The ELV Designer Start a project
  1. Home
  2. How a project runs

From brief to handover

How an ELV design project runs

We stay on the project from the first conversation with the client and the architect to the day the systems are handed over. The design is settled first, then priced fairly, then built right.

  1. AAt the design stage
  2. Approval
  3. BThrough execution
Start a project When to bring us in
A drafting table with coloured system layers laid over a floor plan, pens, a scale rule, a tablet with a plan on screen and a cup of coffee.
Fig. 01 Design stage, layers over the planIllustrative visualisation

01Our approach

Lifestyle-centric design

We plan each system around the people who will use the space. The result is the right technology for the room, in proportion to the budget and the lifestyle of the client.

  1. Requirements

    How the space will be lived in, worked in or visited, captured from the client and the architect.

  2. Budget

    An estimate made at the design stage, so the plan fits the money before anything is bought.

  3. Feasibility

    What the space, the structure and the other services can actually accommodate.

RequirementsHow it is used BudgetFits the money FeasibilityWhat the space allows The exact fit
Diagram Lifestyle-centric design The exact fit Where all three meet Illustrative Not to scale

02Step by step

From the first conversation to the handover

Five steps shape the design while the architecture can still make room for it. Once the client and the architect approve it, four more carry it through tender and onto site.

Phase A

At the design stage

While walls, ceilings and risers are still lines on a drawing, every system can be given its place, its cable route and its share of the budget.

  1. Step 01 · Design stage

    Capture the requirement

    From the client and the architect: how the space will be used, and what it needs to do. We listen for the lifestyle behind the brief: who uses each room, when, and what they expect to see, hear and control.

    ClientArchitect Brief Use of the space Who, and when Systems wanted Look and feel
    Sheet P-01 · The brief

  2. Step 02 · Design stage

    Analyse the site

    A complete study of the site, coordinated with the other consultants: interiors, landscape, HVAC, electrical and more. Ceiling voids, risers, wall space and structure are checked so every system has room to go.

    Overlays Interiors Landscape HVAC Electrical Coordinate
    Sheet P-02 · Site analysis

  3. Step 03 · Design stage

    Research and design the solution

    Systems, technologies and products researched and designed against the requirement. Options are compared on what they do for the space, never on whose brand is on the box.

    Options ABC Design
    Sheet P-03 · Options and design

  4. Step 04 · Design stage

    Estimate the budget

    A cost for the whole design, before anything is bought. Seeing every system in one estimate shows where the money goes, and what to adjust while the design can still change.

    Estimate by layer Light Media Secure Control Connected AI Total Budget
    Sheet P-04 · Estimate

  5. Step 05 · Design stage

    Present the solution design

    A detailed presentation to the client and the architect. The layers are shown on the architect’s own drawings, so everyone can see what goes where, and why.

    ClientArchitect
    Sheet P-05 · Presentation

Gate · Before execution

Client and architect approve the design

Nothing moves into execution until the design and the budget are agreed. From here on, the approved design is the reference every vendor and contractor works to.

Design approvalELV design set ClientArchitectStatus Approved

Phase B

Through execution

The approved design becomes documents a contractor can build from, tenders that vendors price on equal terms, and checks on site until the handover.

An unfinished room with orange conduits fixed across the concrete ceiling and down the brick walls, and a trestle table with drawings and a hard hat.
Fig. 02 Site, conduits before plasteringIllustrative visualisation

  1. Step 06 · Execution

    Prepare the design documents

    Component placement layouts, wiring design, lighting reports and everything a contractor builds from. Schedules, schematics and details are drawn on the same base drawings as the architecture.

    Lighting report Wiring diagram Placement layout ELV-01
    Sheet P-06 · Drawing set

  2. Step 07 · Execution

    Issue requests for proposal

    Tender documents shared with vendors, written so their quotes can be compared fairly. Every vendor prices the same specification, the same quantities and the same conditions.

    RFP One specification Vendor A Vendor B Vendor C
    Sheet P-07 · Tender

  3. Step 08 · Execution

    Compare the proposals

    Every quoted component checked against the technical specification, warranty and service conditions, so the choice between vendors is made on like-for-like terms and not on the lowest number alone.

    Vendor proposals ABC SpecificationWarrantyServicePrice Recommended
    Sheet P-08 · Comparison

  4. Step 09 · Execution

    Check quality on site

    Several visits during execution, through to the final handover, to make sure everything is done right. Routes are checked before ceilings and walls are closed, and every device against the drawings.

    Handover
    Sheet P-09 · Site visit and handover

Handover. The systems are handed over to the people who will use them, working as they were designed.

03When to bring us in

The earlier we join, the more we can save

A change on a drawing costs a line. The same change on site means chasing walls, reopening ceilings and pulling new cable. We can help at any stage, but the earlier we join, the more of the design we can still shape.

HighLow Concept Design Construction Existing Best time to join Freedom to shape the design Cost of a change
Diagram Cost of change Stages Concept to existing building Illustrative Not to scale

Next step

The earlier we join, the more we can save.

Tell us about the space and where the design stands. We will come back to you to arrange a first conversation.

Start a project See how a project runs