you live is now huge, post-COVID, so I think my experience in co-working has held me in good stead.

So, I’m now back in the Chapman Taylor Studio fold. I knew many of the team here and I knew I’d fit back in.

How does Chapman Taylor stand out in its offer?

Chapman Taylor is ahead of the curve in the modular market. It’s a specialist technique. The school projects that I completed earlier in my career were very heavily influenced by volumetric construction, so I have a lot of experience in this area. The Department of Education can see the opportunity modular construction brings to the shortening of programmes and certainty of cost. Modular gives clients confidence that projects can work from day one, really.

School projects can be given the go-ahead less than a year before they need to be open to pupils, so modular is really the only way these projects can come about. And again, relating that to the residential sector, we need to build so many houses and apartments in the UK that we can’t keep up with the demand. Modular is one of the ways forward. The difficulty is that a lot of the UK suppliers just don’t have the capacity to take on the workload, which is why we partnered ourselves with a recognised modular provider from China. They build shipping container and residential units (it’s the same technology), so the business is very robust and they can accommodate the fluctuations in demand for residential projects.

“Modern Methods of Construction, (MMC) has to have an influence in architectural design and at Chapman Taylor we promote it as much as we can.” MMC means looking at all opportunities to standardise and streamline design. There are numerous benefits to the process: it makes the cost as achievable as possible and brings incredible opportunities for improving health and safety as an outcome of working indoors, in controlled conditions, away from the elements. As everything is being developed in the factory the quality can also be properly monitored. This further results in waste being reduced due to a much more accurate materials estimation. The positives really outweigh the negatives, it’s just about changing perceptions. People still think of modular construction as ‘prefab’ which relates to post-war cheap buildings that were only meant to last 10-15 years, so the connotations are negative. Our job as architects is to meet client aspirations and essentially when a building is finished, if it’s MMC, no one would ever know. Plus, the lifecycle is exactly the same.

Another noteworthy aspect about Chapman Taylor is that we do a lot of research and development. In terms of producing our modular offer, we’ve spent the last four years working with our supplier to really make things as efficient as possible. We’ve worked to really understand the construction techniques, working with the likes of Arcadis in terms of the overall cost point. Now when a client comes to us, we can provide a modular assessment of a particular scheme and get it costed very quickly. The modular element of any scheme is roughly 50% so very quickly the client can know that half of their scheme is costed to quite a decent level, very early on. Also, modular means that the design process is streamlined as decisions have to be made early on in the process. In traditional schemes designs can change as the project progresses but in modular you don’t have that option; you must commit early on and that’s a good thing.

Can you tell me about your leadership style?

How I interact with people is rooted in my family and the way I’ve been brought up. Being considerate and caring is an important part of my role as part of the leadership team. I appreciate reciprocal values. I’ve been lucky to have some great mentors throughout my architectural career. John Assael, Philip Watson at Atkins, Michael Swiszczowski at Chapman Taylor. Michael has similar values about supporting people and making them feel happy in their job. People who feel happy and supported in their work tend to do a good job. I think praise can be undervalued. Supporting younger members of staff, too, is so important; it’s been tricky the last couple of years due to a lack of face-to-face opportunities. Putting an arm around someone who has less experience, imparting your experience, can only help them to improve and in turn improve the business offer. Finally, making people feel comfortable when they need to ask for help – you’ve got to be accessible.

“Accessibility and visibility are crucial to a team working well together.”

Connection and collaboration are also important for the design team, building relationships with consultants and clients. To have a consistent voice. We’re delivering things for other people. We’ve got to understand what people want and we’ve got to understand what it is that we can provide that is to the betterment of every project we work on. If the business culture is right and supportive then it’s going to flourish.

What is the future direction of Chapman Taylor and what are you personally excited about?

The residential influence of the Chapman Taylor offer is growing exponentially. The Build-to-Rent sector is growing rapidly. We’re seen to be experts in it and I’m a part of that expertise, which is exciting for me personally, I’m glad to be able to project a good, clear narrative, for our residential offer, to clients. It makes us very attractive to them! Also, weaving in and understanding the workplace opportunities. Understanding how people live and work has changed over the last couple of years, so we need to be on the curve understanding what clients, investors and end-users want from our schemes.

Relating to the future, we’re venturing into the healthcare and higher education sectors. I’ve personally been charged with looking at opportunities through frameworks. Identifying the national frameworks and getting work through local authorities will help us and provide us with more opportunities in healthcare and higher education.

The influence of Build-to-Rent on the suburban environment will become huge in the coming years. We’re working on a project in Cambridge, WaterBeach Barracks, and we’re exploring all the really exciting opportunities in suburban Build-to-Rent.

People are moving out of the cities, so to be able to build suburban single-family dwellings and new communities is really exciting. WaterBeach is a sustainable development with strong green credentials, it has good pedestrian and cycle facilities to encourage less reliance on the car. Developments like this help to lead people into a healthy way of life. It’s a great project and I’m sure it will lead to further suburban Build-to-Rent projects. We’ve not really influenced our work by domestic scale before. Looking at smaller scale, domestic projects is an exciting opportunity.

I’m pleased that at Chapman Taylor we take our role in designing responsibly very seriously. I am very conscious about our responsibility to design sustainably with an effort to reduce whole life carbon. Our in-house steering groups and research and development teams form an invaluable platform for us to launch better design for the future of our planet.

I have learnt so much over the last 25 years in the profession from many experts and supportive mentors and I’m very excited about the future of the business as we work together collaboratively and collectively to design healthy and sustainable buildings.

How did you decide upon architecture as a career?

I’ve always known I wanted to be an architect. There’s a photo of me aged about four, with my dad, as he’s examining drawings. He worked for a small specialist building restoration company based in Essex called Bakers of Danbury. They worked on some very prestigious projects such as the restoration of St Albans and St Paul’s Cathedrals. Our house was always full of amazing hand-drawn pictures of stained-glass windows and stonework detailing, so I grew up enjoying looking at nicely drawn information. My gran was an artist as well. My interest in drawing and architecture was embedded from a very early age.

Throughout my teens, all my work experience was with my dad’s company. Doing labouring, lifting bits of lead from roofs. One summer I spent chopping up bits of chalk, in a field, in Essex. I’d start with a grapefruit-sized piece and finally segment it into pieces the size of nails, all the while listening to the Ashes on the radio, in the sun. Now, when you look at St Alban’s Cathedral tower, it glints white with all the little bits of chalk and it’s nice to know that all of them were chopped up by me. It was my early handiwork.

I went straight from school to study architecture. I did an HND first in Northampton then transferred to Leeds Met to do my Part One, then Westminster in London to do my Parts Two and Three. I lived in London for about 12 years and most of the first architectural practices I worked at were based in London. I worked for Peter Tigg Architects in Holland Park, the Amos Partnership in Tower Bridge and Assael Architecture in Wandsworth. I worked on mostly residential projects, medium to high rise residential and mixed-use schemes in London.

Where did you go from there?

For seven years I designed primary and secondary schools with Lungfish. Mainly in Bedfordshire because the county changed from a three-tier education system (with a lower, upper and middle school) to two-tier, just primary and secondary. Therefore, all the school facilities had to be rethought out. I delivered around 50 new schools. Also, I had the opportunity to work on SEN schools, which was fascinating. We designed elements such as immersive 3D rooms where visuals on the walls are transformed using video and there is accompanying audio. It’s great for SEN pupils, to be able to use technology to take them out of the day-to-day environment. We could transform the classroom into a beach, for example. The use of technology in architecture is quite incredible.

“Nowadays we’re designing models using VR that can transport our clients and end-users into the design. I think technology is one of the best strings to our bow right now.”

I worked at Chapman Taylor about five years ago, and during that time I worked on a huge project in Istanbul - 23 buildings of luxury apartments. It was immensely rewarding and a great project. It was inspiring working with a Turkish architectural practice for all Municipality coordination. We were designing buildings to increase sea views to maximise value and we also took on the challenge of renovating some existing historical buildings on the site.

I was given an opportunity to join a new co-working business start-up. It was a chance to transfer my skills into a new business, but although fascinating there wasn’t enough design influence in the role, so ultimately my skillset was underutilised. That period also coincided with furlough, COVID-19 and all of the challenges that posed. Getting to know that sector inside out has been really useful, however, and I’ve been able to bring that knowledge to Chapman Taylor.

What is your role at Chapman Taylor?

I’ve been brought on board to grow our residential design capability, in our Manchester studio.

We do an awful lot of mixed-use schemes, and now in particular we’re working on many Build-to-Rent projects. Working from where you live is now huge, post-COVID, so I think my experience in co-working has held me in good stead.

So, I’m now back in the Chapman Taylor Studio fold. I knew many of the team here and I knew I’d fit back in.

How does Chapman Taylor stand out in its offer?

Chapman Taylor is ahead of the curve in the modular market. It’s a specialist technique. The school projects that I completed earlier in my career were very heavily influenced by volumetric construction, so I have a lot of experience in this area. The Department of Education can see the opportunity modular construction brings to the shortening of programmes and certainty of cost. Modular gives clients confidence that projects can work from day one, really.

School projects can be given the go-ahead less than a year before they need to be open to pupils, so modular is really the only way these projects can come about. And again, relating that to the residential sector, we need to build so many houses and apartments in the UK that we can’t keep up with the demand. Modular is one of the ways forward. The difficulty is that a lot of the UK suppliers just don’t have the capacity to take on the workload, which is why we partnered ourselves with a recognised modular provider from China. They build shipping container and residential units (it’s the same technology), so the business is very robust and they can accommodate the fluctuations in demand for residential projects.

“Modern Methods of Construction, (MMC) has to have an influence in architectural design and at Chapman Taylor we promote it as much as we can.” MMC means looking at all opportunities to standardise and streamline design. There are numerous benefits to the process: it makes the cost as achievable as possible and brings incredible opportunities for improving health and safety as an outcome of working indoors, in controlled conditions, away from the elements. As everything is being developed in the factory the quality can also be properly monitored. This further results in waste being reduced due to a much more accurate materials estimation. The positives really outweigh the negatives, it’s just about changing perceptions. People still think of modular construction as ‘prefab’ which relates to post-war cheap buildings that were only meant to last 10-15 years, so the connotations are negative. Our job as architects is to meet client aspirations and essentially when a building is finished, if it’s MMC, no one would ever know. Plus, the lifecycle is exactly the same.

Another noteworthy aspect about Chapman Taylor is that we do a lot of research and development. In terms of producing our modular offer, we’ve spent the last four years working with our supplier to really make things as efficient as possible. We’ve worked to really understand the construction techniques, working with the likes of Arcadis in terms of the overall cost point. Now when a client comes to us, we can provide a modular assessment of a particular scheme and get it costed very quickly. The modular element of any scheme is roughly 50% so very quickly the client can know that half of their scheme is costed to quite a decent level, very early on. Also, modular means that the design process is streamlined as decisions have to be made early on in the process. In traditional schemes designs can change as the project progresses but in modular you don’t have that option; you must commit early on and that’s a good thing.

Can you tell me about your leadership style?

How I interact with people is rooted in my family and the way I’ve been brought up. Being considerate and caring is an important part of my role as part of the leadership team. I appreciate reciprocal values. I’ve been lucky to have some great mentors throughout my architectural career. John Assael, Philip Watson at Atkins, Michael Swiszczowski at Chapman Taylor. Michael has similar values about supporting people and making them feel happy in their job. People who feel happy and supported in their work tend to do a good job. I think praise can be undervalued. Supporting younger members of staff, too, is so important; it’s been tricky the last couple of years due to a lack of face-to-face opportunities. Putting an arm around someone who has less experience, imparting your experience, can only help them to improve and in turn improve the business offer. Finally, making people feel comfortable when they need to ask for help – you’ve got to be accessible.

“Accessibility and visibility are crucial to a team working well together.”

Connection and collaboration are also important for the design team, building relationships with consultants and clients. To have a consistent voice. We’re delivering things for other people. We’ve got to understand what people want and we’ve got to understand what it is that we can provide that is to the betterment of every project we work on. If the business culture is right and supportive then it’s going to flourish.

What is the future direction of Chapman Taylor and what are you personally excited about?

The residential influence of the Chapman Taylor offer is growing exponentially. The Build-to-Rent sector is growing rapidly. We’re seen to be experts in it and I’m a part of that expertise, which is exciting for me personally, I’m glad to be able to project a good, clear narrative, for our residential offer, to clients. It makes us very attractive to them! Also, weaving in and understanding the workplace opportunities. Understanding how people live and work has changed over the last couple of years, so we need to be on the curve understanding what clients, investors and end-users want from our schemes.

Relating to the future, we’re venturing into the healthcare and higher education sectors. I’ve personally been charged with looking at opportunities through frameworks. Identifying the national frameworks and getting work through local authorities will help us and provide us with more opportunities in healthcare and higher education.

The influence of Build-to-Rent on the suburban environment will become huge in the coming years. We’re working on a project in Cambridge, WaterBeach Barracks, and we’re exploring all the really exciting opportunities in suburban Build-to-Rent.

People are moving out of the cities, so to be able to build suburban single-family dwellings and new communities is really exciting. WaterBeach is a sustainable development with strong green credentials, it has good pedestrian and cycle facilities to encourage less reliance on the car. Developments like this help to lead people into a healthy way of life. It’s a great project and I’m sure it will lead to further suburban Build-to-Rent projects. We’ve not really influenced our work by domestic scale before. Looking at smaller scale, domestic projects is an exciting opportunity.

I’m pleased that at Chapman Taylor we take our role in designing responsibly very seriously. I am very conscious about our responsibility to design sustainably with an effort to reduce whole life carbon. Our in-house steering groups and research and development teams form an invaluable platform for us to launch better design for the future of our planet.

I have learnt so much over the last 25 years in the profession from many experts and supportive mentors and I’m very excited about the future of the business as we work together collaboratively and collectively to design healthy and sustainable buildings.

Can you tell me about your leadership style?

How I interact with people is rooted in my family and the way I’ve been brought up. Being considerate and caring is an important part of my role as part of the leadership team. I appreciate reciprocal values. I’ve been lucky to have some great mentors throughout my architectural career. John Assael, Philip Watson at Atkins, Michael Swiszczowski at Chapman Taylor. Michael has similar values about supporting people and making them feel happy in their job. People who feel happy and supported in their work tend to do a good job. I think praise can be undervalued. Supporting younger members of staff, too, is so important; it’s been tricky the last couple of years due to a lack of face-to-face opportunities. Putting an arm around someone who has less experience, imparting your experience, can only help them to improve and in turn improve the business offer. Finally, making people feel comfortable when they need to ask for help – you’ve got to be accessible.

“Accessibility and visibility are crucial to a team working well together.”

Connection and collaboration are also important for the design team, building relationships with consultants and clients. To have a consistent voice. We’re delivering things for other people. We’ve got to understand what people want and we’ve got to understand what it is that we can provide that is to the betterment of every project we work on. If the business culture is right and supportive then it’s going to flourish.

What is the future direction of Chapman Taylor and what are you personally excited about?

The residential influence of the Chapman Taylor offer is growing exponentially. The Build-to-Rent sector is growing rapidly. We’re seen to be experts in it and I’m a part of that expertise, which is exciting for me personally, I’m glad to be able to project a good, clear narrative, for our residential offer, to clients. It makes us very attractive to them! Also, weaving in and understanding the workplace opportunities. Understanding how people live and work has changed over the last couple of years, so we need to be on the curve understanding what clients, investors and end-users want from our schemes.

Relating to the future, we’re venturing into the healthcare and higher education sectors. I’ve personally been charged with looking at opportunities through frameworks. Identifying the national frameworks and getting work through local authorities will help us and provide us with more opportunities in healthcare and higher education.