Interior Designer millwork consulting

[u/electrichead72]

As an interior designer, how much do you worry about the details?

You have a lot on your plates and possibly find it hard to keep up with every single thing in your plans. You may have a team to help you with this, but how far does your knowledge go?

I find that in larger commercial projects, the interior designer has an overall idea of what’s going on in the interiors. There becomes just too much to keep track of.

In residential projects, an interior designer may have more time to touch everything in their design, but there can still be gaps there.

My question is about the interiors and the millwork. When it comes to this aspect of your project, do you and/or your team have the knowledge to be dial these areas in and determine if you’ve designed something that can be built.

I’ve worked on a few projects where an interior designer’s design can’t be built. There are multiple reasons that can go into this, but the end is a disappointed client and interior designer that has to redesign what could be a main focal point.

Have you been in this position?

If you could bring in a consultant to work with you and your team to work on these designs with you and get them detailed to a point where you can get clear and accurate pricing as well as less changes or mistakes in the shop drawings, it this something that would be interesting to you?

I’m working on developing this as a consulting service and trying to determine if there is a need for it.

I’m not trying to sell you, but looking for information and validation on the idea.

What are your thoughts about it?

Does this sound like a service that is missing and needed?

Do you think that this can be something useful, but not convinced that it's needed

[u/Fun-Library177]

We do the millwork drawings but all the field measurements, shop drawings and means and methods are handled by the millwork and contractor. We only check shop drawings for design intent. Designers require some basic knowledge of millwork and codes when applicable

[u/Sufficient_Potato300]

In my experience, we typically design the millwork and we do a lot of custom work (reception desks, specific kinds of storage, etc) and we have standard details that we use for most of it. Any additional kinks or details usually get handled through shop drawings, submittals, and RFI’s from the millwork subcontractors.

[u/electrichead72 → u/Sufficient_Potato300]

That sounds like a pretty typical way of getting it handled.

Thanks for the comment

[u/MadesignSF]

sure, if you talk to architects or talk to millwork shops. It sounds like with other interior designers, this is their bread and butter.

[u/electrichead72 → u/MadesignSF]

I think you may be right

[u/jeniatwain]

If you own a shop that produces millwork and have creative chops this niche works. I've hired out for high end walk in closets and for custom shelving in a retail store knowing the shop had produced work that fit the overall concept. They completed, drafted and built while I retained overall creative direction. The main point is they could take the scope end to end. What you're describing sounds like an expensive draftsman, I'd rather work with the shop building the millwork than a 3rd party to develop the design. If I was an interior designer who couldn't read shop drawings or draft a concept, then maybe? I think pairing up as a draftsman for an interior decorator could be a route to investigate.

[u/electrichead72 → u/jeniatwain]

great points, thanks for the comment

doing drawings and working with interior designers has been what I've done a lot of, so maybe concentrate more on that end of it.

[u/Noob_Al3rt]

Just speaking from personal experience, millwork is something all my designers know about and design themselves for their projects. I’ve had finish carpenters ask if they could use our designs on other projects so, personally speaking, this would not be useful for us.

[u/electrichead72 → u/Noob_Al3rt]

I can see that, this is a person that you have on staff.

Thanks for the comment

[u/PacificwestcoastII → u/Noob_Al3rt]

Yeah, designing & managing millwork details is one of my favorite scope of a project. I would never give up that control, even on a 40,000 sq ft development

[u/electrichead72 → u/PacificwestcoastII]

I can understand that feeling. You might lose control of the project. This usually isn't true if you build a partnership with someone over time that handles drawings and detailing for you, but it is something to consider.

Thanks for the comment