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by PaulDavisThe1st 1231 days ago
Can an architect actually put the pieces together? Do they know where to source materials? Do they understand how to order and schedule the construction of a design? Do they "just get" why a particular combination of materials at a specific point in a structure is going to cause problems, because they've seen it over and over? Can they even operate all the tools?

Probably not, unless they used to actually do construction before becoming an architect.

1 comments

The answer to most of your questions is yes, although obviously most architects are not proficient in operating most tools used in construction because that's not their job.

> Can an architect actually put the pieces together?

Unclear what this means, but architects have plenty of training in doing "manual work". Building models requires a lot more precision than most things in construction.

> Do they know where to source materials?

That's part of their job description.

> Do they understand how to order and schedule the construction of a design?

Definitely part of their job description.

The real truth of the matter is "it depends".

I have about a half-dozen friends as architects in the US, and only 1 of them could do any of the things I mentioned. All have been practising residential and commercial and government architects for > 30 years.