The sample and mockup sequence
PCI guidance for architectural precast lays out a similar progression.
- Design reference samples, before bid. They set the design intent, showing the architect and owner the general pattern, color, and finish direction so bids come in against the same picture.
- Production approval samples, after award. They lock what the awarded plant will cast with its materials, its mix, and the chosen liner. Production panels are judged against this sample.
- Range samples, on many jobs. Concrete color and texture vary within a normal range, and a range sample shows the acceptable spread, so a slightly lighter or darker panel on the wall is understood as normal.
- Mockups, on bigger jobs. A full panel or a built section of wall, often erected on site, shows the finish at real scale in real light. It is the last approval before the production run.
Why scale and light change the answer
A small flat sample cannot show what a textured production panel will look like.
- Scale. A pattern can repeat across an eight foot panel in a way a hand sample does not show. Joints, reveals, and the way the texture turns a corner only show at size.
- Light. A formliner pattern reads through shadow, when raking daylight catches the relief. A flat sample under office lighting shows almost none of that, and the same texture on a panel outdoors with a low sun looks like a different surface.
Advanced ships liner samples with no form to fill out, and supports mockups on bigger jobs.
Where the formliner fits
The formliner makes the texture repeatable. Once a sample or mockup is approved, the liner keeps every production panel matching it.
- Choosing between patterns: get liner samples early so the design reference stage is grounded in real texture.
- Approving production: confirm the approval sample was cast with the same liner and system that will run the job.
Common questions
- What is the difference between a sample and a mockup?
- A sample is a small piece that shows a pattern, color, or finish. A mockup is a larger built assembly, often a full panel or a section of wall, that shows how the real thing will look at scale. Samples guide selection. Mockups approve the outcome.
- Why can't a small flat sample show what the panel will look like?
- Scale and light change everything. A palm-sized flat sample cannot show how a texture repeats, how joints land, or how raking daylight throws shadow across a full panel. That is why bigger jobs use range samples and mockups, and why Advanced ships liner samples at no cost and supports mockups.
- When in the job do samples happen?
- Design reference samples come before bid to set the design intent. Production approval samples come after award to lock what the plant will actually cast. Larger range samples and full mockups follow on bigger jobs before the production panels run.