A Towering Mindset
Everyone wants to work on high profile projects but it’s the people you’re in the project with that matters. Kianson Tay’s architectural career has seen him deliver amongst some of the most outstanding builds in the industry, and he assigns it to building an appreciation for the talent sitting across the table from you, on any project.
How did you get into the industry and did you know from the outset that becoming an architect was the path for you?
Originally from Malaysia, I followed my architect father’s footsteps.He shared an office with my aunt who is an interior designer. Growing up, I spent a lot of time at the office sketching what resembled a building, spoke to the team, flipped through architectural and interior books and I got to talk with some of his clients. Architecture is something I am most familiar with and a natural career progression.
You have worked on the Merdeka PNB118 Tower, now called Merdeka 118 in Malaysia and now Australia 108. What has been the most challenging aspects of working on these projects?
I am a firm believer in that, what makes a project challenging is not its complexity, but the stakeholders involved. If you have clients, consultants, and team members who have great work ethics~ designing a 100-storey tower would not be as challenging when supported by a collaborative team throughout the entire process, taking accountability without indictment are fundamental to that successful.
Southbank of Melbourne was originally made up of was a series of low lying swamps therefore providing underlying challenges for the design team in waterproofing the basement of Australia 108. The basement needed an allowance for the differential movement of up to 60mm for the tower’s columns. The process in finding the final solutions were resourceful because everyone on the table played their role and we were a team and not disparate components from different disciplines.
What are key attributes that are important in an architect and contractor relationship?
Cross-discipline knowledge - once you have that, you have an appreciation for the constraints the party across the table is working with, towards achieving the goal at hand - as a team.
Australia 108 saw Fender Katsalidis collaborate with Multiplex, who brought a talented project team within-depth understanding for design. Often architects may specify products that have long lead times or increase in price after tender. In this instance Multiplex looked into the project as a whole and found cost savings in areas less prominent like the carparks and back of house which enabled the retention of the same finishes with high prominence like the residential amenities. As the Architect we provided a design with buildability in mind to best assist the builder.
What has been the most challenging part of your career so far?
Interestingly, the most challenging project was a two-storey winery with a basement. Coming off Merdeka 118 and Australia 108, this was unfamiliar territory for me as the project required specialized knowledge in the wine making process, wine storage, earthwork and so forth. We had consultants advising the team as it was crucial for us, as the architect to have this comprehensive understanding to allow us to provide the design solutions inclusive of the respect to all these different moving parts. Time was not on my side for this project creating for a steep learning curve for me.
What are your favourite ways to hone your skills and expand your knowledge?
Site visit without a doubt is the best way to expand your horizon. We do not get much opportunity to do this therefore, reading from the right print media, watching TEDTalks by famous architects are the next best thing. I used to read architect manifestos however, I am now an avid Monocle’s coverage on architecture and urban design reader. I find architect’s manifestos speaks to a select group of people within the industry. Monocle describes a design or brings a perspective that is more relatable to the masses and more textured.
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone just starting out in their career in construction/property?
Work your way to a reputable company as quickly as you can and when you are there, stick to it. At the start my career, I was advised by many,to switch companies every two to three years to move up the pay scale and the corporate ladder. I was constantly in doubt of whether, sticking to the same company for a long time was the right path to take, in my early years. Looking back now, this was the right choice for me. The architecture and construction industry are heavily based on trust as every project is a one-off prototype and you can only trust that your peers have the right skillset for the tasks at hand. Everyone wants to work on high profile projects, but a company will only give you this if they trust you. Trust from a company is not built overnight hence I think in our industry, staying with a company to build this trust is important.
This piece was curated for The Construction Coach blog by Sandra Lin.
Associate at Fender Katsalidis
Diploma in Architectural Technology (Dist)
Bachelor of Architectural Studies
Master of Architecture
Kianson knew from an early age that he would follow in his architect father’s footsteps; a path that led him from Malaysia to Melbourne to complete his architecture studies, and soon thereafter to Fender Katsalidis, where his design talent, marketing nous and insatiable hunger for knowledge were immediately apparent.
From working initially on the early stages of projects—including the masterplan for Eastside Gibraltar and modelling the site context for Australia 108—Kianson sought to develop expertise in every aspect of the architectural process, and soon demonstrated the ability to oversee projects of any scale, at any stage.Currently the structural project leader on Australia 108, and a key contributor to multiple design competition wins—including our winning scheme for Malaysia’s megatall Merdeka PNB118 tower—Kianson still finds time to exercise both his entrepreneurial spirit and fascination with technological innovation.
Be it organising in-house events for key industry groups, streamlining large volumes of documents or introducing Fender Katsalidis to game-changing creative tools and technologies, he is constantly seeking new opportunities to advance the firm’s reach and reputation.