Executive summary
Define throughput, quality, layout and utility requirements at a level of detail sufficient to brief engineers, without yet producing detailed drawings. This requirements baseline, not the feasibility report itself, is what engineering preparation formally designs against.
This stage receives a confirmed option and its feasibility findings, and must resolve any open technical questions the feasibility study flagged rather than deferring them further.
Ambiguity left unresolved here compounds in engineering preparation, where it becomes expensive to change.
What this stage must resolve
- Feasibility confirmed but process parameters not yet fixed
- Multiple technology or equipment configurations still open
- Capacity and quality targets stated in ranges, not fixed values
- Utility and layout requirements not yet quantified
- Need to brief engineering firms or equipment suppliers with a common specification
Work performed in this stage
Process requirement definition
Fixes throughput, yield, quality and flexibility targets.
Technology selection criteria
Defines the criteria equipment options will be judged against, without naming a supplier.
Utility and infrastructure sizing
Quantifies power, water, compressed air, effluent and logistics requirements.
Layout and footprint planning
Establishes spatial requirements and expansion allowances.
Standards and compliance baseline
Fixes which codes, standards and customer requirements the design must meet.
Risks and governance considerations
- Requirements should be stated as performance targets, not brand or model specifications, to keep procurement supplier-neutral
- Under-specifying flexibility now is expensive to retrofit after equipment is selected
- Utility sizing errors are among the most common causes of late-stage rework
- Requirements must trace back to the business case's stated objectives, not drift from them
What to prepare
- Confirmed feasibility findings
- Throughput, quality and yield targets
- Utility and infrastructure requirement estimates
- Layout constraints and expansion allowances
- Applicable codes and customer standards
What to measure
Frequently asked questions
How detailed should technical planning be?
Detailed enough to brief engineering firms and equipment suppliers without prescribing a specific brand or design solution.
Who owns the requirements baseline?
Typically the project's technical lead, validated by operations who will run the asset.
What if requirements conflict with the feasibility cost estimate?
Reconcile before proceeding — this is cheaper to resolve here than after engineering preparation begins.
Related investment and financing knowledge
Continue on the platform
Educational, supplier-neutral and financing-neutral
Global B2B Group does not sell equipment and does not represent lenders, export credit agencies or development banks. This material is published to help industrial organisations plan, structure and prepare capital projects. It is general information for decision-making, not financial, legal or tax advice.