- Commercial work is won on cleanability, penetrations and the cook line.
- Residential work is won on the joinery interface and the finish.
- Measure the services before you order the equipment.
We fabricate both, mostly for Sydney and then across Australia. The material is often the same 1.2mm 304 with a No.4 brush. The brief is not. A commercial kitchen in the CBD is a machine: benches, sinks, hoods and counters have to take heat, grease, trolleys and a hose every night. A residential kitchen in the Inner West or on the northern beaches is furniture that happens to be steel. It has to line up with stone, timber and a splashback that someone chose from a sample.
What a commercial package usually is
- Flat, wet and sink benches, with undershelves or an open frame for trolleys.
- Exhaust hoods sized to the cook line, with the penetrations the certifier will look for.
- Wall panels and splashbacks, sealed so there is no slot behind the bench.
- Service counters, pass-throughs and cold bars that have to work with refrigeration.
The details that decide an inspection are not the steel brand. They are coved corners, welded joints dressed flush, a bench that either seals to the wall or pulls out far enough to clean, and legs that either sit on a plinth or lift high enough for a mop. We have written that out separately. The short version: if a quote is cheaper, check the corners and the joints first.
Residential is not a smaller commercial job
A stainless island in a house is judged against the joinery beside it. Edges have to return cleanly. Grain has to run the same way across panels. Sink cut-outs have to match the tap set the client already bought. We still weld and dress food surfaces, but we also spend time on the shadow line against stone and the way a drawer sits under a steel top.
Hoods and the cook line
Canopy size is not a catalogue pick. It follows the equipment, the ceiling height and the make-up air. If the hood is drawn after the appliances land, you will be cutting stainless around a problem that should have been a dimension. Get the fabricator on the floor before the equipment order is locked.
| Decide early | Why it cannot wait |
|---|---|
| Gas and hydraulic penetrations | They have to be in the shop drawing, not drilled on site |
| Bench height and depth | They set the hood, the wall panel and the plumber |
| Floor fall and drain positions | Wet benches need a fall you can actually press |
| Who owns the wall junction | Seal to the wall, or leave a cleanable gap. Pick one. |
A kitchen that looks finished on opening night and still looks clean after a year was designed for the hose, not for the photograph.
What to send
A plan of the room, the equipment list if you have it, photographs of the walls and the floor, and whether this is a live venue in Sydney or a house in Melbourne, Brisbane or anywhere we can get a measure. We will come and measure before we quote a number you can hold us to.