NEWS
Fitout Categories Explained:
CAT A / A+ / CAT B
If your decision has been to embark on an office relocation project, as you start the process of viewing different property options, there will likely be varying levels of office finishes.
Here, we take a brief look at some of the terminology and outline what you might expect to see and discuss with property agents or landlords throughout the process. It is important to understand that the level of the finish will have a direct impact on the level of fitout investment required, but this can also help you leverage negotiations around rent figures or contributions from the landlord.
CAT A – Shell & Core
At this stage, the building is just the completed metal, concrete framework and base plate but with no internal fittings complete. The key areas that are covered at this stage are the main lobbies and reception space, stairwells and lift shafts and the main wall section for toilets. Once this is completed, a basic shell is left ready for the next stage of the fitout process.
It has become more common in recent times for landlords to only construct new developments to this level of fitout as, despite requiring higher levels of fitout investment for the tenants, it also provides numerous benefits:
- Greater design flexibility – you have a blank canvas to create pretty much what you want. I.e. you could choose to retain the exposed look of the ceilings, as opposed to a suspended ceiling.
- Less waste – if a space is fitted out to a CAT A standard prior to a tenant taking a space, there will nearly always be an element of altering and stripping out what’s just been put in as new in view of reworking the space to your desired layout and design style. However, if you take the space in its Shell & Core state, you can fit the space out to the desired design intent without the need for any strip-out works of a CAT A fitout.
- Cost savings – this can offer cost savings to both the landlord and the tenant. The tenant won’t have the costs of strip-out or alteration works of elements of the CAT A fitout, whilst the landlord won’t have the initial investment of the CAT A works prior to securing a tenant. The landlord will generally offer a contribution for the approximate value of the CAT A works and is generally a good negotiation tactic for tenants.
CAT A Fitout
Cat A takes the basic shell of the building and turns it into a more useable space for the tenant to work with. This mainly involves installing the raised access floors and suspended ceilings, basic mechanical and electrical services such as air conditioning and fire protection systems.
The space will be decorated, and, in some cases, flooring will have been laid also. This then leaves the space ready for a CAT B fitout and makes it more marketable for landlords to attract tenants.
CAT A+ Fitout / Plug & Play / Fully Fitted
A Cat A+ fitout is positioned in-between the two main stages of CAT A & CAT B fitout and is produced by the Landlord of the space to offer a “plug & play or ‘turnkey’ solution to prospective tenants. This means that the design is not developed to fully suit the requirements of a specific company but is at the same level of completion so that the space can be fully occupied within very little time. This has become more common since Covid, with some companies preferring not to have the initial outlay of the investment associated with a fitout, however, they will typically pay a premium for rent as the landlord will have had a higher investment to start with in fully fitting the space.
CAT B Fitout
CAT B is the stage where the bespoke design elements are added to the space that makes it unique and fully functional to the requirements of the company that will occupy it.
This stage enables the appropriate branding and company identity to be introduced. Key areas focused on at this stage will include decorative flooring, wall and ceiling finishes, installing partitioning for meeting rooms or private offices, creating breakout spaces, acoustic treatments, biophilia and installing the furniture.
Need some assistance on assessing space feasibility? We’re always happy to help. Get in touch today.
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