The opening-ceremony model
On the day of the ceremony there is bare ground, a few shovels and a site board. The model is on the table, and everyone can walk around it.
- 6 to 14 weeksLead time
- From your plansDesigned
- 9,998 piecesFor example
- A wall built by guestsOption
- On display at yoursAfterwards
The building, before the building
We reproduce the project from the architect's plans: volumes, storeys, the rhythm of the facades, roofs, photovoltaic panels, inner courtyard, patios and planting. The level of detail is set by the use — precise enough for your partners to recognise their project, robust enough to survive a day of event and a journey in a van.
For Bios, with the agency Izzy Event, the future shopping centre measured 153 × 81.5 cm and took 9,998 pieces. For Sevanova, the new offices ran 1.5 m long and around 7,500 pieces.
On the day, the model is set up on a stand at table height and hosted: guests come over, look for their future desk, and ask questions about the layout.
From your plans to the ceremony
- You send us the plansArchitect's drawings, sections, elevations, and 3D renders if you have them. We tell you what reproduces in brick and at what scale, before any quote.
- We quote, you approveThe quote states the scale, the footprint, the estimated piece count and the delivery date. A preview of the finished result comes with it: building starts once you agree.
- We build in the workshopAllow six to fourteen weeks before the date: the design takes time, and so does sourcing the pieces. We hold 118,000 different part references in stock; rare colours need anticipating.
- On the dayWe deliver, set up the stand and host the presentation if you want us to. The model can also stand on its own, on its base, in front of the event set.
- AfterwardsThe model is yours. The Bios one is on display in the existing store until the new building opens; the Sevanova one is in the lobby of the offices.
The options people ask for
A wall built by the guests
One facade arrives in loose pieces and each guest lays theirs during the evening. At Sevanova every brick was engraved with its guest's name, and the rear wall of the building carries those names.
A hosted stand
A host stays with the model throughout the ceremony, answers questions and walks groups through the layout.
A second life after the event
The model goes on presenting the project: reception lobby, sales office, or the existing store while the new one is being built.
Reused for the opening
We keep the design files. If the project changes between the foundation stone and the opening, the model can be reworked rather than rebuilt.
What people ask
What does it cost?
An opening-ceremony model is quoted project by project: the scale, the footprint and the piece count decide. Send us the architect's plans and the date of the ceremony, and we answer with a figure within 24 to 48 working hours.
How far ahead should we start?
Six to fourteen weeks before the date. Designing from the plans takes time, and so does sourcing: some colours and some profiles cannot be found in a few days.
Our plans are not final — is that a problem?
No, as long as the volumes and the facades are settled. We work from the architect's drawings, sections and elevations, and 3D renders help. Decisions still open on the interior fit-out do not affect the model.
Can the guests build part of it?
Yes. That is what we did for Sevanova: the rear facade arrived in loose pieces and each guest laid theirs, engraved with their name, during the evening.
What happens to the model after the ceremony?
It's yours. Bios displays theirs in the existing store and will move it into the new building on opening day. Sevanova installed theirs in the lobby of the new offices.
Do you work with event agencies?
Yes. The Bios model was made with the agency Izzy Event. We work as a direct subcontractor, on your schedule, with a single point of contact.
You have a date and a set of plans.
Send us the architect's drawings and the date of the ceremony. Allow six to fourteen weeks between the two.