The short version
The most avoidable problem in an office move is arriving at a finished fit-out with no internet. It happens because internet is treated as a utility that switches on, when in practice it is a project with a lead time that is often longer than the fit-out itself.
The rule is simple: qualify the address before signing the lease, and order the week you sign.
| Stage | Who controls it | Practical advice |
|---|---|---|
| Address qualification | Provider | Do it before signing, not after |
| Service selection | You | Decide type before ordering, not during |
| Order and provisioning | Provider | Order the week the lease is signed |
| Construction, if required | Provider and building | Quoted separately; adds significant time |
| Internal cabling | Your cabling contractor | Runs in parallel with the fit-out |
| Handover and testing | You and the provider | Test before staff arrive |
Qualify the address first
Two buildings on the same street can have entirely different options. Qualification tells you what is actually available at that specific address, and it is free.
Do it before committing to the lease. If a site turns out to need construction for the service the business depends on, that is worth knowing while there is still a choice of buildings. It is a poor position to discover after signing that the only viable service will not arrive for months.
Ask the provider what is available now, what would require construction, and whether any service has been delivered to the building previously — an existing lead-in can make a substantial difference.
Lead times vary far more than people expect
Broadly, the pattern is:
- Already-serviced addresses on standard business services are the quickest, generally measured in weeks rather than months.
- Higher-grade dedicated services take longer, because they are quoted per address and may involve design work before anything is installed.
- Addresses requiring construction are the long case. The provider must quote the build, the quote must be accepted, and the works scheduled — often with landlord permission and sometimes council involvement.
Deliberately avoiding specific figures here: they vary by provider, service type, address and the state of infrastructure at the building. Get a written estimate for your address rather than relying on a general expectation, and ask what the estimate depends on.
NBN business fibre vs Enterprise Ethernet vs 5G covers which service type suits which situation.
Plan the gap
If the honest answer is that the fixed service will not arrive before move-in, plan for it rather than hoping.
A business 5G or fixed wireless service can carry a site temporarily. It is worth arranging as a deliberate interim service with enough capacity for the actual workload, rather than improvising with personal hotspots on move day.
This matters more than it used to. If the phone system is cloud-based, the internet service is the phone line — a site with no connectivity has no phones. That should be part of the move plan, not a discovery.
Coordinate with the cabling programme
Internal cabling and the incoming service are separate pieces of work that have to meet.
The service arrives at a specific point in the building. The comms room needs to be in a sensible place relative to that, with power and ventilation. Cabling to desks, access points and cameras runs on the fit-out programme, and in Australia fixed cabling must be installed by an ACMA registered cabler.
The common failure is sequencing: the service is delivered to a location the cabling design did not anticipate, or the comms room is finished before anyone confirms where the lead-in terminates. Office data cabling fit-outs covers coordinating this alongside the other trades.
A timeline that works
- Before signing — qualify the address for every service type under consideration
- Week of signing — order the service; accept any construction quote promptly if required
- Early in the fit-out — confirm where the service terminates and site the comms room accordingly
- During the fit-out — cabling installed, tested and labelled
- Two weeks out — arrange the interim service if the fixed one will not land in time
- Before staff arrive — connect, test under load, and verify phones and cloud applications
- After move-in — decommission the interim service once the fixed one is proven
What to ask the provider
- What is available at this exact address, and what has been delivered to this building before?
- What is the estimated timeframe, and what does that estimate assume?
- Does this require construction, and if so what is the quote and lead time?
- What is needed from the landlord or building manager?
- Where will the service terminate in the building?
- What happens if the date slips — is there an interim option?
Helpful starting points
If the move is confirmed and the clock is running, start with business internet so the address can be qualified and the order placed. If the fit-out is being planned, data and fibre cabling covers the internal work that has to align with it.