What's a typical AV payment milestone structure?

The industry-standard AV payment milestone structure is 30 per cent on order, 30 per cent on site mobilisation or first-fix, 30 per cent on system commissioning, and 10 per cent on user acceptance after a 28-day defect period. The structure protects both sides: it funds the integrator's hardware orders weeks before install, and it holds back enough to incentivise a clean handover.

From the floor. The clause that quietly hurts integrators most is "100 per cent on practical completion" paired with no retention release date. The buyer thinks they are holding leverage; what is actually happening is the integrator funds 6 to 8 weeks of hardware float at typical UK borrowing rates, plus carries the risk that completion is disputed for a month over a minor snag. That cost lands in next year's pricing, just less visibly. A clean 30/30/30/10 with named triggers is cheaper for both sides over a 3-year buying relationship. — Mark Brooks, Commercial Director

Common variations on the 30/30/30/10 baseline:

• 50/40/10 on smaller jobs under £25,000 where hardware lead times are short and there is no separate first-fix stage.
• 20/30/30/20 on larger framework projects with extended commissioning, where the final retention is held longer (often 60 to 90 days) to cover snagging across many rooms.
• AVaaS (AV-as-a-Service): no upfront payment. Monthly fee covers equipment, install and support over a 3 to 5 year term, treated as opex rather than capex.
• Public sector under CCS frameworks: purchase-order based, payment 30 days from valid invoice per HMG payment terms, with no upfront deposit. The integrator funds equipment from working capital.

Why staged milestones rather than 100 per cent on completion: AV hardware (codecs, displays, DSPs, control processors) is ordered from manufacturer distribution weeks before install starts, often with non-cancellable deposits. The 30 per cent on order is what funds those purchases. A client demanding payment-on-completion is asking the integrator to bankroll the hardware on the integrator's balance sheet, which either prices the project up significantly or filters out smaller integrators entirely.

What to watch for in a payment schedule:

• Linked milestones to deliverables. Each payment trigger should be a concrete event (PO signed, hardware delivered to site, room signed off) not a calendar date.
• A defect retention. 5 to 10 per cent held for 28 days minimum after handover. No retention is a red flag.
• Clear invoice triggers. Who signs off, what document gets sent with the invoice, how disputes are handled.

For straightforward equipment supply or refresh projects, the deposit can be lower; for full design-and-build installation projects, expect the 30/30/30/10 split or close to it.

Quick reference: 30/30/30/10 industry standard (order / first-fix / commissioning / acceptance); 50/40/10 on jobs under £25k; AVaaS monthly over 3-5 years; CCS / public sector PO-based at 30 days from invoice; retention held for 28-day defect period.