Purpose & Use
Why this SOP exists and how the team should use it without turning it into a junk drawer.
Sea Cool sells across multiple product families. That creates real risk: wrong category names, wrong expectations, wrong qualifying questions, and estimates that mix unlike products together. This SOP exists to create one product language.
Use this SOP for
- product taxonomy and naming
- approved product lanes and brand reference
- what to ask before quoting
- how to describe products consistently
- when to escalate before promising anything
Do not use this SOP as
- a full engineering manual
- a replacement for spec sheets or installation instructions
- a dump for every brochure and manufacturer PDF
- a shortcut around field verification, measurements, or operations approval
Core rule
If the product, brand, condition, or configuration does not clearly fit the approved lanes below, do not improvise. Escalate before quoting or committing scope.
Product Taxonomy
The top-level product families Sea Cool should use across CRM, estimates, SOPs, and internal communication.
| Category | What It Means | Use When | Do Not Confuse It With |
|---|---|---|---|
| Film | Flat-glass window film for residential or commercial use, including solar, security, privacy, and decorative applications. | The primary scope is film applied to architectural glass. | Marine film, shades, or exterior screens. |
| Interior Shades | Interior shade systems such as roller shades and approved blind programs. | The product lives inside the opening/interior environment. | Exterior shading or awnings. |
| Exterior Shading | Exterior-mounted shade systems such as retractable screens, cabanas, pergola-adjacent shade systems, and approved outdoor shade structures. | The product is outside the building envelope and functions as exterior shade. | Interior shades or marine enclosures. |
| Awnings | Retractable or fixed awning-style exterior systems. | The project is clearly an awning product, not just a generic exterior screen. | Retractable screens or cabanas. |
| Marine | Yacht or marine glazing projects, film, or related onboard scope. | The job is on a vessel or marine-specific environment. | Residential or commercial flat glass. |
| Motorization | A feature layer, not usually a standalone top-level sale category. | The underlying product family is shade, exterior shading, or awning and the system includes motorized operation. | A separate product lane detached from the base product family. |
Approved Brands
Working brand reference plus the operational fields we should maintain for each active brand.
Operational rule
For each working brand, this SOP should eventually hold: brand explanation, supplier, warehouse location, account number, ordering contact, and platform/login reference if one exists. Right now this draft adds the structure, but several actual values still need to be filled with confirmed Sea Cool data.
Required brand fields
| Field | What it should answer |
|---|---|
| Brand explanation | What the brand is used for at Sea Cool and which product lane it belongs to. |
| Supplier | Who we actually buy from. |
| Warehouse location | Where the product is typically sourced, stocked, or picked up. |
| Account number | The Sea Cool account identifier if applicable. |
| Ordering contact | Named rep, team, phone, or email used to place or support orders. |
| Platform / login | Portal name and login reference location if ordering is handled through a platform. |
Film brands
3M
- Brand explanation: Core architectural and marine film lane including solar, decorative, and security-related applications.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Solar Gard
- Brand explanation: Approved film lane for select flat-glass projects and alternatives where applicable.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Solyx
- Brand explanation: Decorative/privacy-oriented film reference lane.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Fasara
- Brand explanation: Decorative film lane commonly referenced in patterned/privacy applications.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Suntek
- Brand explanation: Approved film alternative lane where Sea Cool offers or compares Suntek solutions.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Llumar
- Brand explanation: Approved film alternative lane used in Sea Cool quoting and commercial reference materials.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Interior shade brands
Hunter Douglas Architectural
- Brand explanation: Architectural interior-shade lane for commercial-grade shade systems and fabrics.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Mecho Shade
- Brand explanation: Interior commercial shade lane for specified or approved systems.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Bandalux
- Brand explanation: Interior shade system lane for approved projects and fabric/hardware packages.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
US Custom Shades
- Brand explanation: Interior shade lane used for approved custom shade configurations.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Coulisse
- Brand explanation: Interior shade lane for approved shade systems and components.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Exterior shading / awning / marine reference brands
Magnatrack
- Brand explanation: Core exterior retractable-screen / outdoor shading reference brand.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Other active brands
- Brand explanation: Add approved exterior, awning, pergola, umbrella, or marine-support brands only after Sea Cool confirms they are active working brands, not just media-library or inspiration references.
- Supplier: TBD
- Warehouse location: TBD
- Account number: TBD
- Ordering contact: TBD
- Platform / login: TBD
Brand rule
If a customer asks about a brand not listed here or if these operational fields are blank, do not assume we sell it, install it, service it, or have an ordering path ready. Confirm first.
Qualification Rules
Minimum questions the team should answer before quoting any product family.
Questions required for every product lane
- What exact product family is this?
- Residential, commercial, or marine?
- What problem is the customer trying to solve?
- What opening, surface, or structure is involved?
- What constraints matter: heat, privacy, glare, security, wind, moisture, HOA, aesthetics, automation, access, lead time, budget?
- Is this a replacement, retrofit, or first-time install?
Film lane must confirm
- glass type and basic condition
- performance goal: solar, privacy, security, decorative
- whether attachment, sealant, or special warranty concerns may apply
Shade / exterior / awning lane must confirm
- inside or outside mount condition
- opening size and structure type
- manual or motorized intent
- power, access, and control expectations if motorized
Do not quote from category guesswork
A lead saying “shade,” “screen,” “awning,” or “tint” is not enough. Confirm the actual lane first. Wrong category assignment creates bad pricing, wrong vendors, and bad expectations.
Film
Residential and commercial flat-glass film lane including solar, privacy, decorative, and security use cases.
What belongs here
Use the Film category when the primary scope is architectural window film applied to flat glass in residential or commercial settings.
Common sub-types
- solar film
- privacy film
- decorative film
- security / attachment-system film
Working brands
3M, Solar Gard, Solyx, Fasara, Suntek, Llumar
Minimum qualification questions
- What performance problem are we solving: heat, glare, privacy, fading, decorative, or security?
- What is the glass type and what do we know about existing conditions?
- Is this residential or commercial?
- Does the job involve attachment, sealant, special warranty, or risk-sensitive language?
Guardrail
Do not promise film compatibility, performance, or warranty outcome without confirming the actual glass and system conditions.
Interior Shades
Interior roller shade and approved blind programs used inside the building envelope.
What belongs here
Use Interior Shades when the product is installed inside the opening or interior environment as a shade or approved blind solution.
Working brands
Hunter Douglas Architectural, Mecho Shade, Bandalux, US Custom Shades, Coulisse
Typical lane split
- roller shades
- approved blind programs
- manual or motorized systems
Minimum qualification questions
- Residential or commercial?
- Inside mount or outside mount?
- Manual or motorized?
- Any control, power, fabric, privacy, glare, or room-darkening expectations?
Guardrail
Do not use “shades” as a vague catch-all if the job may actually be exterior shading or awnings.
Exterior Shading
Exterior screen and outdoor shade lane for systems mounted outside the building envelope.
What belongs here
Use Exterior Shading when the product is an exterior screen, retractable exterior shade, cabana-style shade system, or similar outdoor shading scope.
Typical examples
- retractable screens
- outdoor shade systems
- cabana-style shade structures
Working reference brand
Magnatrack and other approved exterior-shading manufacturers confirmed by current Sea Cool operations.
Minimum qualification questions
- Is the opening residential or commercial?
- Is this a screen system, an awning, or another outdoor structure?
- Manual or motorized?
- What structural, mounting, wind, or access conditions matter?
Guardrail
Do not call an exterior screen an awning just because it is outside. Keep the lane clean.
Awnings
Dedicated awning lane for retractable or fixed awning-style exterior systems.
What belongs here
Use Awnings when the actual product is an awning system, not just a generic exterior shade or screen.
Typical examples
- retractable awnings
- fixed awning-style systems
- motorized awning packages
Typical qualification points
- mounting surface
- projection / coverage intent
- manual vs motorized
- wind and exposure considerations
Guardrail
Do not use awning language loosely for every exterior product. If it is really a screen lane, keep it under Exterior Shading.
Marine
Marine lane for vessel-based projects and yacht-specific product context.
What belongs here
Use Marine when the project is on a vessel or in a marine-specific operating environment. Marine is not just a marketing flavor of residential or commercial film.
Typical scope
- marine film
- yacht glazing projects
- vessel-specific onboard scope
Minimum qualification points
- vessel type and location
- access conditions
- performance expectations
- special handling or schedule constraints
Guardrail
Do not collapse marine work into normal flat-glass language. Marine context changes expectations, execution, and handoff.
Quoting Standards
How products should be named and described in CRM notes, estimates, approvals, and internal handoff.
Scope line standard
Product descriptions should follow this order when relevant: category → brand/product line → key specification → application context → important condition notes.
| Good | Weak | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 3M Crystalline solar film, 35% VLT, residential flat glass | 3M tint | The first is specific enough to hand off and defend. |
| Motorized exterior retractable screen system for covered patio opening | Motorized shade | The first describes the actual product lane and context. |
| Commercial roller shade system, dual-function light control, manual operation | Office shades | The first is usable for estimating and operations. |
Documentation rule
If the final quoted product is still provisional pending field verification, engineering, vendor confirmation, or final measurement, write that condition into the estimate notes or internal handoff.
Red Flags & Escalation
Situations where the team should stop, clarify, and escalate before quoting or committing.
Escalate immediately when
- the product category is unclear
- the brand request does not match current approved lanes
- the customer is asking for compatibility, engineering, or warranty certainty you cannot verify
- the job may require attachment-system decisions, structural review, or special fabrication logic
- the quote is drifting into mixed categories without a clean scope split
Common red flags
- "I just want the exact thing my friend has"
- "Can you price this before we know the actual conditions?"
- "Can you make this one system do two different jobs?"
- "Can you guarantee the same performance on a different substrate or opening?"
Cross-Links & Ownership
Where this SOP fits relative to the rest of the Sea Cool operating system.
Use this SOP together with
- Direct Sales SOP for consultation flow, customer communication, and follow-up discipline
- Bids SOP for commercial/GC product qualification and approved-equal logic
- CRM / Files / Estimates / Invoicing SOP for naming standards and file/estimate structure
- Operations SOP for field verification, install constraints, and post-sale execution
Ownership rule
Product strategy can evolve, but product language should not drift casually. Changes to categories, approved brand lanes, or quoting rules should be made intentionally and then updated here.