Common question
What is a guide specification and why would a manufacturer need one?
A guide specification is a manufacturer’s product written into the format a specifier can drop straight into a project manual. Manufacturers need one because a specifier will not retype a brochure, and a product that is hard to specify quietly loses to one that is easy to specify.
For manufacturers
Written to be used, not read.
The document a rep hands over decides whether the product gets written in. Marketing literature describes benefits. A guide specification states the product in the sections, the language, and the order a specification writer already works in, so it can be placed into the manual with minimal editing.
ASC writes guide specifications for manufacturers, and offers that service openly and separately from project specification work. Editorial writing stays product-neutral. The separation is deliberate, and it is what keeps project recommendations open to competitive bid.
Related questions
Does writing our guide spec mean you will specify our product?
No. The two are kept separate on purpose. Guide specification work does not buy a place in a project specification.
What format do you deliver?
Written to the section format a specifier works in, ready to place into a project manual.
Who is the audience for a guide spec?
The specification writer, reached through your reps. It is the document a rep can hand a specifier.
Start here
Bring the openings to the desk.
Send the drawings, the schedule, or the question. ASC will tell you what the specification needs.