PP 413: PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE II – ADMINISTERING THE

REGULAR SERVICES OF THE ARCHITECT

MODULE 1 - THE ARCHITECT:

1.1 An overview of what the architect and the profession is all about:

A. The Architect & the Architecture Profession:

A.1 Definition from Wikipedia Encyclopedia:

 An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction
buildings, and licensed to practice architecture. To practice architecture means to offer
render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group
buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings, which have as th
principal purpose human occupancy or use.

A.2 Definition from the Professional Regulatory Board of Architecture (PRBo

www.architectureboard.ph)

 The architecture profession is a several thousand-old profession that dates back to t

antiquities i.e. pre-Greek civilizations, etc., circa 4,000 B.C., making it about 6,000 years
ol

 It was the profession of the master builders i.e. “arkhitekton” in Greek;

 It is internationally associated with; and is dictionary-defined as the profession most relat

to; BUILDINGS i.e. structures used for habitation and related uses.

A.3 Definitions from RA 9266 "An Act To Regulate The Practice Of Architecture In The
Philippines”:

 "Architecture" is the art, science or profession of planning, designing and constructi

buildings in their totality taking into account their environment, in accordance with t
principles of utility, strength and beauty;

 "Architect" means a person professionally and academically qualified, registered a

licensed under this Act with a Certificate of Registration and Professional Identification Ca
issued by the Professional Regulatory Board of Architecture and the Professional Regulati
Commission, and who is responsible for advocating the fair and sustainable developme
welfare and cultural expression of society’s habitat in terms of space, forms and historic
context;

 "General Practice of Architecture" means:

o the act of planning and architectural designing, structural conceptualization, specifyin

supervising and giving general administration and responsible direction to the erectio
enlargement or alterations of buildings and building environments and architectural desi
in engineering structures or any part thereof;
o the scientific, aesthetic and orderly coordination of all the processes which enter into t
production of a complete building or structure performed through the medium of unbias
preliminary studies of plans, consultations, specifications, conferences, evaluatio
investigations, contract documents and oral advice and directions regardless of wheth
the persons engaged in such practice are residents of the Philippines or have th principa
office or place of business in this country or another territory, and regardless whether
such persons are performing one or all these duties, or whether such duties a performed
in person or as the directing head of an office or organization performing them

A.4 Number of Registered Architects (RAs) and Registered & Licensed Architects (RLAs) as of

AR. ARNULFO
DIEGOR
 PP 413: PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE II – ADMINISTERING THE
REGULAR SERVICES OF THE ARCHITECT

March 2011:

AR. ARNULFO
DIEGOR
  Per information issued by the PRC Registration Division on 08 March 2011, there are alrea
26,608 registered architects (RAs), with only 10,103 (37.97%) of said RAs as actu
registered and licensed architects (RLAs) i.e. RAs who renewed their PRC ID car
(representing the 3-year license to practice), over the 3-year period March 2008 throu
February 2011.
 To lawfully practice architecture in the Philippines, a RA must also be a RLA i.e. possessi
both the valid PRC Certificate of Registration and the PRC ID card.

A.5 The Not-So Recent Past: (Adapted from a Philippine Star article “Philippine architecture in t
1950s” by Paulo Alcazaren September 07, 2002)
“A Century Of Professional Architectural Practice:
The first Filipino architect with an academic title to practice in the country was Felix
Roxas Arroyo (GMA’s relative?). Don Felix studied in London and returned in 1858. He
served municipal architect of Manila from 1877-1880.
The first academic school to train maestros de obras (master builders) w
the Escuela Practica y Professional de Artes y Oficios de Manila, which was established
1890. Among the first graduates of this school was Arcadio Arellano, elder brother of Jua
who later became active in city politics in the early part of the American period.
The first professional architectural organization and precursor of the Philippine Institute
Architects was the Academia de Arquitectura y Agrimensura de Filipinas. It was founded
September 14, 1902. Architects have been organized here in the Philippines for over
century, just a few years after the Americans established their own AIA and well ahead
any country in Southeast Asia.
Recognition, Recovery And Renaissance:
Architects had difficulty in the early years in terms of recognition from government, clien
and the general public. Competition for what they did came from the civil engineers w
were more recognized and acknowledged by the public. It was only in 1921 that t
National Assembly passed a law to recognize engineers and architects. In that year,
architects were officially registered. Registration No. 1 was given to Tomas Mapua, follow
by Carlos Barreto (the first pensionado architect) and Antonio Toledo. There were
Filipinos, seven Americans, two Germans and one Spaniard registered to practi
architecture in the country. By 1941, this number reached close to a hundred. A new la
with a separate statute for architects was about to be passed then but the war got in t
way.
The country’s post-war recovery was helped to a great extent by Filipino architects, w
quickly reorganized just four months after "liberation." The organization changed its nam
to the Philippine Institute of Architects to reflect the group’s maturity and stature. The fir
post-war board included Fernando Ocampo as president, Gines Rivera as vice president a
members including Juan Nakpil, Carlos Barreto, Luis Araneta and Gabriel Formoso.
The 1950s was the decade that Filipino architects sought to emerge from the constraints
post-war difficulties. Modernism in architecture took a while to reach these shores due
lack of building materials, technology and opportunity. But the increasing econom
recovery of the later 50s saw an equivalent increase in building both in quantity, quality a
quirkiness. Experimentation in cast concrete led to façades, massing and buildi
silhouettes never before seen. Locsin’s UP chapel, Concio’s Protestant Chapel (also in U
and Marcos de Guzman’s saucer house are prime examples.”

A.6 Important Issues and Concerns: (Adapted from PRBoA www.architectureboard.ph)

 RA 9266 prescribes that ONLY registered and licensed architects (RLAs) shall practi
architecture for ALL buildings on Philippine soil.

 In May 2005, the 2004 Revised IRR of the NBCP (which echoed RA 9266’s requirement th
 only RLAs can sign & seal architectural documents) took full effect. Immediately afterward
the civil engineers through the PICE secured a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and a
W of Preliminary Injunction (WPI) in a Manila Court to stop its full implementation.
 These temporary restraining orders (TROs) and the injunction secured by the PICE we
based on the intercalated (and wrongly worded) text of Sec. 302 of P.D. No. 1096 whi
purported that CEs can sign and seal ARCHITECTURAL PLANS/ documents;

 On 29 January 2008, the injunction was LIFTED/ DISSOLVED through a Decision

promulgat by the Court (Manila RTC Branch 22) which was further affirmed by a Court
Order on 04 M 2009. Despite the executory nature of the Decision & Court Order, the
DPWH and LG refused to comply;

 While it may be true that the PICE has filed a notice of appeal with the Court of Appe
(CA), there is apparently NO TRO/ injunction issued by the CA as of 09 December 2009;

 The UAP-IAPoA Report delivered on 05 Sep 2009 mentioned the Cities of Davao and Butu
(Mindanao); Tacloban and Iloilo (Visayas); and Legaspi and Vigan (Luzon) and The
Province Cavite (Luzon) as the only LGUs which are fully implementing & enforcing RA
9266.

 As of 09 December 2009, the DPWH apparently continues to resist not only the Court Ord
but also fail to implement/ enforce R.A No. 9266 and even the NBCP itself, the very law t
DPWH is supposed to fully implement/ enforce.

B. The Architect& The Law:

B.1 The Virtues of an Architect by Marcus Vitruvius Polio:

“May the Architect be high-minded; not arrogant, but faithful; Just, and easy to deal wit
without avarice; Not let his mind be occupied in receiving gifts, But let him preserve h
good name with dignity…”

B.2 The Value of an Architect (From UAP Document Architect’s National Code):

 The Architect creates man’s environment through his awareness and sensitive handling
spaces that fit the scale of human experience. The resulting quality of the form-envelo
manifested as a structure or building gives rise to man’s appreciation of beauty and order
his physical world.

 The Architect’s deliberation determine how people will be placed in relationship one
another, how whole societies will work, play, eat, sleep, recreate, travel, worship, or in
sh how people will live in consonance with their culture and national aspirations.

 His objective is to bring order to man’s environment to cause it to function properly within
structure that is safe and healthful and to impart to the whole a beauty and distinction th
is appropriate to our time.

B.3 The Spectrum of the Architect’s Services:

 The Architect's services extends over the entire range of activities that proceed from t
time the idea is conceived, transformed into sets of space/ design requirements, translat
into structure through design, built, used and become a permanent feature of the man-
ma environment.
o The Architect's services consist of the necessary conferences, deliberations, discussion
evaluations, investigations, consultations, advice on matters affecting the scientif
aesthetic and orderly coordination of all the processes of safeguarding life, health, a
 property which enter into the production of different levels and sophistication of ma
made structures and environment.

o The Architect, in the process of translating abstract ideas into meaningful concre
terms,produces documents in the form of a data base report, an architectural program,
feasibilitystudy, a market study, an appraisal report, an impact analysis report, a spac
organizational set-up report, a site planning analysis and evaluation report, an operation
programming report,building programming and scheduling report.

o A complete and detailed documentation of construction or erection drawings

preparedconsisting of the architectural plans, the structural plans, the electrical pla
theplumbing/sanitary plans, the mechanical/air-conditioning plans, the civil work plans,
t technicalspecifications and the other bid documents.

o Aside from these, the Architect can prepare the post construction managementdocumen
the operating manual, the maintenance manual and other forms of written andgraphic
documentations necessary for the effective and efficient functioning of the ma
madestructures and environment.

 An appreciation of this scope of services of the Architect will bring into focus the crucialro
that the Architect assumes in the realization of abstract ideas into tangible a
meaningfulterms.Between abstract ideas and the physical world, stands the Architect.

B.4 Philippine Laws on the Preparation of Architectural Documents:

 R.A. No. 9266 (The Architecture Act of 2004) & its 2004 IRR (governing the practice of t
regulated profession of architecture and architectural interiors, as implemented by the P
and the Professional Regulatory Board of Architecture/PRBoA);

 P.D. No. 1096 (The 1977 National Building Code of the Philippines/ NBCP) & its 2004
Revis IRR (governing the minimum site planning, architectural and architectural interior
standar to be satisfied in the architectural, engineering and allied planning and design of
buildin (structures for human habitation), as implemented by the DPWH through the LGU
Offices Building Officials/ OBOs); the 2004 Revised IRR is in full effect.

 R.A. No. 9514 & its 2009 IRR (Fire Code of the Philippines, as implemented by the DILG
th the LGU Fire Marshals);

 B.P. No. 344 & its IRR (Law on Accessibility for Disabled Persons), as implemented by
vario agencies. (Assign class to download a copy of Amended IRR of BP344)

B.5 R.A. 386 Civil Code of the Philippines (1949):

 Book I – Effect & Application of Laws  Book II – Property, Ownership &
(Articles 1 – 413) Modifications
(Articles 414 – 711)
 Book III – Different Modes of Acquiring  Book IV – Obligations & Contracts
Ownership (Articles 1156 – 2270)
(Articles 712 – 1155)
 Article 48, amended by the 1987
Constitution
 Titles III, IV, V, VI, VIII, IX, XI, and XV of Book 1, repealed by Executive Order 209, 6 July
19
 Art. 1723:
 o The engineer or architect who drew up the plans and specifications for a building is liab
for damages if within fifteen years from the completion of the structure, the same shou
collapse by reason of a defect in those plans and specifications, or due to the defects
the ground. The contractor is likewise responsible for the damages if the edifice fal
within the same period, on account of defects in the construction or the use of materials
inferior quality furnished by him, or due to any violation of the terms of the contract. If
t engineer or architect supervises the construction, he shall be solidarily liable with t
contractor.
o Acceptance of the building, after completion, does not imply waiver of any of the cause
action by reason of any defect mentioned in the preceding paragraph.
o The action must be brought within ten years following the collapse of the building.

B.6 What are Architectural Documents?

 Per RA 9266 Section 3 (18), architectural documents pertains to architectural drawin
specifications, and other outputs of an Architect that only an Architect can sign and se
consisting, among others, of vicinity maps, site development plans, architectural progra
perspective drawings, architectural floor plans, elevations, sections, ceiling plans,
schedule detailed drawings, technical specifications and cost estimates, and other
instruments service in any form.

 Generally, architectural documents include architectural research documents and repo

and architectural and space programs which are the sole bases for the architectural pla
the architectural designs, architectural specifications and estimates, architectural tend bid
documents and periodic construction supervision reports for both building and s
development projects.

B.7 3 D Wheel of a Building Project:

C. Architects and Society:

C.1 What roles do architects play in society?

 Architect’s responsibility to society is to make sure that not the structure alone but al
its physical environment can enhance the lives of all people. Architects relate
n
 only to purely design & build professions but to allied professions as well, to achie
totality in design.

 Architects design buildings that address social needs and attempts to resol
environmental and humanitarian problems through architecture.

 Architects must be psychologists, sociologists, economists, and artists.

 Architects must also be engineers, for they must be able to construct structurally stab
buildings.

 Architects must take into account four basic and closely interrelated necessities: technic
requirements, use, spatial relationships, and content.

 So in summary, an architect helps to build the evolution of society by physica

manifesting items of culture in the form of spatial concepts where representations of
cultu meet the human mind in a multi-sensory locality. An architect has a physical senso
responsibility to the people who experience the constructed space while also acting as
artist and painting the picture that we call society.

C.2 Why hire an Architect? (from Architecture Social Network)

 Architects have a lot to offer to a changing world. Architects can apply their creati
problem solving skills for wider developmental benefit in concert with other bu
environment professionals.

 An architect has to look at all scales of human interaction understanding the smallest
deta to the big picture.

 Architecture involves much more than buildings. Architects take the client’s vision and gi
it form, explore its possibilities, raise it to new levels, and then integrate it into the buildi
site and the community at large. Architects bring not only design, but solutions.

C.3 The Building Enterprise:

 (From Wikipedia) Small firms with less than 5 people usually have no formal organization
structure, depending on the personal relationships of the principals and employees
organize the work. Medium-sized firms with 5 to 50 employees are often organiz
departmentally in departments such as design, production, business development, a
construction administration. Large firms of over 50 people may be organiz
departmentally, regionally, or in studios specializing in project types.

 Architectural Firm:(From RA 9266) - a sole proprietorship, a partnership or a corporati

registered with the DTI AND/ORSEC and then with the Board of Architecture and PRC.
o Sole Proprietorship: an individual Architect practicing and delivering architectural
service
o Partnership: a group of two or more Architects practicing and delivering architectu
services.
o Corporation: a group of professionals in architecture and allied professions incorporat
with Architects for delivering professional service in architecture and allied professions.
o Association: any formal grouping of two or more architects or architectural firms
working joint venture on aproject basis.

C.4 Public Interest and Safety:

 Architects must ensure the occupants’health & well-being;&mitigate the effects of natu
phenomenon such as earthquakes, typhoons, tsunamis &flash flooding.

 Architects must ensure occupants safety in case of fire.

o Human behavior aside, fire is the most complicated phenomenon that the archite
encounters. Structure, plumbing, and ventilation are all tame, well behaved, and qui
predictable. But fire, as a combination of physics, chemistry, geometry, structure, a
materials that are intimately connected with human behavior, is perhaps the least w
defined common occurrence. And fire relates to nearly all elements of a building’s
design
o Fire safety has specific effects and raises specific concerns for each building element,
fro site placement through alarm systems, structural design, environmental controls, a
aesthetics. To produce a functional building, it is necessary to understand the impact
fire safety considerations on all of these areas.

 Professionally, an architect's decisions affect public safety, and thus an architect mu

undergo specialized training consisting of advanced education and a practicum
( internship) for practical experience to earn a license to practice architecture.
1.2 Professional Education and Training

A. The Architect’s Education:

 From the UNESCO/UIA Charter for Architectural Education:
o Architectural education should ensure that all graduates have knowledge and ability
architectural design, including technical systems and requirements as well
consideration of health, safety, and ecological balance; that they understand the cultur
intellectual, historical, social, economic, and environmental context for architecture; a
that they comprehend thoroughly the architects’ roles and responsibilities in society,
whi depend on a cultivated, analytical and creative mind.

A.1 Apprenticeship and Diversified Training:

 From the UIA Accord: Practical experience/training/internship is a directed and structur
activity in the practice of architecture during architectural education and/or following recei
of a professional degree but prior to registration/licensing/certification. To compleme
academic preparation in order to protect the public, applicants f
registration/licensing/certification must integrate their formal education through practice
training.
 From RA 9266: A post-baccalaureate, pre-licensure experience of two (2) years required
of graduate of architecture prior to taking the licensure examination; consisting of a
variation of experiences in the different phases of architectural service.
 A.2 Continuing Professional Development:

 From the UIA Accord (International Union of Architects):

Continuing professional development does not refer to formal education leading to more
advanced degree, but to a life-long learning process that maintains, enhances, increases
the knowledge and skills of architects to ensure their knowledge and ability relevant to
the needs of society. The policy of the UIA encourages its member sections advocate
continuing professional development as the responsibility of each individual architect.
Continuing professional development for architects is also in the public interest.
 RA 9266 Section 28 requires all practicing architects shall maintain a program of
continuing professional development to promote public interest and to safeguard life,
health a property. The integrated and accredited professional organization shall have to
responsibility of developing a continuing professional development program for
architects.

 Architects must devote time to maintain existing skills, broaden knowledge, and explore
in areas. This is increasingly important to keep abreast with new technologies, methods
practice, and changing social and ecological conditions.

 The IAPOA –UAP requires continuing professional development for renewal and
continuation of membership.

1.3 Professional Life:

A. Role of Professional Bodies:

 From the UIA Accord:

o Architects, whether self-employed or employees, are generally controlled by a

regulation body in charge of ensuring that laws, decrees, and professional standards
are applied and observed by all members of the profession.
o In many countries, professional bodies have also been established for the advancement
architecture, for the promotion of knowledge, and to protect the public interest
ensuring that their members perform to a known standard.
o Before defining what an architect’s professional body should be it is necessary to
recall t context of globalization and the guiding principles of the General Agreement
on Trade Services (GATS). The fundamental objectives of GATS are the same as that
of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) objectives for goods - to ensure the
balance of world trade through the liberalization of markets and to build the process
of liberalization on so foundations.

 Professional Regulatory Commission Professional Board of Architecture (PRBoA): create

under RA 9266 to regulate the practice &enhance the architecture profession; and t
upgrading, development and growth of the architecture education.

 Integrated & Accredited Professional Organization of Architects: RA 9266 mandated the

integration of the architecture profession into one national organization. When RA 9266
to effect in 2004, the United Architects of the Philippines (UAP) was the existing duly
accredited organization & remains so until today.
 B. Professional Practice of Architecture in the Philippines:
 RA 9266 Section 41 mandated the adoption & promulgation of Standards of
Professional Practice (SPP).
 The SPP is a document which defines all aspects of professional service, prescribes
minimum basic fees and establishes the rights and obligations of both the Architect and
the client.
 The SPP replaced the 1979 UAP Documents 201 through 210.
o SPP 201: Pre-Design Services
o SPP 202: Regular Design Services
o SPP 203: Specialized Architectural Services
o SPP 204a: Full Time Supervision Services
o SPP 204b: Construction Management Services
o SPP 205: Post Construction Services
o SPP 206: Comprehensive Architectural Services
o SPP 207: Design-Build Services
o SPP 208: Architectural Design Competition
o SPP 209: Professional Architectural Consulting Services

1.4 Professional Ethics: Professional responsibility is the area of the practice that
encompasses the duties of architects to act in a professional manner, obey the law,
avoid conflicts of interest, and put the interests of clients ahead of their own
interests.

A. From the UIA Accord:

 A code of ethics and conduct - establishes a professional standard of behavior that guide
architects in the conduct of their practices. Architects should observe and follow the code
ethics and conduct for each jurisdiction in which they practice.

 Rules of ethics and conduct have as their primary object the protection of the public,
caring for the less powerful and the general social welfare, as well as the advancement
of t interests of the profession of architecture.

B. Code of Ethical Conduct: As promulgated by Section 41, RA 9266:

 Section 1. Traits of Architects. - The profession of Architecture calls for men and women
the highest integrity, responsiveness, business acumen, sensibility, as well as artistic a
technical ability.

 Section 2. Duties and Responsibilities. - The Architect's honesty of purpose must be

beyond reproach; acts as professional adviser to Clients and provides unprejudiced
advice; charge with the exercise of mediation and conciliation functions between Client
and Contractor a must act with entire impartiality; has moral responsibilities to
professional associates a subordinates; and engaged in a profession which carries with it
grave responsibilities to t public. These duties and responsibilities cannot be properly
discharged unless motive conduct, sense of moral values, sensitivity, and ability are such
as to command respect a confidence.

++ End of Module 1 ++