MAD INSIGHTS
How design and engineering meet before installation
Coordinate the interfaces between design, media, software, fabrication and installation. Identify the decisions still open at each project stage and the evidence needed to move forward.
COORDINATION STARTS WITH THE INTERFACES
Different teams need the same working assumptions.
An exhibit drawing, a media treatment and a software specification can each look complete while depending on decisions held by another team. A screen position affects the interface. A projection surface affects content preparation. A loudspeaker position affects both the sound and the construction detail.
Design and engineering meet by making those dependencies explicit. The purpose is to give each contributor usable requirements and a clear point of contact for the decisions that cross between disciplines.
TECHNICAL DETAILChoose the work around the decisions still open.
Open the engineering detailClose this sectionLook for the red circuit symbol for engineering detail.
| Where the project is | What can be resolved | Useful next output |
|---|---|---|
| Concept and brief | Audience, intended interactions, physical constraints and the uncertainties worth testing. | Experience requirements, feasibility options and a focused prototype plan. |
| Design development | Equipment locations, interfaces, content requirements and the work of adjoining trades. | Coordinated layouts, interface definitions and responsibility assignments. |
| Procurement and fabrication | The agreed scope, products or performance requirements, approval points and evidence. | Reviewed submittals, test plans and a record of approved decisions. |
| Installation and commissioning | Actual room conditions, connected systems, operator behavior and outstanding defects. | Functional tests, an agreed punch list, configuration records and handover. |
| An operating venue | Current condition, maintenance difficulties and the result required from a change. | An assessment and a staged refresh or repair scope. |
A PRACTICAL COORDINATION EXAMPLE
A language change crosses several work packages.
The Albert Robles Center combines Mad’s digital and physical exhibit work. Its complete English/Spanish changeover illustrates how a visitor requirement can reach across interpretation, software, display surfaces and controls.
For a project with this requirement, the team would need to agree which content changes, how a language is selected, what each surface displays and how the complete change is tested. The graphics, media and control teams each need the same definition of the finished behavior.
TECHNICAL DETAILMake a handoff more than a drawing issue.
Open the engineering detailClose this section
- Decision: the behavior or interface being agreed, with its current revision.
- Responsibility: who supplies the input, who implements it and who approves the result.
- Dependencies: the dimensions, loads, media, network provision or software interface another team must supply.
- Physical conditions: sightlines, light, acoustics, mounting, cooling, approach and service access.
- Evidence: the prototype, calculation, sample, factory test or site test needed before acceptance.
- Change impact: the affected cost, schedule, content, procurement and installation work.
- Unresolved work: the remaining question, its owner and the date by which it must be decided.
WHEN A DESIGN IS ALREADY COMMITTED
Work from the conditions that exist.
Start by distinguishing fixed constraints from choices that can still change. A targeted review might resolve one interface, test a proposed control or identify an alternative within the available space. The scope follows the actual difficulty.
For an existing AV installation, suitable projectors, displays, loudspeakers and other peripherals may be retained after assessment. A QuickSilver retrofit replaces the required legacy playback and control infrastructure first; selected AV++ capabilities can then be added with their content, interfaces and engineering defined.
WORKING WITH MAD
A defined package within the wider team.
Mad can contribute design, software, engineering, fabrication or integration within an agreed responsibility. The client can retain its chosen designers and delivery partners.
Bring the current drawings or brief, the relevant decision dates and the interfaces causing difficulty. That information helps establish the smallest useful scope and the people who need to be part of it.
WORK WITH MAD
What does the next project stage need from this one?
Tell us where the design stands and which handoff needs to be resolved. We can help the teams agree a practical next deliverable.
Discuss coordination