groundwork

noun

Etymology: From ground + work.

1. The foundation; the basic or fundamental parts that support or allow for the rest.

   “The discovery of the laws of electricity laid the groundwork for a century of innovation.”

   “This outline programme was compiled by a working party consisting of members from the Regional Planning Office, the civil, mechanical and electrical, and signal engineering departments and the traffic services, on the basis of much groundwork done within each of these departments.”