While drawing, I discover what I really want to say"- Dario Fo.

This quote by the 1997 Nobel prize winner in Literature, a famous Italian actor, playwright, comedian, singer, theatre director, stage designer, songwriter, painter, and political campaigner, Dario Fo, explains the importance of sketching and drawing in communication. If you are reading this blog, I am assuming you have already read the first part of this blog, titled- Sketching Part 1 : Thinking Visually.

In the first part, we had already established the importance of sketching and drawings as one of the classic and most accessible means of communication. We had also touched upon the importance of sketching in design and architecture. Finally, we had also seen how sketching helps throughout the entire lifecycle of any product, be it when a company commissions a designer or an architect to design the product, to sketches being further used by the designer to communicate the client’s ideas with their team. Developed drawings are used to communicate with the third-party vendors on what work is expected of them for execution. Once executed, these sketches and drawings are helpful even when the product reaches the end of its lifecycle.

In this blog, we will look at how sketching played a crucial role in designing and executing Third Wave Cafe LLC, Al Barari, Dubai, UAE. While this project of Third Wave Cafe LLC, Al Barari, Dubai, UAE, was not one of the largest or the most complex project taken up by us at ADDP, a design firm based out of Dubai, I am using this case study to underline the importance of sketching, no matter how large or small the project may be. Big or small, every project is unique for me, and I love to get involved with every project we take up, and sketches help me capture the customer’s brief in detail. Without the sketches, it would be challenging for any firm to execute and deliver any projects accurately and timely.

Third Wave Cafe LLC, Al Barari, Dubai, UAE

A little about Third Wave Cafe, Al Barari, Dubai:

Third Wave Cafe is a speciality coffee shop with an outside sitting, a view of the river and greenery, and home-cooked vegan foods and sweets. A cafe that takes inspiration from the Japanese tea houses (also known as Kissaten), the design of this cafe is minimalist yet modern in looks that help customers fall in love with the ambience instantly.

[Working with addp was a hustle free organized process. Communicating our concept proved hard with other companies before working with addp. However, using sketching, rendering and design before build helped communicate the concept better between both parties and emit and vagueness. Furthermore, we were scared that the actual product will not be as good as the renders since many people told us its impossible, but addp succeeded in making an actual product that was superior to the render, which many fail to do."]

While these words from the CEO of Third Wave Cafe, Yusuf Hammadi, convey his joy and satisfaction with the way we converted his dream to a reality, it does not cover all the details involved in the process of getting this done. Even though this particular project was one of the smallest taken up by us, of about 80sq. mt. (roughly about 800 sq. ft. of retail and outdoor dining area), a lot of detailed work, including the too and fro of many sketches and dedicated and meticulous follow-up. Like any large project, this project too demanded the same amount of detailed checklists to make this story a success. Let’s start from the very basics and understand the entire flow and strategy adopted by us at ADDP to ensure the success of this project.

First things first, a software for collaboration :

While there are many digital solutions for collaborating and keeping a tab on any activity involved in executing complex projects, such as setting up a cafe from scratch, my personal favourite is Moxtra. From clients to contractors and our team working on any project is linked together on this platform. The ability to list down every activity related to a project chronologically on Moxtra and to keep a tab on any action related to any given project is one of the key ingredients for our success. Moxtra tracks the minutest details date-wise on the project and can be on top of every piece of every project we work on.

It all starts with a brief:

Like all clients who commission an architectural firm to execute their projects, Third Wave cafe started with a brief from the client, all verbal. Like all good architects, I too believe that sketching is one of the easiest ways to communicate and quickly penned down the client’s brief in the form of a sketch while still with the client.

Post the meeting, I worked a little more on the rough sketch details and shared these modified sketches

with my team to work further on. As a practice, we prefer to explain any project back to the client to ensure they are on the right track. Once the team gets their first set of sketches, their main task for the next 3-4 days is to work further on those sketches and create a layout neatly in a PowerPoint presentation with all the look and feel materials. This presentation, called the first cut presentation

is then presented to the client to reaffirm that we are on the right track basis the brief and collect feedback on the approach, finish, etc. This is followed by the concept presentation, where it is entirely shown to the client.

The final concept Presentation, a twist in the tale:

Based on the client’s feedback on the first cut presentation, we then put together a series of sketches with various concepts and colours for the project.

These concepts are usually a result of a mix of what we understood from the clients’ initial brief and the feedback we received from the client during the first cut presentation. This is also the phase where the financial feasibility of the project is discussed. In the case of Third Wave Cafe, while the client loved the idea being presented, he also realised that the forecast for this project was turning out to be 25-30% more than the budget. With this feedback, we realised the need to reduce our work on-site to match the client’s budget, value-engineered the project and changed the concept to a kiosk setup

instead of the large walled kitchen we had initially designed. A double win for the client, we further developed the kiosk. If the client was to relocate to another location from their current location, this kiosk could be easily dismantled and reassembled in the new site. Loved and approved by the client, we quickly rendered these concepts, prepared a final contract with all the finalised views and landed ourselves a signed agreement with Third Wave Cafe.

The shop drawings, on-site challenges, and everything in between:

Amidst the official paperwork, we then began the execution work for the project, and it all starts with the shop drawings for the project. From sectional plans to wiring, plumbing, and flooring layouts to even getting into details of what material to be used for what segment, the shop drawing

made for any project are detailed, covering every aspect of the project so that the various vendors working on the project can clearly understand what is expected out of them and their work. Based on these drawings, the vendors can procure the raw materials and start delivering their finished goods needed for the project. This Third Wave Cafe project is no different from almost any other projects; executing the drawings on the actual shop floor threw its challenges. We made sure that these challenges were overcome by making changes to the shop drawings themselves.

From the project site’s initial cleaning to step-by-step progress made on the site

until completion of the project

itself, we not only recorded and monitored each work but also shared this progress with our client to help strengthen his trust on us.

This is what started off in the client’s mind.

This is what we captured and modified to ensure a smooth completion. A common language that can be easily understood by all, sketches and drawings of the project are the foundation of our brand’s success story.

This is how it stands today.