Opinion: Eliminate frustration with specification!
Amberth founder and CEO Inga Kopola says headaches like delays, cost increases, and unhappy customers can all be avoided, so long as retailers provide clear project specifications from the get-go.
Words: Inga Kopola
Picture this: you’re standing in your client’s kitchen with paint-stripped walls, trades moving around each other, quick briefings exchanged in passing. The project pressure is on and your client is standing in the middle of it all, turning to you, asking, “Why are we only finding out about this now?”
That’s a question that we can never defer. If a client asks us this, it’s always on us. We should never, ever, leave information out until later than necessary. And if we have, that’s entirely on us.
And we all know what tends to follow that uncomfortable question. Project delays, cost escalations and altered timelines. This is a mess we’re all familiar with. And in many ways, it’s just a part of the job. But what if I were to tell you that there is a way to reduce your chances of this kind of chaos drastically?
It all boils down to the root cause of these renovation dramas: incomplete kitchen renovation specifications.
A complete kitchen specification pack should include:
Final layout with dimensions: A fully resolved plan with exact measurements, clearances, and spatial logic that every trade can work from confidently.
Services coordination drawing: Electrical, plumbing, gas, and extraction all aligned properly with the kitchen layout before the first fix begins.
Appliance schedule with exact models: Not placeholders – actual model numbers. Cabinetry, power, ventilation, and installation requirements all depend on those decisions being confirmed.
Joinery elevations: These define what is actually being made – proportions, internals, finishes, and detailing – so there is less room for interpretation later.
Worktop specification and templating plan: Material, thickness, edge detail, and sequencing all need to be clear to avoid issues at the installation stage.
Lighting layout: Task, ambient, and feature lighting should all be resolved long before any surfaces are closed up.
Confirmed lead times: Procurement only works properly when it is aligned with the programme.
A kitchen may be beautifully designed, but without a fully resolved kitchen specification pack, construction becomes reactive. I know that this is probably one of the parts of the process that feels the most monotonous – all the checks and re-checks are tiring. But this is also where we hone our craft.
The temptation is to become more laid back in our processes, which leads to the risk of steps being forgotten. But if we lean into our process – that’s when we become extraordinary at our jobs.
For me, a build-ready kitchen is defined by whether the documentation is clear enough for the team on site to deliver it without needing to read between the lines.
That means having the key decisions resolved before construction reaches the point where changes become disruptive.
If there is one area that underpins everything else, it is service integration. Electrical, plumbing, and gas coordination needs to be resolved early and properly. Once the first fix is complete, even small changes become far more disruptive.
A properly resolved kitchen specification pack does more than organise information. It protects the programme. It protects the budget. It protects the design intent. Because without that clarity, even a strong design can get diluted through reactive decisions on site.
One of the clearest signs that a project is genuinely ready is this: no one on-site has to guess. The drawings are clear. The decisions have been made. The trades know exactly what they are working on.
In practice, that is what makes a project feel calm and makes the final result extraordinary. And that is really the point. Most of us are not aiming to be average at this. We want to do the work properly, protect the thinking behind it, and deliver something that leaves a lasting positive impression. Our work has the potential to positively influence our clients’ lives – if we haven’t done that, what have we achieved, really?