Fabrication and project construction

We get a lot of questions about how early we need to receive designs in order to deliver a completed project on time. Unfortunately, the timeline for each project varies greatly based on the project's scope, the extent of the bidding/budgeting process, and our staff and space schedule. As a point of reference, we recommended at least a 3-month turnaround for a mid-sized scenic fabrication project. Projects can be turned around much more quickly than this, but may necessitate overtime pay to meet more rushed deadlines. For projects that have more turnaround time, there may be room for cost savings through creative reuse, bulk material purchases, and extensified sourcing. 

Month 1

Designs submitted, questions & bids provided, budget/cost negotiation

Month 2

Green light meeting, material sourcing, drafting of construction drawings, staffing

Month 3

Build, Paint, & Install

For fabrication projects, we have a $525 consultation fee.* We start with virtual meetings and shared drafting/images to get on the same page about the design and concept. The consultation fee includes up to 20 hours of work for this process. This is usually enough time to get at least one design and cost. If there’s lots of back and forth, it may need to go beyond that, and we give plenty of heads up about that before we get to that point. If we don’t use the full 20 hours, the remainder of the consultation fee can be applied towards the fabrication project itself.

*In situations where design work is not required and a fully fleshed out design is being presented for fabrication this fee does not apply.