Open modular units are easy to approve on a drawing and difficult to approve on site. Because the shelving, display niches and storage modules have no doors to hide the structure, every dimension, finish and fixing that a closed cabinet would cover stays visible for the life of the project. Before a Open Modular Units scheme is released to production, the project team should walk through the checks below and record sign-off against each one.
1. Recorded dimensions against the actual room, not the drawing grid
Modular living systems are specified to project-specific sizes, so the approval package should show field-verified measurements rather than dimensions read off an architectural plan. Confirm floor-to-ceiling height at several points, wall straightness, skirting and cornice details, and the location of any downlight, air grille, switch or data point that will fall behind or through a module. A run measured from a drawing will meet a site that has moved.
Ask the supplier to restate the width, height and depth of each module, the shelf spacing and the total run length in the quotation, and to flag where a scribe, filler or adjustment panel will be used to close a gap.
2. Load, span and shelf construction
Open units carry their loads in full view. For each shelf, confirm the clear span, the board material and thickness, the support method (fixed pin, concealed bracket or rebated shelf) and what the supplier will warrant the shelf to carry. Books, ceramics, barware and hospitality stock behave very differently over a long unsupported span. Where a longer span is required, ask whether an intermediate upright, a thicker board or a steel-reinforced shelf is needed, and get that change priced in the approval package instead of on site.
3. Fixing method and the wall that receives it
Nothing hides the fixing line of an open system. The team should confirm what substrate the units will be fixed to, whether the wall is solid, framed or a partition, and whether additional blocking, a backing frame or a floor-mounted detail is required. Get the fixing pattern and any anti-tip or restraint requirement in writing, and confirm who supplies and installs the support structure — the joinery contractor or the builder — so it is not discovered after the first module arrives.
4. Material, finish and edge treatment
Because both faces of a shelf and both sides of an upright are visible, edge treatment matters as much as the surface colour. Confirm the substrate, the finish type, the edge method (matched edge band, solid timber lipping or a shadow gap) and the direction of any grain or texture. If the units will be seen from both sides as a room divider, confirm that the rear face is finished to the same standard as the front. Keep the finish schedule tied to the sample reference, not to a colour name, and hold approved physical samples for site comparison on delivery.
5. Integrated lighting and services
Where the scheme includes Integrated Lighting Systems, the electrical design must be closed before the joinery is manufactured. Confirm the driver location and how it will be accessible for maintenance, the cable route through the modules, the switch or control arrangement, the colour temperature and output, and whether the lighting components are supplied with the units or by the electrical contractor. A recessed channel that is cut in the factory cannot be corrected on site.
6. Open, closed and mixed configurations in the same run
Many living walls combine open shelving with enclosed storage, and the transition detail between them should be approved as part of the scheme. Pairing open units with Closed Modular Units lets a project keep display shelving where it is wanted and hide the bulk of everyday storage behind doors, with the same made-to-measure sizing and finish schedule across both. Confirm the alignment of shelf heights and reveals where the two meet, and confirm that door openings do not clash with adjacent open bays.
7. Tolerance, delivery sequence and site handling
Modular units arrive as components that must be assembled in a fixed order. Confirm the delivery window, the storage area, the packaging and protection standard, and which trades must already be complete — paint, flooring, electrical first fix and any joinery adjacent to the run. Confirm that the site survey has been signed off after those trades have set out, and that the assembly sequence and fixing order are on the drawing pack the installers will work from.
8. After-sales scope for a project
Before approval, agree what happens after handover: which components are covered, how replacement shelves, uprights or hardware are ordered, and what the supplier's response commitment is for a defect or a missing part. Confirm the warranty terms and exclusions in writing for this project rather than relying on general marketing statements, and record the contact route for after-sales support so the client-side facilities team is not chasing a sales inbox years later.
A single supplier covering furniture and built-in joinery makes these checks easier to close out, because the same team coordinates built-in furniture with the flooring, wall panelling, lighting and other finishes around it — and Wall Panel Systems frequently meet the ends of a modular run. If you are preparing an open modular scheme for a villa, hospitality or office project, send the layout and finish schedule to SANTERSON and we will return a specification with the dimensions, edge details, fixing method and electrical provisions listed item by item for your team to approve.