All about FF&E Procurement

FF&E Procurement is a service which is often underestimated however is proving to be extremely valuable across many disciplines, sectors and industries. The opportunity to outsource the ordering and installation of furniture, fixtures and equipment across a project is becoming the norm across a variety of industries. Commercial, residential and hospitality industries are all taking advantage of FF&E and OS&E services to facilitate the completion of projects.

The commercial industry which is far and wide require their spaces to be furnished, for example offices need fitting out and retail boutiques the same. Furniture, fixtures and equipment is extremely important to these areas as this is the final part of any project, ensuring the final outcome is as desired. The residential industry benefits from FF&E services to create beautiful living spaces that are designed with purpose to make daily living easier. Then there is the hospitality sector for example hotels, designed to offer a service to consumers whereby they feel relaxed and comfortable like they do at home.

FF&E services is useful in a number of ways across industries and sectors to help facilitate the delivery of furniture, fixtures and fittings. If you’re interested in finding out more, see our guide below to give you everything you need to understand the FF&E procurement process.

What does FF&E mean in interior design?

FF&E is a term used in a few industries such as construction and interior design which stands for furniture, fixtures and equipment. The term refers to all standalone objects such as furniture and fixtures that are not permanent fixtures of the core building space. FF&E are items that physically need to be brought into the building to help complete the aesthetic look you are after. The simplest way of identifying what is classified as FF&E is to imagine turning a building or house upside down, and anything that falls out would be classified as FF&E.

It is a term you will hear a lot with interior designers as not only do they address the core concepts of the space, they also help with acquiring furniture, objet, art and more for the dressing of the space.

What is FF&E Procurement?

FF&E Procurement is the facilitation process of budgeting, sourcing, specifying, delivering and installing furniture, fixtures and equipment across residential, commercial and hospitality sectors. FF&E Procurement is a specialism that requires an experienced individual to carry out the wants and requirements of a client to help complete the sourcing, delivery and installation of the FF&E items they are looking to acquire for their space. An experienced individual in FF&E will fully understand how to navigate the furnishing industry, whilst using their buying power and negotiation experience, complimented with the ability to manage global supply chains and logistics confidently.

How to manage your furniture, fixtures and equipment process?

If you are interested in securing furniture, fixtures and equipment for a residential, hospitality or commercial project then it’s possible to outsource that process to a specialist. Outsourcing means you have a specialist on your project right away, who can go to their specialist supply chains and get you the best prices also, and most importantly are on hand to assist in creating the overall vision. Whether you’re a homeowner, architect, project manager, hotel manager the opportunity is always there for you to hire a specialist to manage the furniture, fixture and equipment process. All you need to do is find yourself an FF&E specialist like SP3 London and we’ll guide you through the process while getting a great understanding of your requirements.

What are FF&E Suppliers?

FF&E suppliers are companies that specialise in delivering FF&E items to the FF&E specialists that need them for their projects. FF&E specialists are likely to have several connections with a large and wide range of companies that can deliver products in quantity as well as unique specific items. Working with a well-connected FF&E interior designer amongst suppliers means you can benefit from improved pricing, premium quality and impressive pieces of furnishings.

Here is an example, if you’re a hotel with a 100-bedroom capacity and you’re looking to renovate all the rooms with how they look and replace furniture. An FF&E specialist such as SP3 London can help run, monitor and deliver the specific project according to your requirements. They’ll be using their experience, knowledge, knowhow and FF&E supplier connections to ensure the project is delivered according to brief.

What do FF&E solutions look like?

FF&E solutions otherwise referred to the overall project don’t have a distinctive look however they always have a process that is carried out to ensure success on completion. The procurement process is important to the overall FF&E solution as all stages need to be fulfilled to ensure the FF&E process is successful. The procurement process involves:

1.     Identifying scope and budget

2.     Outlining a Procurement Plan

3.     Selecting Suppliers

4.     Issuing a request for quotation

5.     Tender Evaluation

6.     Negotiating Contract Terms and Conditions

7.     Supply Chain Management

8.     Warehouse Management

9.     Final install and Dressing

FF&E Procurement services for the hospitality sector

FF&E procurement services are extremely important within the hospitality sector. Hotels, restaurants, retail stores, events or exhibitions and leisure attractions all benefit from such services as they need experienced professionals to support in creating their visualised concepts for the spaces.

Hotels depending on their size can have dedicated employees who focus on the FF&E management and sourcing. However, for those businesses who haven’t quite got the resources to have a full-time employee for the task FF&E procurement can be outsourced to a specialist who can come on board on a project-by- project basis.

Conclusion

FF&E Procurement is a specialist service that benefits many industries and businesses. Positively, this specialist service can be simply brought into specific projects on a project-by-project basis by working with companies like SP3 London who specialise in Interior Design, Design Management and FF&E. We are able to work across all types of projects working with project managers, architects, homeowners project teams and more.

If you’d like to know more, please visit our FF&E Services page to find out more or contact us here.