Is a mock-up worth the programme time?

On a repeated package, almost always. The time is recovered in production because the tolerance, sequence and finish arguments are closed before the first run rather than during it.

Can a mock-up be built off site?

Yes. Visual mock-ups and benchmark rooms are often built in the workshop, which usually gets them reviewed earlier than site availability would allow.

What do you need before you can price the package?

The current drawings or model, the specification, the programme dates and a clear statement of the interfaces. If any of that is missing we will say what we have assumed rather than price around it.

Mock-ups and benchmarks

Build it once, at full size, before you build it fifty times.

A mock-up is the cheapest argument a project will ever have. It moves the discussion about tolerance, junction, finish and access out of an email chain and into something everyone can stand in front of.

We build visual and technical mock-ups, benchmark rooms and prototypes, then record what was approved so production is measured against a physical standard rather than an opinion.

Send your specification Discuss a specialist package

Full-size prototype assembly under review in a workshop

Scope

What the package covers.

Typical applications

Visual mock-ups for design approval
Technical mock-ups for interface and performance review
Benchmark guest rooms and apartments
Façade panel and fixing mock-ups
Typical office or ward bay prototypes
Repeated joinery or furniture prototypes

What a mock-up should test

Geometry and setting-out against the real structure
Finish, colour and tone under the project lighting
Junctions between trades and their tolerances
Buildability and installation sequence
Access for maintenance
Cleaning and wear on contact surfaces

What it produces

A signed approval record with photographs
Marked-up drawings showing every change agreed
An installation sequence proven in practice
A cycle time that can be used in the programme
A retained physical reference for inspection
A clear list of what was rejected and why

Sequence

How the work runs.

Define the question

Agree what the mock-up must prove: appearance, interface, buildability or all three.

Shop drawings

Drawings for the mock-up itself, including the adjacent construction it must sit against.

Build

Construction in the workshop or on site, using the specified materials and systems.

Review

Structured review with the design team, the contractor and the client.

Record

Signed approval, photographs and marked-up drawings issued to all parties.

Production release

Tooling and production released only against the recorded standard.

Control

Where the risk actually sits.

Signed, photographed and retained

An approval that is not recorded is not an approval. Each mock-up is signed off, photographed and retained as the reference for production inspection.

Built with the real trades

Where the mock-up is technical, it is built by the teams who will build the real thing, in the real sequence, so the cycle time it produces is usable.

Changes closed before production

Every change agreed at the mock-up is issued as a marked-up drawing and closed before tooling or production starts.

Before pricing

What we need to see.

Send what exists today. We will tell you what is still required rather than price around the gaps.

The package or area the mock-up represents
What the mock-up must prove
Available space, on site or in the workshop
Who will attend the review and sign it
The date production has to be released
Specified materials and systems to be used

Evidence

Projects from the register.

Ritz-Carlton branded residence living room with fitted joinery, soft seating and full-height windows over Hanoi — Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Grand
Hanoi, Vietnam
Residence & public-area interiors; auditorium, cinema, gym, pool and kids club with acoustic insulation, fit-out and furniture

Midfield Terminal A central concourse with sculpted arched GRG ceiling structure above the retail plaza — Midfield Terminal A
Abu Dhabi International Airport, UAE
GRG interior works, decorative ceiling and wall elements across the terminal

Grand Marina branded residence lobby with reception desk, marble floor and full-height glazing over the Saigon River — Grand Marina, Marriott & J.W. Marriott Residences
Ba Son, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Apartment & public-area fit-out; auditorium & entertainment areas with acoustic insulation, fit-out and furniture

Questions

What clients ask about this scope.

Where to go next.

Send your specification

Send the drawings and the specification.

Send the package drawings, the specification and the programme date. We will confirm what is buildable as drawn, what needs development and what we would need to see before pricing.