Design & engineering
Drawing revisions, calculations, design alternatives, testing evidence and technical review decisions with a clear project and version history.
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How expert work develops
Legal, design & professional services
The value of expert work often lies between the brief and the deliverable: alternatives considered, revisions, technical calculations, reviews and the reasons for a decision.
Discuss records in this sectorPeople & services
Can the reasoning behind a professional outcome be traced?
Start with material the practice can legitimately discuss. Client ownership, legal privilege and professional confidentiality can be decisive constraints, not matters to resolve after a transfer.
Illustrative connectionNot a sample archive or a promise of value
- 01
Permitted brief
- 02
Analysis & alternatives
- 03
Review, revision or correction
- 04
Deliverable & supporting evidence
Relevant records
Look beyond
the final file.
What was known, what was decided, what happened and what the evidence shows.
The examples below are categories to discuss. Existence, rights, suitability and buyer requirements still need to be established.
Consulting & research
Methods, analytical working files, questionnaire or study design and permitted review material, distinguished from confidential client data.
Legal, translation & reporting
Rights-cleared procedural resources, documented revisions and permitted language or document workflows. Do not assume privileged case files or recordings can be reused.
Potential uses, not promised demand
What might an AI team investigate?
- Evaluating version-aware retrieval and the ability to follow a technical review.
- Studying how expert feedback changes a draft or design where reuse is permitted.
- Testing grounded answers that distinguish source evidence from professional judgement.
Any actual recipient, purpose and permitted use must be agreed. These are research and evaluation possibilities, not confirmed buyers, available datasets or claims of proven AI performance.
Before anything is shared
The boundaries
are part of the work.
- Privileged, confidential or restricted client material must not be included in the initial enquiry.
- Designs, reports, recordings and translations can involve client, author, participant and third-party rights.
- A completed engagement or closed firm does not extinguish obligations or make its files freely reusable.
McKays does not promise that redaction or anonymisation will make material suitable. Detailed review, preparation responsibilities and any specialist advice must be agreed separately.
Find your kind of business
Specific work.
Specific records.
Explore examples for the businesses and organisations in this sector.
Law firms
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Describe the category only. Personal, clinical, privileged or otherwise restricted records are not assumed eligible; separate specialist review may be needed.
Discuss this type of archiveCourt-reporting businesses
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
- Speaker, timing and correction metadata
Describe the category only. Personal, clinical, privileged or otherwise restricted records are not assumed eligible; separate specialist review may be needed.
Discuss this type of archivePatent-search firms
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Prior-art evidence and claim comparisons
- Relevance assessments and search reasoning
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveTranslation agencies
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Translation memories, terminology and alignment
- Reviewer corrections and translation feedback
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveMarket-research companies
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Interview and focus-group recordings
- Survey responses and coded research findings
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveManagement consultancies
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Working analyses and recommendations
- Client briefs, proposals and final deliverables
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveArchitecture practices
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Design drawings, BIM and revisions
- Alternatives, design reviews and specification decisions
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveEngineering design consultancies
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Calculations, models and simulation assumptions
- Design drawings and review revisions
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveIndustrial design studios
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Prototype drawings and design revisions
- Usability observations and product feedback
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveProduct testing and certification companies
Record classes to describe, not upload
- Test results and certification evidence
- Nonconformities and corrective-action reviews
- Client briefs, technical queries and review feedback
- Analytical reasoning, alternatives and review decisions
Examples to investigate, not a claim that these records exist, are owned by the holder or can be licensed.
Discuss this type of archiveNo matching business type in this guide. Search all sectors, or describe your records in an enquiry.
A useful first enquiry
Start with a description.
Not the archive.
Tell us the discipline, broad deliverable types, approximate period, how revisions are linked and what ownership or reuse terms are known.
Paper, digital and mixed archives can be discussed. Approximate answers are fine. Mention your role, who can authorise a review and any practical deadline.
Prepare an enquirySend a non-confidential enquiry through the website. No archive files are uploaded.