Ceilings flat, partitions plumb.

Flush plasterboard ceilings with skimmed and painted joints, exposed-grid suspended ceilings with lay-in tiles, PVC and fibre-cement panel ceilings, and bulkhead or dropped detail ceilings.

The right choice depends on whether you need frequent access to the void above, and on the acoustic and moisture conditions of the room.

A flush ceiling is boarded, taped, skimmed and painted so it reads as one continuous plane. It looks better and is the usual choice in homes and prestige offices.

A suspended grid keeps every tile removable, which is essential where air conditioning, cabling and lighting above the ceiling need regular access. Most commercial offices use grid for that reason.

A minimum of about 100 mm for a shallow grid, and more where services, ductwork or recessed lighting have to sit in the void.

We measure the actual slab-to-floor height and any services on site before agreeing the finished ceiling level, because losing headroom in a room that is already low is a decision you cannot easily reverse.

Drywall partitions are far easier to alter than blockwork. A stud partition can be taken down and reinstated elsewhere with limited disruption, which suits office layouts that change.

Where you know a layout is temporary, we can build with that in mind — for example keeping services accessible and avoiding running structural loads through the partition.

Yes, if built for it. A basic single-board stud partition passes a lot of sound. Adding acoustic insulation in the cavity, double boarding, staggered studs and sealing all perimeter gaps makes a large difference.

Most complaints about noisy offices come from partitions that stop at the ceiling grid rather than continuing to the slab above. If acoustics matter, the partition must go full height.

Not on plasterboard alone. We install timber or steel noggins inside the partition at the design stage wherever televisions, cabinets, sanitaryware, handrails or shelving will be fixed.

Tell us what is going on the wall before we board it — retrofitting a fixing point afterwards means opening the wall up again.

Moisture-resistant board is used in bathrooms, kitchens and any humid area, and in wet zones it is combined with a tanking membrane before tiling.

Standard plasterboard in a shower area will soften and fail regardless of how well it is finished.

Yes, and we do it regularly. The work is phased zone by zone, the area is sheeted and screened, and we can programme the noisy and dusty stages outside business hours.

Grid ceilings are particularly suited to phased work because a zone can be closed and reopened quickly.

We form the openings and coordinate positions with your electrician and air-conditioning contractor, and we sequence our work so their first fix happens before we close the ceiling.

Getting that sequence wrong is the most common reason a finished ceiling has to be reopened.

Yes. Plaster and polystyrene cornices, coving, ceiling roses, dropped bulkheads and shadow-line detailing, cut and mitred properly at corners.

A badly mitred cornice is one of the most visible defects in a room, so it is worth doing carefully.

Yes, and the first job is finding out why it sagged. Usually it is water ingress from a roof or plumbing leak, or fixings at incorrect centres.

We deal with the cause first. Replacing boards under an unrepaired leak just means doing the job twice.

A single room ceiling is typically one to three days including skimming and finishing. A full office floor with grid, partitions and services coordination runs one to three weeks.

Skim coats and joint compound need drying time before painting, and we build that into the programme rather than rushing it.