Detailed Design is where the approved concept from Developed Design gets turned into a full set of drawings, specifications and consent documentation that a builder can actually price and construct from. Nothing at this stage is left to interpretation on site — every dimension, junction, finish and fixing has been worked out on paper first, so the build runs to plan instead of being figured out as it goes.
What gets documented
The team produces working drawings covering layout, joinery, ceiling and lighting plans, elevations, sections and detail drawings for anything non-standard — a curved counter, a feature stair, a custom shopfront. Alongside the drawings sits a full specification: exact materials, finishes, hardware, fixtures and fittings, with enough detail that a contractor can quote accurately rather than guess. For retail and hospitality fitouts especially, this is also where equipment schedules, signage requirements and trade coordination get locked in, so nothing gets discovered mid-build that pushes out the programme or the budget.
Where the registered architects come in
This is the stage where having registered architects inside the same studio actually matters. Building consent documentation, building code compliance and any structural or life-safety requirements are handled directly by Studio Gascoigne’s own architects, working from the same drawing set as the interior and retail designers rather than a separate consultant brought in late and briefed from scratch. That keeps the design intent intact right through to what gets submitted to council — there’s no version drift between what was designed and what gets approved and built. The studio’s technicians sit alongside this process too, keeping every drawing and specification current as details get resolved, so the documentation issued for pricing and consent is always the latest version, not an earlier draft still doing the rounds.
The result of this stage is a documentation package builders can actually build from and council can assess with confidence — which is the whole point of Detailed Design. Mark Gascoigne’s team has carried this same rigour through 170+ award-winning projects, on the principle that “design sells” only holds up if what gets built matches what was drawn. From here, the project moves into Implementation, where that documentation gets put into practice on site. For the full picture of how this stage fits with the rest, see the studio’s five-stage design process.