African Design Magazine July 2016 | Page 86

PROFILE: AM Aleem Manji Architects (AMA-Kenya) is a Registered Architectural Firm based in in Architectural Design as well as Interiors. Founded on the basic premise of grea exceptional service. Can you give us a history of the practice? Aleem Manji Architects (AMA-Kenya) was founded in December 2010 as a sole proprietorship by Aleem Manji after working for five years at Studio Infinity Architects. We started off with a small office consisting of the Principal architect and two assistants on the back of a single project: Casilda, four townhouses in the Kyuna suburb of Nairobi. Six years down the line our staff consists of the Principal Architect, five Project Architects, one Project Manager and an Architectural Visualizer as well as our support staff. We are currently handling a portfolio of projects in excess of US$ 100 000 000, mostly consisting of Residential Apartment Developments, some Commercial Buildings as well as Interior fit-out designs. What do you believe differentiates your work from other practices? There are a variety of considerations that I believe differentiates us from other practices: 86 The primacy of space: Every design is an envelope for space. We believe that the creation of quality spaces is the primary mandate of any architectural design: spaces that ultimately enhance the quality of life and efficiency of the end user. Inimitability of design: Every project has a specific brief, a specific site and a specific set of pa