Three Ways to Ensure You Get Project Vision Follow-thru – From Spec to Install
Imagine spending over 12 hours of your design time picking just the right wood veneer doors for your project.
- You looked through the product lines finding a species and finish you liked.
- You ordered samples from the manufacturer.
- You sat down with the interior designer to make sure you were on the same page for other finishes in the project.
- You reviewed the options with the client to make sure they're happy with it.
- You spent a few hours editing the wood door spec to get it just right.
Then at the end of construction, you show up for the punch list to find a building full of doors that are a far cry from what you’d envisioned. It’s too late to change now. You approved the shop drawings and the owner needs to open for business next week. So you’re stuck with a bunch of doors that don’t quite flow with the rest of the interiors. You’re not happy. The interior designer’s disappointed. And the client is wondering what went wrong.There will likely be a lot of finger-pointing and blaming, but there has to be a better way to get in front of this potential nightmare.
Where did it go wrong, and how can you avoid it happening to you? The following offers a few tips to help keep you on track.
Knowledge is Key
Early in your project, you should work with your wood door distributor. Let them know your design intent, your budget, color and grain requirements, and the total size of the project. Using their resources helps you enhance your knowledge and help your clients.
You’ll also find a wealth of resources throughout our website. Go to our Educational Content Page where you’ll find downloadable PDFs on various wood veneer topics. You’ll also find descriptions of the many CEU presentations we have available.
Specifying wood veneer doors can be a challenge. It’s important to know the wood species, their veneer availability, and how to use those veneers. Then you have to clearly communicate your ideas or intent, to end up with your initial vision.
Clearly define your design intent
At some point it may be necessary to hand your project over to someone else to care for during construction. You may have other projects or other responsibilities pulling you away. Or your firm may have designated staff to handle the construction administration.
Whatever the case, you want to ensure the design intent is clear to anybody who comes along. One way to do that is with design reference samples.
Having a design reference sample is a great way to ensure your design intent is clear to all parties.
Be sure to note, it’s more than just a simple swatch of veneer and finish color. Your design reference samples should include all of the following important material and construction details:
- Veneer grade
- Veneer species
-
Veneer cut
- Veneer Leaf Match
- Face assembly match
Develop a system of checklists
We’ve mentioned it in other blog posts, and you may have seen it on our website. One of the best ways to make sure you stay on top of your project’s door selection and design is to download our Specification Checklists.
With these checklists, you’ll have reminders of what you can do at each phase of your project. You’ll have a great system in place you’ll find flows into other areas of your design as well.
One more thing…
One last bonus tip: Aesthetics deals with subjective issues like color, grain character and scale. And one key element of your specification is the face grade veneer.
Define your project’s spaces where higher aesthetics are most important. Focus on them for the Grade AA door finish, and define other areas where Grade A is acceptable. Make sure these different zones are clearly defined in the specs and, if needed for clarity, on your drawings.
You’ll save the project (and your client) time and money.
Masonite Architectural – Want help?
Our expert field of Territory Sales Managers can help guide you through the process. We’ll help make sure the doors you specified are the ones you see on opening day.
Our goal is to be your valuable resource and help you get the perfect doors to inspire and delight your client.
If you’re ready to get started on your current project, you can call 1-877-332-4484 or email us archinfo@masonite.com