strategy · general
Choosing between a design studio, a factory and a delivery partner
A design studio sells design, a factory sells production from a drawing you already have, and a delivery partner holds the brief across both. The right route depends on what your organisation already has — a good design team, a good site team, or neither.
8 min read · updated 2026-10-24
Three roles, easily confused
A design studio is paid for judgement and drawings. Its risk ends at the handover of a design package, and the gap between that package and the site becomes yours. A factory is paid for production, usually against a drawing you supply, and it is the right answer when the product is standard or the drawing is already production-ready.
A delivery partner sits between the two and is accountable for the result. That accountability is only real if someone is willing to hold the specification, manage the production, and own the gap. Most of the value we add is in that third activity — and it is the activity that is usually missing from a contract.
A decision framework
Work through these in order. The first answer that is "yes" tells you what kind of engagement you need.
- Is the product standard and does a drawing already exist? — a factory is enough
- Is the design the whole problem, and do you have a delivery team? — a design studio plus a factory
- Does the project cross disciplines (design, engineering, production, logistics, installation)? — a delivery partner
- Can nobody on your side make the trade-off decisions? — a delivery partner, with decision authority
- Is the site live and the work must not interrupt it? — a delivery partner, for phasing
How to compare the quotations in front of you
Compare them on scope, not on headline price. Build a table with the same rows for every supplier: what is included, what is excluded, who holds each decision, what is inspected and when, what is delivered, who supports it afterwards, and what happens if it goes wrong.
The row that predicts the outcome best is usually "who is accountable when something is wrong on site". An answer of "each party is responsible for its own part" is not a delivery model; it is the absence of one.
| Question to ask every supplier | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Is the scope of supply defined in writing? | Without it, prices are not comparable |
| Who holds the technical specification? | Someone must own it, or the drawing and the product diverge |
| What is inspected, and at which stages? | End-of-line inspection finds problems late |
| Who handles site installation and commissioning? | The hardest part is usually the last mile |
| What happens if it does not match the specification? | The remedy tells you who is actually accountable |
| Who supports the asset after handover? | A live asset needs a reachable party |
What this means when you are talking to us
AQUASEE is the third kind. We do not own factories, we do not sell standard products, and we do not hand over a drawing and walk away. We select and brief partners, hold the specification, manage production and installation, and remain answerable for the result.
That also means we are not the right answer for a standard product at catalogue pricing, and we will say so. A factory is cheaper and faster for a standard item with a finished drawing, and no amount of good service changes that.
Sources
- Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC — supply chain obligations — consulted 2026-10-24
- General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988 — consulted 2026-10-24