Photos taken after a space is finished are relatively easy to share. The completion photos and the final result are clear, visible at a glance. But the time before that, the work that goes into creating a design proposal, is a realm that rarely shows from the outside. The hours spent preparing a proposal are quieter than you might expect, and intense at the same time. Gathering references, flipping the floor plan over and over, rechecking site conditions and budget, these tasks repeat. To someone it may be a single drawing, but to a designer it is closer to a small record, layer upon layer of choices and revisions. In this piece, we take a light look at the questions a SPACEBASE designer turns over again and again while shaping a proposal. We look into the busy hours hidden behind the completion photos.

Before construction begins on site, the busiest hours are actually passing inside the studio. The time to prepare a proposal is, at most, about two weeks. Among designers, this period often draws jokes like “we'll sleep later.” Say you have to design an office of around 200 pyeong (about 660 m²). Within that short window, everything from research to site checks, internal meetings, and revisions moves at a fairly fast pace.

On the surface it is a single proposal document, but inside it many rounds of judgment and revision are stacked one on top of another. More conversation and review go into producing a single drawing than you might think. In this piece, we follow those roughly two weeks, from research to floor plan design, construction administration and execution review, and finally 3D and proposal production. We will slowly trace a designer's work notes through the time it takes for one proposal document to come together.

DAY 1 – The Meeting Is Over, Now the Real Work Begins: Research

Image source: ANTIEGG

The meeting with the client has ended. Once the conference room door closes, the mind actually grows busier from that point on. The real work begins only now. We open the RFP again. Moving through the notes taken during the meeting one by one, we ask each other questions. “What the CEO emphasized was ultimately the potential for the organization to grow, right?” “Yes. And the visitor circulation, it seems more important than I expected.” The thoughts are organized, but exactly which space those thoughts should lead to is still unclear.

So we go back over it, checking whether we missed any context, whether there is intent hidden between the words. We look up the company's recent news, browse its careers page, scan its social media. Sometimes a job posting is more honest than a company brochure. Seeing whom they are hiring reveals a little about where the organization wants to go. If possible, we visit the site once more. Even the same space often feels different seen in daylight versus in the evening. We recheck everything from the first impression as you step off the elevator, to the direction beyond the windows, to where the light lingers.

After turning it over again and again, the direction the drawing should take is mostly settled at this point. “This space should be used this way.” Day 1 is the day for putting down the roots of the design direction.

DAY 3 – A Floor Plan Doesn't Come Out in One Try: Internal Sharing & Floor Plan Design

Image source: SPACEBASE_Designer Cho So-yoon

We sketch the first floor plan. And we go straight into revisions. Add more meeting rooms and the lounge gets cramped; try to enlarge the lounge and the seat count becomes awkward. Change a single circulation path and the balance of the whole structure can wobble.

“Won't this circulation overlap at lunchtime?” “Will the window be visible enough from this spot?” On paper it looks tidy, but picture the actual scenes of use and parts to recheck come into view. We imagine how a day flows through the space, from arrival to meetings, greeting visitors, and rest after lunch.

Image source: SPACEBASE_Cho D, Su D, and Kim D's floor plan bidding process

If that flow isn't natural, we adjust again no matter how clean the plan looks. Floor plan design isn't finished in one go. Rather than finding the right answer, it is closer to a process of reducing the awkwardness of a space. Day 3 is the time for refining the structure by reviewing the floor plan again and again.

DAY 5 – We Check Feasibility First: Construction Administration & Execution Collaboration

Once the floor plan is reasonably settled, we go straight into review. “Is this possible on site?” “Structurally, this wall might be untouchable.” Together with the construction administration and execution staff, we look at the drawing and redraw the line between what's possible and what isn't. Because no matter how excellent the design is, it means nothing if it can't be built on site. We keep talking about whether the existing furniture can be reused, whether the MEP systems can be kept as is, and roughly how much the construction cost is expected to be.

There's a phrase that often comes up at this stage. “Save time here, and you'll spend more time on site.” So at this stage SPACEBASE brings everyone's heads together and reviews again and again. To avoid being caught off guard once construction starts. We believe this review is what ultimately creates a sense of stability on site.

DAY 9 – We Align the Space with the Company's Direction: Concept & Image Development

Image source: SPACEBASE_image collecting process for the floor plan & color mood development process

Now we begin the image work. As we gather references one by one, each designer's taste shows through. Even with the same keyword, everyone's perspective differs a little. “Isn't this a bit cold compared to the brand's BI?” “This color, will it pair well with a blue, atmospheric mood?”

It is a time for choosing images, but it is really closer to a time for filtering out taste. It isn't simply about finding a pretty scene; it is the work of translating this company's character into space. Whether the organization is calm but solid, or a fast and flexible team, the questions shift the tone and the density. A concept is, after all, the act of setting a direction. And direction always moves together with budget. “This finishing material is nice, but is the budget okay?” When that line comes up, we tap on the calculator again.

`The work of finding balance between what looks good and what can actually be built. `One person protects the design, another checks reality. Between the two, the team's consensus is formed.

DAY 12 - It Comes Together as a Single Proposal: 3D & Proposal Production

Image source: SPACEBASE

We build the space in 3D. Once the work has accumulated to a certain point, we gather in front of the monitor and look at the same screen together. We swap colors, lay on materials, and apply finishes and furniture one by one. A choice that felt fine in our heads can look different once it's up on the screen. So we keep adjusting and comparing again. And at the very end, we ask the same question. “Would it be okay to break ground right away with this drawing?”

Preparing a proposal takes about two weeks. On the surface it's a single proposal document, but inside it holds rounds of revision and review, and the team's consensus that “this much won't waver on site.”

A proposal isn't a preparation stage; it's the starting point of execution

Image source: SPACEBASE

By the time a single proposal document is complete, dense hours have passed, from research to floor plan review, construction administration consultation, and image adjustment. On the surface it looks like a tidy result, but inside it the SPACEBASE team members have put their heads together, and judgment at many stages is stacked layer upon layer.

From the design bidding stage, SPACEBASE works on the premise that this drawing can actually carry through to construction. That's exactly why design, construction administration, and execution move together from the very start. If you're preparing a project, it would be good to begin realistic review together from the proposal stage.

If you want a design that keeps actual groundbreaking in mind from the proposal stage, please bring your project to SPACEBASE.

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