Place Supply Freelance Landscape Architect

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE • DESIGN SUPPORT

WHY DESIGN SUPPORT?

For Me : Operating as a freelance design support specialist suits my lifestyle and provides location flexibility. Being based both in and out of Australia has demonstrated to me that leading projects effectively requires consistent local presence and direct site involvement. Additionally, when previously operating as a sole trader pursuing my own project tenders, I found the extensive time commitment unsustainable for long-term business viability. Furthermore, carrying professional indemnity and public liability insurance independently was disproportionately costly relative to billable workload. As a freelance design support provider, it is standard industry practice not to carry these insurances since project responsibility remains with the lead design practice.

For You :

Efficiency and Flexibility:
Outsourcing allows firms to scale their capacity quickly during busy periods without the long-term commitment of hiring full-time staff.
Cost-Effectiveness:
Reduces overhead costs associated with permanent staff, such as salaries, insurance, workspace, and training. Outsourced services typically incur costs only as needed.
Access to Specialised Expertise:
Freelance specialists often bring targeted experience and niche skills that complement a company’s internal resources, ensuring high-quality outcomes. Quality & compliance assurance through specialised knowledge of industry standards, planning regulations, and compliance requirements, helping to mitigate risk and enhance overall project quality.
Increased Productivity:
In-house teams can remain focused on core activities and strategic tasks while delegating technical, repetitive, or highly specialized drafting and documentation tasks to external support.
Project Turnaround and Delivery:
External providers can help improve project timelines, leveraging their specialized skills and streamlined workflows to accelerate design phases, approvals, and documentation.

Overall, outsourcing design support allows landscape architecture practices to remain agile, competitive, and focused on their core competencies, ultimately enhancing their ability to deliver premium outcomes for their clients.

A Georeferenced Site

PLACE SUPPLY WORKFLOW PROPOSAL

This workflow is structured into clear, easily digestible stages, designed to seamlessly integrate high-end landscape projects, combining clarity, creativity, and effective communication.

NEW PROJECT DRAFTING + MODELLING

1. Confirming Project Scope and Aspirations

Begin by thoroughly reviewing your design brief and existing project documentation, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of your aesthetic vision, project aspirations, and desired outcomes.

Site photos & videos to accompany this information is a great help.

2. Identifying Project Constraints and Best Course of Action

Carefully analyse all relevant constraints including local council development control plans, conditions of consent, building codes, and State Environmental Planning Policies (SEPP). This rigorous analysis allows me to clearly recommend the optimal approval pathway—be it Development Application (DA) or Complying Development Certificate (CDC), and determine whether a BASIX Certificate is required—ensuring the project's efficiency and compliance.

3. Supporting Concept Development

Although I am capable of developing initial concepts, my role as a design support specialist typically involves receiving a sketch concept from the project’s design lead. Given that the design lead has visited the site and engaged directly with client aspirations and scope discussions, it is most effective for them to manage the initial concept-level site planning stage. Depending on the design lead’s preference, I support this process by preparing the Vectorworks working file with scaled base plans highlighting critical survey information, proposed architectural layouts, and clearly indicated key spot levels.

4. Vectorworks File Set-Up

Template - If your studio has an existing Vectorworks template and resources library, I will require a copy of these. Alternatively, I can assist in developing your studio's custom template.
Geolocation - Once the blank template file is open, I begin by geolocating the working file to match the original survey file. Geolocating is a critical step with multiple benefits, such as enabling desktop environmental analysis, importing GIS data, aligning consultant drawings, and confirming accurate site set-out during construction. This initial step is straightforward and efficient.
DTM - Create a Site Model (DTM) using survey data.
References - Reference in the latest consultants' drawings to ensure the working file reflects the most current project information.
Sheets + Title Block - Set up Viewports on drawing sheets, ensure title block information is accurate, and verify that worksheets and legends update correctly and consistently.

5. Receipt of Concept

Upon receiving the concept sketches or design direction from the design lead, I integrate these into the working Vectorworks file. This includes refining the site model and adjusting preliminary documentation to reflect the approved concept clearly and accurately.

Site Model with hand sketch overlay

Site Model with initial Site Modifiers

Site Model with Hardscapes & Landscape Areas

Site Model with FF+E

Site Model with rendered perspective call-outs

6. Design Development and Documentation

Once the concept phase is complete, I move into design development. Based on the chosen approval pathway (DA, CDC, or CC), I utilize my drafting expertise, knowledge of planning policies, and understanding of construction methods to produce detailed, regulatory-compliant plan sets. These plans are critically reviewed to ensure accuracy, clarity, and thoroughness, and then published as PDF sets optimized for ease of transmittal to regulatory authorities

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REPORT WRITING

I am experienced in preparing Statements of Environmental Effects (SEE) for development applications across a range of project types. My approach ensures the SEE clearly articulates the planning context, addresses all relevant controls, and demonstrates how the proposal complies with applicable legislation and policies. I draw upon my detailed knowledge of local council planning instruments and State Environmental Planning Policies (SEPPs) to communicate a thorough and accurate planning justification. These reports are written in a clear, concise format and structured to support a smooth assessment process by the consent authority.

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I have extensive experience producing clear and visually compelling design reports that effectively communicate project intent, design rationale, and contextual analysis. These reports are tailored to suit a variety of audiences, from clients and collaborators to council planners and external stakeholders. My reports integrate high-quality drawings, renders, and concise written content, ensuring clarity, cohesion, and visual appeal. With a strong sense of graphic layout and formatting, I deliver reports that reflect the high standards expected in the high-end residential market and assist in gaining stakeholder confidence and project approvals.

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QUALITY ASSURANCE

PROJECTS / POLICIES / PROCEDURES

My quality assurance skills have been honed through my experience operating independently within the tightly knit built environment industry. I have worked across companies with high project turnover as well as those with extended studio timelines, gaining comprehensive insight into documentation requirements and regulatory expectations. My genuine interest in urban planning keeps me up-to-date with industry developments and policy changes relevant to my work. Additionally, I have independently prepared Quality Management Systems (QMS), Quality Assurance Management Plans (QAMP), and Context of the Organisation Logs (COTO Logs) to secure ISO 9001 QMS Certification, a key requirement for participation in state-significant development tenders.

For project QA, I am open to either marking up PDF sets for the project design team, as well as receiving a project Vectorworks file and making the changes myself.

I am more than happy to help educate new or current staff with anything QA related including:

Templating
BIM resource management
File Management
CDC Requirements
Typical DA/CC requirements
Specific Council DA/CC requirements
BCA / NCC / AS requirements
Archiving sketches, markups, and communications

KEY SOFTWARE

Place Supply performs the bulk of it's production operation on Vectorworks 2024 - Landmark.
Vectorworks - Landmark is an industry standard CAD software with particularly strong BIM tools for the purposes of landscape architecture.

When 3D visualisations are required, Place Supply uses D5 Render.
After workflow trials with many rendering programs, D5 was found to be not only the most natural in terms of visual output, but also the most efficient.

Place Supply holds a license for Adobe Creative Cloud, and frequently uses:
-InDesign
-Photoshop
-Acrobat Pro
-Illustrator
-After Effects

Place Supply holds a license for Google Workspace and has all files backed up both locally to SSD and to Google's cloud based server.

Place Supply holds an MYOB Solo subscription for the purposes of invoicing & book keeping.

Place Supply uses Toggl Track app for timekeeping. It is a simple time tracking app which also has a pomodoro, an effective time management technique focused on efficient goal setting.
Through the use of the app's #system for tasks, I am easily able to reflect on data collected from specific tasks.
I use this data for accurate scheduling and estimating.

Due to the nature of Place Supply being based in Japan from time to time, WhatsApp is the preferred carriage service for voice calls.
Please keep in mind that Japan is only 1 to 2 hours behind Sydney time (DST dependant).

Thank you for your consideration.

Place Supply performs the bulk of it's production operation on Vectorworks 2024 - Landmark. Vectorworks - Landmark is an industry standard CAD software with particularly strong BIM tools for the purposes of landscape architecture.

When 3D visualisations are required, Place Supply uses D5 Render. After workflow trials with many rendering programs, D5 was found to be not only the most natural in terms of visual output, but also the most efficient.

Place Supply holds a license for Adobe Creative Cloud, and frequently uses: -InDesign -Photoshop -Acrobat Pro -Illustrator -After Effects