Chinese suppliers and local contractors often perform different roles on overseas projects. Carry out flooring-entry checks at the destination, clearly connecting products, samples, installation proposals and actual subfloor condition.
First: the current site rather than an old drawing
Start handover from installation boundaries and current conditions. Align drawing rooms, boundaries and dimensions with site changes; mark revised doorways, cabinetry, services and finishes on current drawings. Design intent may remain, but contractors need to know completed surfaces and ongoing works to avoid arranging materials or details from outdated information.
Record subfloor condition separately. HUAGE highlights soundness, flatness, dryness, cracking, softness and dusting; projects must define tests and criteria. Photographs identify locations but do not replace measurement. Record who inspected, when, and any subsequent works or water exposure during handover.
Second: how the floor joins adjacent materials
Review details at doorways, balconies, kitchen/bathroom adjacency and stair/floor turns. Board thickness and accessories determine build-up, while skirting and trims relate to walls, tiles and thresholds. Mark levels and boundaries for approval at handover rather than choose edges as installation reaches them.
Visually simple connections still require construction planning. Skirting-free, recessed or visually seamless details do not remove the need for movement space. The proposal must explain the actual allowances, fixing and protection methods. Where other trades have not yet provided the necessary conditions, record and coordinate them first. Clear details often help site execution more than the instruction to 'build it as shown in the rendering'.
Third: the division of site responsibilities
HUAGE's original preparation guide asks the client to clear the site, identify services and have the project manager designate surplus-material storage. After installation, offcuts go to the designated place for client disposal. Confirm actual people, routes, storage and protection around these stated coordination points so each participant knows the work required.
Separate delivery checks from pre-installation approval. Check packaging, identification and quantities on receipt; inspect wood colour and visual transitions when opening and trial-laying; then confirm the subfloor and system before installation. Assign a representative and recording method at each stage. Arrival does not constitute approval of installation conditions, and accepting appearance does not complete every subfloor responsibility.
Fourth: a version that remains retrievable
Handover records should include approved samples, product schedules, direction, details and current site records, identifying outstanding work. Batten, floating, full-spread or adhesive-bead methods must match products and accessories. Update relevant pages when changes occur rather than let participants retain contradictory verbal decisions.
Handover need not force every project into one generic form. Establish assessment methods for real conditions, and responsibilities and milestones for unfinished work. Retained records support later care and investigation; define final acceptance items, tolerances and sign-off in the installation proposal and project agreement.
Local contractors should confirm subfloor testing, compatible systems and details, while buyers retain supply records. Transport arrival, material inspection and local installation readiness are different milestones with separately defined responsibilities.
