the last 10 years Part 1

Over the course of the next few posts I intend to do a review of how I saw the last decade and the changes which effected the architectural technology profession. There's been lots of regulation, changes in technology and software, construction methods . From the way planning applications are made to design and construction of building and then there was the registration or protection of titles like building surveyor and architect.

I'll start with architectural technology representation. Back in 2006 on the First Saturday in November nearly 600 ATs gathered in the Ballroom of the RDS, where the IATGN as it became known orgainised a meeting for the AT with the view to setting up a new representative body for the industry which was to be known as Architectural Technology Ireland or ATI. Yet today little has happened, other than the fact that the profession is in decline due to downturn. A far cry from the claimed 1500 members. Many of those, whom served on the committee, are now struggling to survive within the industry, so it is unfair to attribute all the blame for its failure on these individuals…. Others I believe had their own agendas and have been successful in achieving them. Its now safe to assume that ATI is dead for the immediate future anyway.

Fortunately there is representation for the AT profession with CIAT and at a lesser scale in the RIAI. The CIAT membership maybe a few shy of 300 at present, but it is and has been working hard to represent the AT profession and I not doubt believe it will continue to do so in 2010 and years to come and with it the membership will increase.With a bit of luck 2010 will see a major breakthrough for CIAT.

Its only really since the RIAI achieved protection of the title of Architect (after some 150 odd years) under the Building Control Act that representation became a big issue for non-architects offering architectural services, before then few ATs considered joining any professional body, as they saw little benefit and besides in the last 10 years everybody was so busy that professional qualifications or the lack of them didn't bother anybody, from banks to solicitors, employers or clients it didn't matter. Today however it is a different story.