The Difference Between a Test Fit and a Fit-Out in Laboratory Projects

In laboratory design and relocation projects, test fits and fit-outs play different roles in how a lab ultimately comes together. A test fit helps confirm whether equipment can function within a given space, while a fit-out focuses on supplying, relocating, and installing laboratory instrumentation once feasibility has been established.



For teams planning a new lab or relocating an existing one, understanding this distinction helps to clarify different deliverables of the project.

What Is a Laboratory Test Fit?

A laboratory test fit is an early planning step used to evaluate whether instrumentation, furnishings, and utilities can be accommodated within a specific space. Rather than locking in construction details, the goal is to confirm physical fit, service access, and workflow feasibility before making decisions that are difficult or costly to reverse.

During a test fit, existing or proposed equipment is reviewed against factors such as footprint, ceiling height, bench layout, and available utilities. This process helps identify limitations early and allows teams to adjust plans before relocation or installation begins.

Test fits are required for laboratory relocations, where existing instruments must be evaluated in a new environment. Addressing site requirements upfront helps reduce installation challenges, field modifications, and schedule disruptions later on.

 

What Is a Laboratory Fit-Out?

A laboratory fit-out is fitting out a laboratory with its required instrumentation.

Fit-outs bring together multiple moving parts. Equipment must arrive on schedule, utilities must be ready, and installations must be coordinated to minimize downtime. Because this phase involves significant on-site activity and investment, having clear expectations and accurate planning information is critical.

In all laboratory projects, fit-outs involve integrating existing and or new instrumentation into a new space while minimizing disruption to ongoing operations. Ensuring that equipment can be installed and supported as planned helps keep the project moving and avoids unnecessary delays.

 

How Fit Outs Inform Test Fit Decisions

Although test fits and fit-outs are separate deliverables, they are closely connected in practice. Test fits combine existing and newly acquired assets and provide clarifying spatial constraints, utility capacity, and service access requirements.

Without a proper test fit, project and science plan schedules can be undermined, and installation teams may encounter clearance issues, limited utility capacity, or access challenges that require adjustments during installation. Test fits reduce these risks by establishing a clearer picture of what the space can support.

When site suitability is understood upfront, project execution is predictable and manageable. 

 

Fit-Out Considerations in Laboratory Projects

Fit-out requirements are driven by a combination of the laboratory’s business and science plans. Execution of the fit-out plan is performed by the relocation project management team, which has the skill set to coordinate the sourcing and procurement of assets to be placed in the new location.

This work is completed in coordination with all constituents involved in the build-out or relocation project, including the owner’s project manager, laboratory purchasing, and finance.

 

The Overbrook Approach

Laboratory projects require a level of technical understanding beyond layout and installation. Test fits require a clear grasp of equipment behavior, service requirements, and spatial limitations. Fit-outs demand the ability to translate that information into coordinated execution, procurement decisions, and on-site integration.

Overbrook Support Services supports laboratories by providing test fits, equipment relocation, fit-out execution, and procurement guidance, with a focus on technical accuracy and long-term performance.

By approaching laboratory planning and execution with this level of detail, we help ensure that equipment is integrated correctly, projects move forward with fewer surprises, and laboratories are positioned to operate as intended from day one.