THINGS TO BE CONSIDERED

M O D E L S : The most important thing to remember about models is that they are abstractions of the proposal and a representation of the stage at which the project currently finds itself in. It is impractical to try to represent every element of the project and so a certain amount of editing is required to ensure that the model represents the principal ideas clearly and dramatically.

F U R N I T U R E : Furniture making is a delicate and time consuming process. Since most of our pieces are unique, we ask you to be patience with our time schedules. Many variations affect the construction details of your furniture pieces, even when we receive construction drawings from you or your architect, eventually these drawings can change depending on the materials selection, joints, technologies/machinery used for cutting or routered, etc.

1. I n i t i a l  C o n t a c t
Contacting us early will enable us to provide you with higher levels of quality at lower prices. Short deadlines create higher levels of waste (time and material) and mistakes and sets greater demands on the health and safety of our employees. Contact us as soon as possible so we may discuss the scope, options, and time needed for the project. Even if the project is not completely defined yet, it is often possible to begin researching and making mock ups of important elements at this point. Early mock ups and good research helps us to ensure less waste of time and money once the budget has been approved and the project commences. Though every project is different, generally this first meeting should be a minimum of one month prior to the desired completion date (for models) and three months for furniture pieces. We can provide you with time frames for different projects we have done, so you have a better idea.

2. S u p p l y i n g  I n f o r m at i o n
When we supply you (the client) with a proposed budget for the project we will supply an outlined time frame of specific milestones for the project, including the dates of when specific information will be needed from the client. Such as:

A c c e p t a t i o n o f p r o p o s e d b u d g e t . Please remember that each day that you wait to accept the proposed budget is a day lost towards the completion of the project, and the possibility of a delay, increased cost, and/or the simplification of the project.

D r a w i n g s. To ensure higher quality elements our models/furniture often use pieces which are cut by computer run machines. Understand that all drawings must be cleaned, checked for accuracy, altered to reflect the material thicknesses and methods of construction for the piece, and converted into files which can be understood by the cutting machines. This process is done in our studio and the time it takes depends not only on the scope of the project, but also on the clarity and quality of the drawings given to us. For the simplest of models with the best of drawings this process will take a minimum of 3 days, and for larger more complex projects it can take a whole month. However, the average piece will need one week in order to be processed. Therefore, any delay in the receipt of drawings will greatly affect our ability to complete the project on time, within budget, and as promised.

C h a n g e s  d u r i n g t  h e p r o c e s s. There will often be design ideas and elements which arise after the commencement of the pieces. A certain number or types of changes can be absorbed by the budget and the schedule, but extreme types or numbers of changes will cause delays and possibly increase cost. In general, changes cannot be accepted any later than one week before the scheduled completion date of the piece without seriously affecting the ability to complete on time and within budget.

3. S h i p p i n g  and  D e l i v e r y
If not told otherwise, we expect the client to arrange for the pick-up, packaging and delivery of the piece. We do supply these services, but they are not automatically included in our prices. We order shipping boxes from a company that specializes in this and can make them cheaply (padding and handles are not included). They generally need at least one week advance notice, which means that short deadlines make it near impossible to get a shipping box on time. On rare occasions we have made the box in our studio, however this is more costly and obviously takes precious time away from the piece. When shipping by the model/furniture by mail, we strongly recommend that the package be insured. We do not take responsibility for any damage that has been caused by careless shipping. There are companies which specialize in shipping fragile objects (such as museum items) and we strongly recommend that you use one of these. We expect the client to organize all arrangements with the shipping company to pick up the pieces from our studio.

4.  P r o j e c t  C o m p o n e n t s   I n f l u e n c i n g   C o m p l e t i o n   T i m e  a n d   C o s t
L i g h t i n g. The incorporation of lights affects and potentially complicates all aspects of the design and construction of the model/furniture and cannot be added as an afterthought. Installation of lights typically adds 2 days to the deadline. LED lighting can typically not be included in models with a deadline of less than 2 weeks.
P a i n t i n g. Requires drying and sanding between coats and implies a great amount of dead time to any project. A model/furniture which is extensively painted will typically take a week longer than unpainted pieces.
B e n t   w o o d   o r   P l e x i g l a s. A bent object typically requires three days to produce from the production of the molds to the bending and drying of the final piece.
C u s t o m   p r i n t i n g   o n   v i n y l. Unless extremely simple, can typically not be included in pieces with a deadline of less than 2 weeks.
S e p a r a b l e   m o d e l s. A model made of several pieces is easier to ship but more complicated to build. Typically 3 days extra per joint and 5 days extra if this joint is to include physical connectors of any kind (i.e. anything other than simply placing the two model pieces side by side).
M o v i n g   p a r t s   o r   o t h e r   e l e c t r o n i c   g i z m o s. Typically adds a week to the production time, but obviously depends on the task.
S i z e. While keeping a model as one piece can save time, it can also complicate cutting and shipping. Very large pieces must be cut at locations further away than our normal locations.
M a t e r i a l. Materials that must be specially ordered take a week between order and delivery. Some materials are possible to get with next day delivery, but this carries a large fee from the material supplier.
M o d e l s U r n. We must know very early on in the project if the model is to have an urn or not. It affects the way we create the base, and it also must be ordered at least a week in advance.

S t e r e o l i t h o g r a p h y ( o r o t h e r 3 D p r i n t i n g ). This is difficult to achieve on a model with a deadline of less than 3 months. Special drawings must be made and the finished piece must be sent from Holland.

5. T h i n g s  o u t   o f   o u r   c o n t r o l
We work very hard to make sure you have a product on the day we predict, however we ask you to understand that we work with a wide range of consultants such as material cutting, lighting technicians, vinyl or 3D printing, urn and shipping box construction, as well as deal with very specialized materials. A well planned project will help to make the ordering of materials and consultant services go smoothly, and for any error or failure to be corrected.