Plan wall coating sample turnaround around the date your team needs to make a decision, then work back through review, delivery, safe packing and sample preparation. A supplier’s dispatch estimate is not an arrival date or an approval date. Before accepting a schedule, agree which sample is being made, what starts the clock and which steps must finish before the next can begin.
For a distributor selecting a finish or a project buyer preparing approval boards, separate a stock reference from a custom colour or substrate trial. Keep drying and handling requirements tied to the selected system. The worksheet below helps expose missing time without inventing a universal lead time or treating courier speed as a substitute for sample readiness.
Which event must happen by your deadline?
Write the required endpoint: ready for collection, delivered to a named address, reviewed by the buyer, or approved for the next order stage. Include the date, local time and responsible person. “Samples needed next Friday” is incomplete if the technical reviewer will not be available until Monday.
Start with the relevant category in the Product Center. Identify whether you need an existing finish reference, a newly prepared panel on the intended substrate, or material for your applicator to trial. A liquid sample received today still needs preparation and application before it becomes a reviewable panel.
For context, Shunfengshan’s OEM page separates sample timing after brief confirmation from custom matching and dispatch conditions. Those are that supplier’s terms, not Montelise estimates. The useful comparison is the starting condition and deliverable, not the smallest number on a supplier page.
Put an owner and a release condition against each stage
Use this as a planning worksheet. Have the relevant owner supply the duration and calendar; do not fill unknown stages with zero days.
| Stage | What must be settled | Evidence before moving on |
|---|---|---|
| Brief acceptance | Buyer and supplier agree finish reference, substrate, panel size and quantity | Dated brief version; payment or reference-sample receipt if required |
| Preparation and application | Supplier confirms materials, applicator slot and complete layer sequence | Sample identity and application record for the agreed system |
| Readiness for packing | Technical owner confirms required drying, handling and protection | System-specific release condition; appearance alone is insufficient |
| Dispatch and transit | Shipping coordinator confirms service, destination and collection cutoff | Collection date and shipment details; arrival remains subject to the service and route |
| Receipt and review | Buyer books inspection and the decision-maker | Intact identified samples, review conditions and one consolidated response |
| Revision if needed | Both sides agree what changes and what stays fixed | New version, revised schedule and explicit approval scope |
Some administrative work can overlap: confirm the receiving contact and prepare the feedback sheet while panels are being made. Physical steps cannot be treated as parallel simply to meet a deadline. Ask whether quoted preparation time already includes drying; adding it again would double-count, while omitting it could hide a delay.
For a product-specific illustration of separate waiting stages, Novacolor’s Nova_Wall Care technical sheet, revised August 2025, specifies a wait after the final mineral-finish layer before protection and separately describes the protective treatment’s drying. Neither figure is permission to pack an arbitrary coating panel. Use the selected system’s instructions and the supplier’s packing-release confirmation; our drying milestone guide explains the distinction.
Work backwards before promising the approval date
Hypothetical planning example—not a Montelise lead-time quotation. Assume a confirmed brief at day 0, sequential stages, no revision and the elapsed calendar-day allowances below. These are invented inputs for arithmetic only; actual working days, weekends, holidays and carrier cutoffs must be mapped before using a real date.
| Assumed stage | Elapsed days | Cumulative finish |
|---|---|---|
| Prepare and apply the agreed sample system | 3 | Day 3 |
| Separate readiness allowance, including remaining drying and packing release | 2 | Day 5 |
| Collection and transit allowance | 5 | Day 10 |
| Buyer inspection and consolidated decision | 2 | Day 12 |
| Unallocated contingency | 3 | Day 15 planning allowance |
The assumed critical path is 3 + 2 + 5 + 2 = 12 days. With three days of contingency, allow 15 days before the decision date. A decision due ten days after brief acceptance has a five-day shortfall against that planning allowance. Arrival on day 10 would still leave the review unfinished.
Do not present the three-day contingency as a guaranteed resample round. A changed colour or substrate may repeat preparation, drying, transport and review. If the deadline is fixed, compare a confirmed available reference for preliminary selection, a narrower first-round scope, or a later final approval. Record what each route leaves unapproved; do not silently remove technical waiting stages.
Make the first review produce one usable decision
Name one person to consolidate comments. Each response should identify the sample version, substrate, viewing conditions, the specific difference, and whether to retain, revise or reject that direction. Preserve the accepted points when requesting a change so the supplier knows which variables to hold constant.
A small panel also has limits. Sto’s Rough 10/20 application guide recommends contractor-prepared mockups because hand-held samples may not represent an application technique across a larger facade. If your decision requires a site mockup, schedule the applicator and its acceptance separately. See what a texture sample can approve before treating visual selection as complete project acceptance.
For damaged, unidentified or wrong-substrate samples, document the issue before judging the finish and agree the next action. A rushed review of an unsuitable sample does not close the approval stage. Keep later OEM and private-label planning separate unless packaging itself is part of the sample decision.
Send a brief that can receive a dated response
For a sample-plan inquiry, send:
- The required decision date, time zone, receiving address and reviewer’s availability.
- Product category, finish reference and whether stock reference, custom panel or application material is needed.
- Substrate, existing coating, intended use, panel dimensions and number of review sets.
- Requested sample scope and the changes that would require another round.
- Expected bulk quantity and packaging direction, clearly separated from first-round approval.
- The person who will consolidate comments and confirm the next step.
Ask Montelise to confirm the accepted brief version, starting condition, estimated ready-to-dispatch date and outstanding dependencies. Sample availability, charges, preparation time and delivery arrangements require written confirmation for your request.