Spec It First

A Job Specification Document Can Help You Avoid Headaches

I find that, more often than not, the best way to avoid project problems is by spending time up front creating a job specification document. This should be a multi-page paper that describes what the client is going to get, what the performance specifications are, who is responsible for what portions of the work, who will sign off on proper delivery of each portion, what each portion is going to cost, and what the deliverable deadlines are going to be.

Keeping You Out of Trouble

The mere process of having to take a time out to sit down and reflect on the all these issues will help you clarify the planning in your own mind. Once the document is written, it will help your staff in comprehending the intent of the work. It will help your client, the builder, the architect, and the interior designer, understand the degree of detail that goes into doing a properly integrated theater, whole-house audio/video/lighting system, etc. The process of memorializing the key point of a project will act as an anchor for the work, and will serve to untangle misunderstandings when they happen.

Preparing Your ‘Sheet Music’

Here are some ideas for what a spec document for a high-class home cinema should contain.

• Room uses: Is this a dedicated room, or is a multi-purpose space? Is the room to be used for live performances, karaoke, gaming, etc?
• Seating standards: How many seats, what type of seating, and seat dimensions?
• Room dimensions: A textual as well as graphical representation of the room boundaries. Include the latest architectural plans and shop drawings from the builder. Clarify whether the dimensions are per plan, or as built, and whether they are rough, or finished dimensions?
• Architectural specifications. What does the room look like, what are the color schemes, what is the overall style or theme, what are the finishes, and who is responsible for the design work?
• Sound isolation requirements: Described in both plain language terms, and in STC values.
• Background noise levels: Described in both plain language terms, and in NC (or RC) values.
• Ventilation system: How is the heating and cooling handled? How is fresh air supplied into he system? How noisy is the system. How many people will it handle?
• Acoustical treatments: What is the target reflection decay time, are the treatments visible, or concealed behind the decorative fabric dress of the room, how thick are the treatments, if visible what color and texture are they?
• Sound system performance: How many channels, how loud the system plays, how smooth is the response, what’s the intelligibility, what is the directivity, what is the audience coverage consistency, how loud is the bass, and a whole host of more esoteric objective measures of performance.
• Sound system placement: Are all the speakers concealed behind a decorative fabric dress, are they flush mounted, who supplies the mounting hardware?
• Picture system performance: Resolution, screen illumination levels, screen dispersion widths, target visible contrast ratios, and a whole host of more esoteric objective measures of performance. What is the screen aspect ratio, and does it include masking for the various film formats?
• Picture system location: Where is the projector, how is it hidden, how is it ventilated, where is the screen, and how is it concealed?
• Lighting systems: Describe the ambient lights, the task lights, and the seating lights, the security lights, and how they are controlled.
• Miscellaneous features: Describe whatever doesn’t fit into one of the above categories…!
• Budgets: Total room cost, equipment costs, installation costs, construction costs, finish material costs, automation programming, commissioning and calibration, etc.
• Labor responsibilities: Who is handling what portions of the work? Some of it is the building contractor, some of it the electrical contractor, the ventilation contractor, the lighting contractor, the architect, the interior designer, outside consultants, some of it is yours, and several other trades involved.
• Deadlines: List out the scheduled times for he various phases of the construction, and for when each party needs to be in and out of the work site.

To download a copy of the questionnaire that we use to start a project, click here. 

And feel free to call us at PMI Engineering to ask questions about your specific project - we would be happy to help guide you through any challenges you may be having.


This article was originally published by Residential Systems, August 5, 2010.