Why architects' archives matter
A practice archive holds the full design history of a building: concept options, planning drawings, technical design, specifications, revisions issued in response to RFIs, and the as-built record. AI tools for design review, drawing checking and specification writing need exactly this kind of material, which is why the profession is already debating it. RIBA has noted that drawings, specifications, photographs and BIM models can end up in AI training datasets without licensing or payment. Licensing is the route where you set the terms and are paid.
Copyright: the starting point
Under UK law the author of a drawing owns its copyright unless it's assigned. Standard architects' appointments commonly reflect this: the architect keeps copyright and grants the client a licence to use the design for the project. So for most practices, your own drawings and specifications are yours to license. The questions are about what else is in them and what you've promised your clients.
What to check
- Your appointments. Look for copyright assignments (some clients require them), confidentiality clauses, and restrictions on publicity or use of project information.
- Third-party content in your sets. Consultants' drawings, manufacturers' details and survey information embedded in your drawings may not be yours to license.
- Client and building sensitivity. Private houses, high-profile clients and security-sensitive buildings may be best excluded, or included only once anonymised.
- Personal data. Client names and addresses in title blocks, correspondence and residential briefs need to be removed or protected.
Planning drawings are often already public on council portals, but being publicly visible doesn't mean they're free of copyright, and it doesn't make your full technical design set public.
What's most useful in a practice archive
- Revision histories that show how a design developed and why it changed.
- Drawing and specification sets for the same project, together.
- RFI responses and design queries from the construction stage.
- BIM models, which carry geometry and data together. See the Revit guide.
- A range of building types across residential, education, commercial and so on.
Practice size
Mercor's listing is aimed at companies with roughly 50 to 2,000 staff. Many UK practices are smaller than that. If yours is, it's still worth understanding the issues, because similar requests are likely to come from other directions.
If we license our drawings, can the buyer build our designs?
That's for the licence terms to settle. Licences for AI training typically limit use to training and analysis, but read the permitted-use clause carefully and ask about it in scoping.
Do we need our clients' permission?
It depends on your appointment terms. Where you keep copyright and there's no confidentiality restriction, often not. Where there is a restriction, or the project is identifiable, consider asking.
Source: RIBA, key talking points for architects around AI and copyright.