Architects and website designers based in Manchester.

graphic version

about us
architectural services
website design services
presentations
collaborations
links
contact details

web design site

FKDA Limited
12 Hilton Street
Manchester
M1 1JF

telephone: 0161 237 1500
fax: 0161 237 1900

FKDA is a Manchester based architectural practice that also design and produce web sites primarily using Macromedia Flash. FKDA can assist you in obtaining a domain name, and provide various hosting and site maintenance options. We offer website design services to companies or organisations local to Manchester, Liverpool, the Northwest or elsewhere in the world.

Also, with our knowledge and experience of the design / construction industry, we are well suited to deliver website strategies that appeal to designers and specifiers......

 

Architectural services

FKDA are able to provide a range of Architectural services, from preparation of Planning Applications, to full design and procurement of a building project. Through consultation and agreement, FKDA can advise and lead a client through the entire process of a project, maintaining a professional approach, and striving to achieve the function, aesthetics, quality, budget and programme that a client demands.

FKDA are experienced in a number of sectors including residential, educational, sports facilities and retail.

We are currently working on a number of very exciting projects, including a sea cadets headquarters, the enhancement of a large commercial building in the centre of Manchester, and a housing scheme that has a specific approach to developing a sustainable design.

We are on the Select Tender List for the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, and have developed very good relationships with a number of developers, contractors and organisations throughout the North West.

FKDA also work with Manchester City Council's Corporate Technical Services on a number of different public sector projects. We are currently appointed as Technical advisors to the Council on an 1800-place new-build school, Wright Robinson Sports College (PFI), in Manchester.

Richard Frankland, the director of the practice, is an Elected Member of the Manchester Society of Architects, the local branch of the RIBA.

Richard Frankland has worked for a number of different practices in Manchester between 1989 and 2003. These include Stephenson/Mills, Mills Beaumont Leavey, Aedas (formerly Holford Associates and Abbey Holford Rowe) and CMA.

Please click here for more information on our architectural experience.

 

Website design services

FKDA offer full web site production with various hosting and site maintenance options. We can also produce mini sites or holding pages that provide smaller companies, that have a limited budget, with immediate web presence.

FKDA design custom web sites that are simple, effective, easy to navigate and imaginative.

As well as providing bespoke web site design, we can also provide standard site layouts that consist of either a single page or three pages, offering a cost-effective solution to achieving immediate web presence.

Our web sites are constructed primarily using Macromedia Flash as opposed to a standard HTML static site. We believe that Flash can be used to produce graphics and effects that will ensure your site stands out amongst the competition. There are very few design limitations. We will use simple HTML pages where appropriate.

FKDA provide an extremely flexible arrangement to producing and maintaining a web site. We allow you as much control over the different aspects of the process as you require. Once the web site has been designed, we can provide hosting on our own server, or you may choose a hosting package from another company. We can even enable you to update and manage the content of the site yourself.

If you choose us to host your site, we provide POP3 e-mail and can help you set up your e-mail accounts. We provide a webmail facility for the access of email and address books from anywhere in the world using the Internet.

We offer a wide range of additional services to ensure your web strategy is met, providing you with a bespoke design service, and ensuring that you don’t pay for any internet features you don’t require.

If you are not ready to commence a full web site, FKDA can design a very basic holding page (a single page whilst you are preparing a full web site). For very little cost, this will provide an immediate web presence for your company or organisation to allow customers / visitors to access some basic information.

We can also produce and host sites worldwide. Most of the consultation / design process can be carried out over the phone and e-mail, with payments through an electronic bank transfer or cheque.

Please click here for more information on our web site design services.........

 

FULL LIST OF SERVICES & OPTIONS WE CAN OFFER

• domain registration
• website hosting
• search engine optimisation and submission
• 7-day-a-week telephone support
• full content management (including SQL databases)
• visitor statistics
• FTP access
• unlimted POP3 email accounts
• webmail facility
• email forwarding
• email scanning - against spam and viruses
• shopping carts, digital certificates and payment gateway options
• email marketing
• SMS marketing - coming soon. For more detailed information and prices on all of our services, please telephone 0161 237 1500 or email us.

websites produced by FKDA include:

www.algarve-mc.com; www.lornaruskin.co.uk; www.roman-holiday.co.uk; www.electronic-i.net; www.sandhairandbody.com; www.rooms2grow.co.uk; www.nw-architecture.com; www.terrenotours.com; www.bcmconsulting.co.uk; www.ibindustries.co.uk; www.brownesolicitors.co.uk; www.re-creative.co.uk; www.marbellapropertyrentals.com; www.constructionnorthwest.co.uk; www.coactivetraining.com; www.brilliantfires.co.uk; www.theconsciousdesigner.co.uk; www.eu-cs.com

Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact Richard Frankland. Please telephone +44 (0)161 237 1500.

www.fkda.info

 

WEBSITE DESIGN PROCESS

If you are unfamiliar with the configuration and development process of a web site, we hope the following may be of some help.

 

a domain name

a unique domain name (yourname.com, .co.uk or .net etc). There are now hundreds of registration agents (ISPs) through which you can register a name. The cost should be no more than £15 a year;

site hosting

computers or servers that store your web site. When a visitor enters your full web site address (the URL) in the browsers address bar, the visitor is directed to the web space where the web site is stored and can be viewed. Hosting costs will vary, depending on the extent of space and features provided. FKDA offer standard hosting for £125 per year;

a web site

the text and image files that are uploaded to the remote (hosted) site, once the web site design is complete. Costs vary greatly, from a couple of hundred pounds for a very basic site, to tens of thousands for sites that incorporate complex databases and extensive e-shopping capabilities. FKDA can offer solutions to meet most budgets; typical fees ranging from £360 to over £10,000.

 

Should you appoint FKDA to design and develop a bespoke web site, the process will usually consist of five distinct stages:

1 CLIENT BRIEF / STRATEGY

In order for any web designer to understand your aims and aspirations for your web site, it's always extremely useful to compile the following information as early as possible:

a list of the key elements of your business / organisation that you wish to portray on the web site. These areas will probably form the different pages of the site, with more detailed information as sub-pages.
list some of your favourite web sites and the reasons they appeal (content, graphics, colour, navigation, humour, interactivity etc.)
produce a list of your competitors sites.

If we are appointed to design your site, we will first request a copy of your company or organisation's marketing material, and any other supporting documentation that you would like to include on your web site.
We will discuss your requirements, the quantity and type of information to be presented, and agree a proposal that includes content, layout and site structure.

2 OUTLINE DESIGN

If you haven't done so already, you will need to register a domain name and organise your preferred hosting arrangement.
In the meantime, we will prepare an outline design (on our temporary web space) that clearly presents the proposed design aesthetic and navigation of the site.

3 INFORMATION

Once the outline design is complete, we will then collate information received from you, and request any outstanding content that is to be included on the site.

4 PRODUCTION

We will complete the technical infrastructure and design, and develop the web application integrating all the required text and photographic information.

5 EVALUATION

On completion, we will test the site for browser compatibility and usability functioning. You will then be asked to perform a final proof check of information. The site will then be published on the World Wide Web so it can be accessed through your domain name. Over the following weeks, we will ensure minor changes and updates are carried out to reflect any feedback provided by your site's wider audience. Finally, we will submit the site to search engines.

 

To enable you to view the status of your site as it is being produced, you will be able to log-in to a temporary site where we regularly publish the latest version of your site. This is aimed to ensure that you are able to monitor the progress of the web site and provide feedback at any time.

As the whole procedure of commissioning a web site can often be a daunting task, we will guide you through the entire process,
clearly explaining anything you don't understand, in plain english... we're designers, not IT megalomaniacs!!

click here for Frequently Asked Questions

 

Useful links:

architecture
www.designfood.co.uk
www.arb.org.uk
www.architecture.com
www.manchestersocietyofarchitects.co.uk
www.cabe.org.uk
www.cube.org.uk
www.archinect.com
www.odpm.gov.uk
www.woodforgood.com

design
www.britishdesign.co.uk
www.designcouncil.org.uk
www.cpdi.co.uk
www.cids.co.uk
www.magmabooks.com

other useful links
www.consumerdirect.gov.uk
www.ukwda.org
www.webdesignforbusiness.org
www.linkdup.com

re:creative website
FKDA-webdesign website

 

Location

FKDA are located in Manchester, in the NorthWest of England. We are able to undertake website projects for clients around the world. We can certainly meet up with clients in our local area (Manchester, Sale, Altrincham, Stockport, Stretford, Didsbury, Salford, Macclesfield, Liverpool, Wirral, Merseyside, Cheshire, Salford, Chorlton, Warrington, Preston, Bury, Oldham, Huddersfield, Northwich, Tameside, Trafford, Bradford, Halifax, Chester, etc, etc), but often, we find that this is not necessary. Communicating via telphone and email works equally well.