At the heart of our purpose-built offices in Cornwall, projects begin at our in-house design facility. Here we work in partnership with the client, interpret requirements and offer specialist design advice. Advice that bears years of practical, working experience in mind. This knowledge, coupled with the flexibility of the latest technology, allows us to offer a solution tailored to meet the toughest of specifications within the tightest budgets.

Initial Design
Once an order has been placed, the information in the clients performance specification & tender document is interpreted with the production of preliminary drawings. These are then plotted onto pink paper for comment as preliminary drawings.

Continued Design
After the initial comments have been received, the drawings will be revised as required and re-issued as preliminary one-status drawings. Again the drawings will be issued on pink paper. At this stage it is assumed that the mechanical design has progressed sufficiently, and that comments have also been received for those drawings.

Normally, once the second issue of preliminary drawings has been issued, the drawings would then start to be co-ordinated with the mechanical installation. By the time the client has approved the electrical installation drawings, the mechanical scheme would be at the same level, leaving only final co-ordination to be carried out.

If a third preliminary issue of drawings is required then again they would again be issued on pink paper.

Reflected Ceiling Plans
Normally the architect will provide ceiling layout plans onto which the lighting and fire alarm system would be added. On previous projects the mechanical contractor would prove us with the grille positions in the form of an AutoCAD block, to which they would be inserted into the drawing, and checked for clashes.

Construction Drawings
Once the client approves the preliminary drawings or provides a no comment response, the drawings are then re-issued on white paper and stamped for "construction". This is normally done just prior to commencing on site. Only white construction issued drawings will be accepted on site for the actual construction by our site operatives. Any pink drawing would be referred to as "information only".

If during the construction changes are made, the construction issue drawings would be amended and issued with the variation highlighted. These drawings would follow through to as built.

As Built Drawings
At completion of the project, the construction drawings would have any final amendments added, including late client variations, and then issued with the Operations and Maintenance Manual as "AS BUILT" drawings.

Please note that at this stage all previous references to variations are removed from the drawing, to provide space for the client to record changes to the installation after the project completion.

Lighting and Circuit Calculation
As with all design and build projects, calculating the final lighting levels is an essential part of the contract. In order to ensure that the clients requirements are achieved, lighting levels are calculated and printed lux plots are provided to show how the final lighting levels should look. The company uses specialist software for providing the client with calculated lighting and circuit design to ensure that the end result is exactly what the client is expecting. This software not only provides single room calculations but also multi-room options to show the lighting level throughout the building. The additional advantage of this is for emergency lighting calculation's along the entire escape route, which may pass through many rooms. When calculating each room, the room is assessed for the most economical method of illumination. In other words, to ensure that a very large number of light fittings are not used to achieve the required light level. This is done by calculating with different light fittings and lamp types suitable for each case until a balance with quantity and uniformity are reached. Each room is calculated taking into account furniture layouts, ceiling types, future operations, colour schemes etc. to achieve the optimum lighting levels.

The screen print above shows one room of the building with the lighting calculated and displayed in the form of a lux plot (lines). Once each room has been completed and checked individually, the final stage is too provide a lux plot for the entire building. The screen print below shows the lux plot to all the rooms which have been calculated. The software can provide not only multi-rooms but also multi-floors.

(Example shows the floor above in the same building)

Cable Calculations
Once the lighting within the building has been designed and the final circuits have been worked out, the actual cable calculations can be completed. The calculations include the cable sizes and tripping characteristics of the "MCB'', earth loop and prospective short circuit current, and ensures discrimination is achieved.