What belongs in an office fit-out brief?

Describe the working day

List the team members using the office and the activities they need to carry out. Identify tasks that require collaboration, focused work, client meetings or private discussion. Add reception, shared areas and storage requirements where they belong in the brief.

Explain the relationships between rooms. For example, describe who needs regular access to meeting rooms or shared equipment, and where visitor movement should be considered. If headcount may change, discuss that as a planning requirement rather than assuming the current desk count is the whole brief.

• Current team size and anticipated changes
• Workstations, cabins and meeting spaces
• Visitor, reception and waiting requirements
• Shared equipment, filing and storage
• Break areas and other supporting spaces

Connect furniture planning with service requirements

Prepare a list of equipment and the connections it requires. Ask the project team to coordinate power, lighting, data, AC, ventilation and other relevant services with the proposed room and furniture layouts. Identify who is responsible for each part rather than assuming it belongs to the fit-out contractor.

Steed Art's commercial profile includes workstations, matching storage, executive spaces and glazed partitions. When reviewing examples, discuss what your own office needs from privacy, visibility and storage. A photograph can help describe a visual direction; it does not establish the performance specification for a different property.

Verify what the property allows

Gather existing plans and ask the owner or building management what information and permissions it requires for proposed works. Discuss working hours, deliveries, common areas and any restrictions on alterations. Do not assume requirements are identical between buildings.

Ask the appropriate qualified professionals to identify the requirements relevant to the property and proposed use, including building systems and safety arrangements. This guide is a briefing checklist, not a technical design or a substitute for project-specific approvals. Make responsibility for checking these matters explicit in the scope.

Agree how the business will operate during the fit-out

Tell the team whether the office will be empty or remain in use. Identify equipment, records or work areas that need protection or continued access. Ask what work arrangements are feasible once the scope and property conditions have been assessed.

Before execution, coordinate the approved layout, finish selections, furniture schedule and service responsibilities. Ask how changes will be handled and what the completion review will include. The agreed brief should remain a reference throughout delivery, rather than being replaced by a collection of disconnected purchases.