Last updated: August 2026
Every panel we make is cut to one room, in one species, in one finish. It has no second buyer. These terms explain how a custom project runs, what each party owes, and what happens if something changes.
They apply to all custom fabrication and installation work. They do not apply to standard products bought through the online store, which are covered by our Shipping and Returns policy.
1. How a project runs
Step 1. Quote. You send dimensions, photographs and, if you have them, drawings. We issue a written quote with scope, species, finish, square footage and price.
Step 2. Visualization. Optional. We produce a 3D rendering of the work in your space, usually within two to five business days. The fee is credited to your project if you proceed.
Step 3. Contract and first payment. You sign the quote and make the first payment. This releases the project into engineering.
Step 4. Templating. For installed work, we measure on site. Final square footage and price are confirmed after templating, and a change order is issued if the field measurements differ from the drawings you supplied.
Step 5. Shop drawings. We issue drawings showing panel layout, seam locations, reveal placement, grain direction and edge details. Nothing is cut until you approve them in writing.
Step 6. Production. Your order is released to the shop. From this point the order is firm.
Step 7. Delivery or installation. We deliver and install, or we crate and ship, as your contract states.
Step 8. Walkthrough. We walk the finished work with you, complete a punch list if there is one, and issue final invoice.
2. Approval of shop drawings
Shop drawing approval is the single most important step in the project. Once you sign the drawings:
- Panel layout, seam placement and grain direction are locked.
- Dimensions are locked.
- Species and finish are locked.
We cut to the approved drawings. If an approved drawing contains an error that came from information you supplied, correcting it is a change order.
3. Payment schedule
Unless your contract states otherwise, custom projects are paid in three progress payments: 50% at contract signing and release to engineering, 40% on completion of fabrication before delivery or installation begins, and 10% on substantial completion.
Each payment is due within five business days of the stage being reached. Material is ordered against the first payment and is species-specific and non-returnable.
Residential home improvement projects in California. State law limits what a licensed contractor may take as a down payment on a home improvement contract and requires payments to be tied to work actually performed. Where a project falls under that law, your contract will set out a progress payment schedule that complies with it, and that schedule replaces the one above. We will explain the schedule before you sign.
4. Lead times
Lead time starts on the date you approve shop drawings, not on the date you sign the quote. It is stated in your contract in business days.
Lead time is an estimate made in good faith. It does not run during:
- Time we are waiting for a decision, an approval or a payment from you.
- Time a site is not ready for templating or installation.
- Delay caused by veneer or hardware availability from our suppliers.
- Events outside our reasonable control.
If we are going to miss a date, we tell you as soon as we know, with a revised date.
5. Changes and cancellation
Change orders. Any change after drawing approval is priced in writing and signed by both parties before we act on it. A change order may move the completion date.
Cancellation before drawing approval. You may cancel and receive a refund of everything paid, less design and engineering time already spent and less the visualization fee.
Cancellation after drawing approval and release to production. Because the material is cut to your dimensions and cannot be resold, the first payment is not refundable. If fabrication has started, you are also responsible for material, labor and finishing costs incurred to the date we receive your written cancellation, and for any special-order material we cannot return.
Right to cancel under California law. For home improvement contracts signed at your home or away from our place of business, California gives you three business days to cancel without penalty, and longer in some cases. That right is stated in your contract with the cancellation form attached, and nothing in this policy takes it away.
Cancellation by us. We may cancel and refund payments for work not yet performed if a site turns out to be structurally unsuitable, if required approvals are refused, or if payment terms are not met.
6. Site conditions and access
Before installation you agree to provide:
- A clear, dry, weather-tight and enclosed work area.
- Working power at the install location.
- Reasonable access for material of the sizes stated in your contract, including elevator access and dock access in commercial buildings.
- Parking within a reasonable distance.
- HOA, building management, permit and after-hours approvals where they are required.
Walls must be plumb, flat and sound within normal construction tolerance. Out-of-plumb or out-of-flat walls can be furred and shimmed, but that is additional scope and is priced as a change order.
If our crew arrives and the site is not ready, we may charge a return trip fee and reschedule.
7. What is not in our scope
Unless your contract says otherwise, we do not provide:
- Electrical rough-in, low voltage wiring, drivers or switching for integrated lighting. We provide the channel and coordinate with your electrician.
- Framing, drywall, patching, priming or painting of adjacent surfaces.
- Removal of existing finishes, demolition or debris haul-away beyond our own installation waste.
- Permits, engineering stamps or fire ratings, unless quoted.
- Moving, protecting or reinstalling furniture, art or equipment.
8. Wood, veneer and finish
Wood is a natural material. Grain, color, figure and mineral content vary. Sequence-matched veneer is matched within a flitch, and we will tell you when a project needs more than one flitch.
Finish samples show a representative result. The finished wall will read close to the sample, not identical to it, because species, cut and light change how a finish looks.
Panels are engineered for interior use in a conditioned space, generally between 35% and 55% relative humidity. Movement, cupping or joint opening caused by conditions outside that range is not a defect.
Customer-supplied material. If you supply veneer, hardware or finish, we will work with it, but we do not warrant its appearance, its yield or its performance, and we will bill for waste and rework caused by material defects.
9. Delivery, storage and risk
Risk of loss passes to you on delivery to the site, or on delivery to the carrier for shipped orders.
If a site is not ready to receive finished work on the agreed date, we may store it at our shop for up to 30 days. After that, storage is billed monthly. Balance payments remain due on the original schedule.
10. Substantial completion and punch list
A project is substantially complete when the work is installed and usable for its intended purpose, even if minor items remain. The punch list is documented at walkthrough, and we complete it promptly.
Final payment is due at substantial completion. It may not be withheld over punch list items, and we will not delay punch list work over the final payment.
11. Warranty
Custom work carries our two year limited warranty. See our Warranty page for what it covers, what it excludes and how to make a claim.
12. Photography
We photograph completed work and use the images in our portfolio and in advertising. If you need us not to, tell us in writing before installation and we will note it on your contract at no charge.
13. Trade projects
Where a designer, architect or general contractor signs the contract, that party is the client of record and is responsible for payment, for approvals, and for coordination with the end user. Trade pricing, submittal packages and specification support are covered by our trade agreement.
14. Disputes
Disputes are handled under Section 15 of our Terms of Service, which provides for informal resolution, then binding individual arbitration in Los Angeles County. Nothing there limits your right to file a complaint with the California Contractors State License Board.
15. Contact
Element Decor
20371 Prairie St, Chatsworth, CA 91311
Shop visits by appointment only
323-431-3818
office@element-decor.com