Define completion as usable, not as finished
Practical completion and a usable office are not the same thing. Commissioning, IT enablement, furniture installation and cleaning all sit between them. Say which of those are included and when they happen.
Check the capacity, not the area
Cooling and power capacity against your actual occupancy density is the single most common cause of late redesign. It is a short check and it belongs before signature.
Fix the change process
Agree how a change is proposed, priced and instructed, and what the time consequence looks like. A change process without a time column always produces an argument.
Points worth closing before signature
- Written scope boundary with the landlord and other contractors
- Approval durations built into the programme
- Long-lead items identified with order dates
- Who holds IT, AV and security scope
- The definition of completion and the move-in sequence
- The defects period and how aftercare will run
