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Author: Young Lin | Role: Export & Project Planning Lead, Oneluck Carpet Factory | Updated: October 2026
Verified by our carpet project team, Zhaoqing | Custom Axminster & carpet tile | Gulf Project Scheduling
Hotel and hospitality projects across the Gulf move quickly once a design is approved, and the carpet package is often placed last and needed first. Sampling should be scheduled before the tender closes rather than after the order, because approval drives every later date. On our schedule, a design draft takes approximately 3 working days from artwork or color references, physical samples take 7 to 10 working days, production runs 20 to 30 working days after written sample approval, and the full span from artwork to shipment readiness is typically 30 to 40 working days. In our experience the projects that slip are the ones where the fire classification or the custom pattern minimum was settled after the order was placed.
Hotel and hospitality projects across the Gulf move quickly once a design is approved, and the carpet order is often the last package to be placed and the first to hold up a handover. Buyers who settle sampling, packing and documentation late frequently lose more time than they saved on the unit price. The reason is structural rather than commercial: a carpet package cannot be compressed indefinitely, because sampling, approval, weaving and finishing sit in sequence, and only the last of those can be accelerated with overtime.
This guide explains what we confirm with UAE, Saudi Arabian and Qatari buyers before production begins, and how to plan the schedule around sampling rather than after it. It covers the sampling sequence, the production and shipping timeline, and the documents and quantities that should be fixed at tender stage. It does not comment on regional approval schemes, because the certificates a project needs depend on the importer of record and the local authority rather than on the carpet alone.
Figure 1: Design, sampling and production timeline for a Gulf hotel carpet package. Source: Oneluck Carpet hospitality project scheduling records, 2026.
Every Gulf hospitality schedule we build is worked backwards from the installation sequence. The table below sets out the phases we confirm, the figure we plan against, and why each one matters locally:
Planning Item Detail We Confirm Typical Figure Why It Matters Locally
Design draft From artwork or brand guidelines 3 working days Design approval drives all later dates
Sampling Physical sample for committee review 7 to 10 working days Multi party approval takes time
Production After written sample approval 20 to 30 working days Must fit the installation sequence
Total lead time Artwork to shipment ready 30 to 40 working days Build into the master schedule
Custom pattern MOQ Per design 200 square meters Confirm before tender submission
Roll width Matched to rooms and corridors 3.66m or 4m Reduces seaming in large ballrooms
Phased delivery Production batches per phase Per installation sequence Keeps handover dates intact
Send us the installation sequence and the floor plans. Oneluck Carpet will return a sampling and production schedule worked backwards from your handover date, with the roll widths matched to each area.
Request a Free Hotel Carpet Production Schedule
Sampling should be scheduled before the tender closes, not after the order is placed, because approval drives every later date. Following design approval, sampling requires 7 working days, and physical hand samples measuring approximately 300 mm by 300 mm are produced within 7 to 10 working days for client review. A 300 mm square is large enough for a committee to judge pile direction, color under the project's own lighting and pattern scale, which a small swatch cannot show.
Approval of a custom pattern can involve a committee, so we recommend starting the design draft early, which takes approximately 3 working days from receipt of the client's artwork or color references. Where a design is developed from a brand guideline rather than a finished artwork file, we produce the draft drawing first and treat that as the approval step, because a committee cannot approve a pattern it has not seen laid out. In our experience the sampling stage consumes more calendar time than the production stage on multi-party projects, even though it produces nothing that ships.
There is a second reason to sample early that buyers rarely plan for. A carpet sample that is approved on a color card and then viewed again under the ballroom lighting sometimes comes back for adjustment, and a re-run of the sample adds another 7 to 10 working days to the front of the programme. Booking the sample into the actual space, or sending a large enough hand sample for the client to view it on site, removes most of that risk at the point where it is still free to fix.
Production should be planned against the installation sequence, with roll widths matched to the rooms and corridors they will serve. Once the sample receives written approval, full production runs for 20 to 30 working days depending on total square meterage, pattern complexity, and number of colorways. The total timeline from artwork submission to first shipment readiness typically spans 30 to 40 working days, which we build into the project master schedule at specification stage to align with construction milestones. Our 4-meter loom width reduces on-site seaming in large ballrooms spanning 500 square meters or more, and for large hospitality projects, custom roll lengths, room matching layouts, and corridor pattern alignment can also be considered during production planning.
The specification documents and the order quantity should both be settled before production, because changing either afterwards affects the whole programme. Custom Axminster patterns with specified yarn colors begin at 200 square meters per design, while standard stock designs offer lower minimums starting at 50 square meters per color, and a single project covering 300 guest rooms plus corridors and public areas is within our standard production capacity. Carpets produced with 80% wool 20% nylon meet B1 and Bfl-s1 classifications under EN 13501 without requiring topical flame retardant treatments due to wool's inherent fire resistance. For projects with specific local code requirements, we discuss additional testing or treatment options at the specification stage. Where a property is handed over in phases, we coordinate production batches to match those phased schedules so each zone receives its carpet before the rooms are released.
1. Start the design draft before the tender closes: Allow approximately 3 working days from artwork or color references, so the committee reviews a layout rather than a description and sampling can begin immediately after award.
2. Book physical samples into the programme: Plan 7 to 10 working days for 300 mm by 300 mm hand samples, and circulate them to every approver at once, because sequential sign off is what stretches the sampling stage.
3. Confirm the pattern minimum before pricing: Custom Axminster patterns begin at 200 square meters per design and stock designs at 50 square meters per color, so a small feature area may be better served by a stock design.
4. Fix roll widths against the room schedule: Match 3.66m or 4m widths to each area, and confirm the delivery phases in writing, so ballrooms and corridors arrive in the order the site can install them.
Do you supply carpet for hotel projects in the UAE and Saudi Arabia?
Yes. We produce custom broadloom and Carpet Tile for hospitality projects across the Gulf region and plan delivery around the installation sequence. Tell us the destination country and the importer of record and we will prepare the shipping documents accordingly, including the packing list detail your clearance agent will ask for.
How early should we start sampling for a hotel project?
Start the design draft before the tender closes, then allow 7 to 10 working days for physical samples so approval does not delay production. On a project with a committee approval process, treat the sample stage as the critical path rather than the loom time, because a re-run of a rejected sample costs more calendar days than a busy loom does.
What is the minimum order for a custom pattern?
Custom Axminster patterns begin at 200 square meters per design, while standard stock designs start at 50 square meters per color. Where a project needs only a small feature area in a custom design, we will usually suggest carrying the custom pattern into an adjoining space to reach the minimum economically, rather than splitting the order into a custom piece and a stock piece that will not match.
Can you deliver a large property in stages?
Yes. We coordinate production batches to match phased schedules, releasing shipments according to the installation sequence. Send the handover dates for each zone and we will map the production batches against them before the order is confirmed, so the first shipment is not held up waiting for a later phase to be approved.
Which fire classification applies to your hospitality broadloom?
Our wool rich Axminster broadloom meets B1 and Bfl-s1 under EN 13501 without topical flame retardant treatment. Where a local code calls for a different test method, we discuss additional testing options at the specification stage rather than after the order is placed, because that is the point at which the programme can still absorb it.
Design draft, sampling and production durations from our own hospitality project records.
Custom pattern minimum of 200 square meters per design, stock designs from 50 square meters per color.
Fire classification B1 and Bfl-s1 under EN 13501 for 80% wool 20% nylon constructions.
4-meter loom width measured against ballroom seaming requirements above 500 square meters.
What Carpet Is Used in Mosques and Prayer Halls? : roll width and backing selection for large open prayer floors in the same market.
What Carpet Fire Rating Does Your Project Require? : which of our constructions hold B1 and Bfl-s1, and where a local test method differs.
How Many Square Meters of Carpet Fit in a 40ft Container? : how roll width and payload decide the container plan for a large hospitality package.
Hotel Broadloom Collection : custom Axminster and tufted broadloom in 3.66m and 4m widths for guest rooms and ballrooms.
Oneluck Carpet produces custom Axminster broadloom and Carpet Tile for hospitality projects, with sampling in 7 to 10 working days and production in 20 to 30. Send your handover dates and we will build the schedule.
Send Your Handover Dates for a Production Schedule
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