At the early stage of each project, ACE experts establish the engineering strategy and fix the demands that drive space, utility applications and budget. The purpose of concept design is not drawings; it is to make the small number of decisions that are expensive to reverse later – cooling source, hot water strategy, plant location, utility capacity and authority route. Design basis, block loads, a comparative options study and a formal plant space and riser allocation are issued at this stage.

While considering all the existing restrictions and requirements, ACE engineers convert the agreed strategy into a sized and coordinated system. Equipment is selected, distribution routes are established, and the design is coordinated against structure and architecture. Authority and utility applications are lodged at the earliest technically defensible point, because their processing time – not the design time – governs the programme. Potential risks and issues will be anticipated, so the client can have a comprehensive vision of their project and can easily decide the best.

ACE scope of work will cover every MEP discipline in the project. From mechanical and HVAC, public health, fire protection and electrical to ELV and low current systems, all are calculated rather than estimated, and coordinated in three dimensions against structure and every other service. The output is a construction-issue document set a contractor can price without qualification and build without redesign, supported by a full calculation dossier and a coordinated model with a resolved clash report.

Specifications are written on a performance basis, defining what a system must achieve rather than which brand must supply it. This protects the client’s competitive position at tender while holding the technical requirement firm. During tender, ACE answers technical queries as numbered addenda issued to all bidders equally and evaluates each bid clause by clause, so that the bids received are technically comparable – because the cheapest non-compliant bid usually becomes the most expensive contract.

During construction the design office role changes from producing information to protecting design intent. The dominant risk at this stage is silent substitution – equipment approved on price that does not meet the specified duty, and is only discovered at commissioning. ACE reviews every material submittal and shop drawing against the specification, responds to technical queries, inspects on site, witnesses commissioning and integrated systems testing, and closes out the handover with verified as-built records, O&M documentation and a tagged asset register. In the whole process, the client’s time and budget will be assumed as the key factors.