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AV commissioning and handover: a checklist owners can enforce

How to verify an AV system actually works before you accept it, and the documentation you should walk away with. Built on AVIXA's performance verification and documentation standards.

Published November 5, 2026. 2 minute read.

"Substantially complete" and "works every morning" are different things. The gap between them is commissioning: structured testing against requirements written before the install. AVIXA publishes standards for exactly this, and owners can write them into contracts.

Agree on the tests before the install

The AVIXA performance verification standard (ANSI/AVIXA D402.02, originally INFOCOMM 10:2013, reaffirmed in 2024) gives a framework for deciding which parts of a system to verify, when in the project to verify them, the pass criteria, and how results are reported. You don't need to buy the standard to use the idea: put a test plan in the contract and require a written report.

A practical test plan covers:

  • Pre-install: submittals approved, rack elevations and drawings reviewed, network requirements agreed with IT
  • During install: cable labeling and termination checks, rack build inspection, grounding and power
  • System tests: every source to every destination, every microphone to every speaker zone, every control button and preset
  • Performance: audio levels and coverage, speech intelligibility where it matters, echo cancellation on calls, display image size and viewing angles
  • Failure and recovery: what happens after a power cycle, a network outage, or a device reboot
  • User tests: a real meeting, run by the people who will use the room

Use the performance standards that fit

AVIXA publishes measurable performance standards that make "sounds fine" and "looks fine" testable:

  • Display image size (ANSI/AVIXA V202.01, the DISCAS standard): sizes images and viewing positions from what viewers need to read and decide. AVIXA has a free calculator.
  • Audio coverage uniformity (ANSI/AVIXA A102.01:2022): measures and classifies how evenly sound reaches the listening area.
  • Image system contrast ratio (V201.01:2021), rack design (F502.02) and cable labeling (F501.01) cover other parts of the build.

The handover package

AVIXA's documentation standard (ANSI/AVIXA D401.01:2023) sets out documentation requirements for AV systems. At minimum, insist on:

  1. As-built drawings: signal flow, rack elevations, plates and device locations, reflecting what was actually installed
  2. Cable schedule that matches the labels on the cables
  3. Equipment list with model and serial numbers, firmware versions and warranty dates
  4. Source code and configuration files: uncompiled control programs, DSP files, switch configurations, exported device settings
  5. Accounts and passwords for every device and cloud service, handed over securely and changed from defaults
  6. Test report showing each test, result and date
  7. Training: user training for each room type and technical training for your support team, ideally recorded
  8. Service terms: warranty, response times, who to call

Hold back retainage until it's done

Tie final payment to a passed test report and a complete handover package. That's the strongest lever you have, and it's normal practice.

Sources

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