Office Furniture - Project Enquiry to Specification and Quote

Capture the inbound enquiry and qualify it: project type, approximate headcount, building location, indicative budget, and timeline. Identify whether this is a direct client, a specifier, or a referral from a fit-out contractor. Assign to the appropriate account manager.

Conduct the client meeting and site survey. Record room-by-room requirements on a structured digital form: work modes, storage needs, power and data requirements, accessibility and ergonomic standards. Photograph the existing space and capture key dimensions.

Develop the furniture layout and product schedule based on the brief. Identify manufacturer products for each category - desking, seating, storage, collaborative furniture. Check lead times with each supplier before including any product in the proposal and flag items above 12 weeks.

Request pricing for any products not covered by existing trade agreements using RFQs. Build the cost-to-supply model line by line and apply margin to reach sell prices. Flag any lines where margin falls below the business target before building the quote.

Compile the full specification document: product references, finishes, dimensions, applicable compliance standards, delivery and installation method, and substitution policy. Build the quote in Zigaflow with line-by-line pricing, lead time commitments, and a stated validity date.

Issue the specification and quote to the client. Record the expected decision date and set a follow-up reminder at the halfway point of the validity period. If a revision is required, generate a new quote version rather than editing the original to maintain a clear revision history.

Commercial furniture projects often involve 50-200 individual product lines from multiple manufacturers - building a quote manually in a spreadsheet takes several hours and any pricing error compounds across an entire product category.

Lead times vary significantly by product and manufacturer - a quote that does not reflect realistic lead times creates delivery date conflicts that damage client relationships after the order is placed.

Without a clear revision history, multiple quote versions circulate simultaneously - clients compare different versions, sales teams quote from superseded prices, and orders get placed against incorrect specifications.