Kat Black Design Studio provides Category A and Category B office fit-out services across Dubai’s commercial office market, delivering completed, operational workplaces for businesses in DIFC, Business Bay, Sheikh Zayed Road, JLT, Al Quoz and all of Dubai’s major commercial districts. Office fit-out in Dubai is a technically regulated and programme-sensitive discipline: every fit-out project must be DEWA-compliant for MEP installations, coordinated with the building’s base-build MEP systems, managed against a programme tied to the client’s lease commencement date, and executed to a standard of finish and functionality that meets the expectations of Dubai’s commercial tenants. Kat Black Design Studio manages all of this, under one contract, with one project manager throughout.
Office fit-out is the process of transforming a commercial office space from its base-build condition into a fully operational, furnished workplace. The term covers everything that happens after the building developer or landlord hands over the space, from the first partition wall to the last desk chair in position. The scope varies depending on whether the space is received as a Category A or bare-shell condition, and whether the client requires a standard commercial fit-out or a bespoke, design-led workspace.
In Dubai’s commercial property market, office spaces are typically offered to tenants in one of three conditions: bare shell (structural slab and perimeter walls only, no MEP services), Category A (base-build fit-out complete with MEP to floor plate level, raised access floor, suspended ceiling and basic common area finishes), or fitted (a completed previous fit-out that may be reused or refurbished). The distinction between these conditions determines the scope of work required and the budget that should be allocated to the fit-out.
Our Expertise
A Category A fit-out transforms a bare-shell commercial office space into a base-build ready condition. This is the standard of finish that a developer or landlord typically delivers to a tenant before the tenant undertakes their own Category B fit-out. The scope of a Category A fit-out includes the following elements.
- Raised access flooring across the full floor plate to provide a continuous level surface above the structural slab and a plenum for MEP distribution below
- Suspended ceiling grid and tiles throughout, providing a finished ceiling at the agreed floor-to-ceiling height
- Mechanical and electrical services distributed to floor plate level, including HVAC ducts and diffusers, sprinkler systems, fire detection systems and lighting to a base specification
- Toilet core and common area finishes completed to the building’s base-build specification
- Main power supply and metering established at the incoming distribution board
- Reception lobby and lift lobby finishes completed to base specification
A Category A fit-out does not include any tenant-specific partitioning, bespoke joinery, fitted lighting, data cabling, audio-visual equipment, furniture or branded elements. These are all Category B scope items.
Kat Black Design Studio undertakes Category A fit-out works as a contractor for developers and landlords preparing commercial space for the Dubai market, as well as for tenants receiving bare-shell space who require a complete A-to-B fit-out under a single contract.
Design
A Category B fit-out transforms a Category A office space into a fully operational, furnished and branded workplace. This is the fit-out that the tenant commissions, and it is the most commercially and design-intensive element of the office fit-out process. The scope of a Category B fit-out at Kat Black Design Studio covers the following.
DEWA & DM Compliance
Typical Timelines
Office Fit Out Cost Guide
Design
Kat Black Design Studio’s office fit-out process follows a structured sequence that is managed against the client’s specific programme constraints from the outset.
Kat Black Design Studio has completed projects across Dubai Hills Estate, Palm Jumeirah, Emirates Hills, DIFC and beyond. If you are ready to discuss your interior design, renovation, fit-out or landscaping project anywhere in Dubai or the UAE, request a complimentary consultation today, with no obligation.
Or contact us directly via WhatsApp. All enquiries receive a response within two business hours.