A prototype shop rarely fails because a machine tool is missing. It fails because the site cannot support the work: compressed air drops when several stations run at once, a bench motor trips the circuit on a cold start, the fume extractor has no place to vent, parts are cleaned in a sink that was never meant for machining residue, and scrap bins block the only aisle. Before ordering fixtures, small tooling and inspection gauges, confirm that the utilities in the space can handle the process you intend to run. The list below covers the utility checks we make before a prototype build, in the order they usually cause problems.
1. Electrical supply: start at the panel, not at the machine
For most one-off builds, the limiting factor is available current, not voltage. Check three things on the panel that will feed the cell: total connected load, the rating and type of protection on each circuit, and whether spare ways exist for a future machine. A bench grinder, a vacuum pump, an oven and a fume extractor on start-up draw more than their nameplate running current, so a circuit that looks adequate on paper can trip when equipment starts together.
Confirm what power is actually available at the outlet: single-phase or three-phase, voltage, and frequency of the local supply, plus whether the shop needs a converter, a transformer, or a dedicated circuit run from the panel. If a piece of equipment is imported, compare its rated voltage and frequency with the local supply before it is plugged in, and have a qualified electrician size the circuit, the breaker and any protective earthing. Ask specifically about residual-current protection where water or washing is involved; that requirement belongs to the wet work, not the dry machining area.
Keep a one-page load list: each machine, its rated current, starting behaviour, and the circuit it sits on. That list is the cheapest protection against an outage during a build, and it is the document an electrician needs if the panel must be extended.
2. Compressed air: sizing the receiver, not just the compressor
Air is the utility that is most often under-sized in a prototype area. Air tools, blow-off, and pneumatic fixtures do not need a large compressor; they need a compressor that can refill the receiver faster than the tools empty it. Estimate free air delivery for the tools you will run at the same time, then check the compressor's delivery at working pressure rather than at free-air rating. Add the length of hose and the number of take-off points to the plan, because long thin hoses lose pressure at the gun, and an extension on a floor stand creates a trip hazard.
Two details decide whether the air is usable. First, moisture: if the air feeds a spray booth, an instrument, or a part that will be bonded or coated, plan for a dryer and a filter, and route a drain for the water that collects. Second, noise and location: a compressor in the same room as inspection work makes measurement and conversation difficult, so site it where the receiver can still reach the tools without a very long line.
3. Water, drainage, and washing
Washing is where a prototype area most often becomes a compliance problem rather than a plumbing problem. Decide early which parts will be washed, where the wash water goes, and what it contains. Machining residue, cutting fluid, and heavy oil must not enter a drain that leads to surface water; check with the local water authority before connecting a wash sink, and separate the washing station from the dry work area so that the floor stays slip-free.
The water supply itself is usually simple: a cold tap, and hot water if degreasing is frequent. Drainage is the harder item — a floor drain with a trap, a grease or oil separator where required, and enough fall in the floor to keep the area dry between jobs. Where water is scarce or discharge is restricted, low-moisture cleaning reduces both the supply and the effluent problem. A steam cleaning machine works with a small tank, uses little water compared with a hose, and keeps the wash area controllable, which matters in a building that was not designed with a wet bay. For a fixed washing position with a water inlet, confirm the inlet thread, the supply pressure, and whether the equipment expects tap water.
4. Ventilation, fume extraction, and fire separation
Every process that produces fume, vapour, or fine dust needs capture at the source and a route for it to leave the building. Soldering, adhesive curing, painting, and laser marking each need their own filtration or ducting; a general room fan is not a substitute. Before specifying an extractor, check where the exhausted air can discharge, whether makeup air is needed to replace it, and whether filters must be changed on a schedule you can actually keep.
Combustible dust and solvent vapour change the requirement entirely: keep the operation away from ignition sources, store flammables in a closed cabinet, and confirm the requirement for fire separation, explosion protection, and local approval with the fire authority. Grinding aluminium or magnesium, for example, produces swarf and dust that need a dedicated, clean collection method rather than a shared bin.
5. Workspace layout, floor loading, and access
A prototype cell needs three zones, not one: material in, work in progress, and finished or inspected parts. Skimp on this and measurement results drift because parts are handled on a cluttered surface. Check floor loading before placing a heavy press or a large machine on an upper floor, confirm ceiling height for tall equipment, and keep clear access to the panel, the isolator, and the extraction point. Aisles are part of the utility plan: they carry trolleys, and they carry people out.
6. Consumables, storage, and handling
Utilities fail for supply reasons as often as capacity reasons. Confirm that the gases, cutting fluids, filters, and abrasives you need can be delivered on the interval the project requires, that storage is compatible (oxidiser away from flammables, closed containers for liquids, bunded storage where spills are possible), and that cylinders are chained, capped, and ventilated. For a shop running short cycles, one supplier who delivers weekly is worth more than a cheaper supplier who delivers monthly.
7. Metrology and test support
A prototype that cannot be measured cannot be accepted. A small stable measurement area, away from vibration, dust, and direct sunlight, plus calibrated gauges with a traceable record, are part of the shop utility list. Add a basic test position with the correct power supply for the assembly under test and a way to log what happened during a run. Where a build needs functional or endurance testing before handover, an external hardware testing service can supply the test position, the stress and endurance runs, and a written report without you equipping a lab for a single project.
8. Compliance, permits, and waste
Before the first shift, confirm what the site permits you to do: emission limits for extraction outlets, noise limits at the boundary, drainage consent for wash water, and the route for waste oil, solvent, and contaminated rags as controlled waste. Keep the paperwork with the utility list. If a prototype becomes a series product, the same checks expand into production line approval, and the cost of doing them late is far higher than doing them while the shop is empty.
9. Digital utilities: data capture and shop connectivity
Prototype work generates records that need to survive the build: drawings, revision notes, test data, and photographs of failures. Network drops in a shop are usually a cable and switch problem rather than a wireless one, so plan wired points at the test position and the drawing station, and back up measurement files off the machine. Where a machine tool already counts pieces, connect it before the next project so cycle data is available without manual entry.
10. Where engineering support changes the utility plan
If the prototype is a machine you intend to develop and sell, utility requirements become part of the product specification: supply voltage and phase, water inlet and drainage, compressed-air quality, extraction load, and installation footprint all have to be stated so the buyer's site can accept the equipment. Sorting those constraints out early is a matter of feasibility assessment and prototype route design; a product R&D accelerator covers that front-end work — requirement definition, technical feasibility, cost and risk assessment, and the path from principle prototype to small-batch trial. For cleaning equipment specifically, decisions about the steam system, waterway, vacuum function and mobile platform determine what the customer's factory utilities must provide.
A practical order of work
Start with electrical capacity, because it is the item that constrains everything else. Then drainage and washing, because they are the regulated items and are the most expensive to change once the floor is laid. Then extraction, then compressed air, then layout and storage. Finish with measurement and records, because those decide whether the build is accepted. Confirming each utility on paper before the first build costs a day; discovering it during a build costs a delivery date.
Checklist to run before you book the shop
- Panel: spare ways, circuit ratings, single-phase or three-phase available, who signs off any new circuit
- Air: simultaneous tools, delivery at working pressure, receiver size, dryer and filter, drain point, hose length
- Water and drainage: wash location, drain consent, separator if required, slip-free floor between jobs
- Extraction: capture point, discharge location, makeup air, filter replacement interval
- Space: floor loading, ceiling height, clear access to isolators and panel, protected measurement position
- Consumables and waste: delivery interval, compatible storage, controlled-waste route, permits on file
- Records: test position, calibrated gauges, saved data, drawing revision control
