August 07, 2024

OVERCOMING RENO-PHOBIA:

KEEPING YOUR BUSINESS DOORS OPEN DURING RENOVATION

 

Preparation, Budget Issues, and Planning of a Business Remodel:

 

Keeping a business open during an upgrade is a big concern for business owners, but is a challenge that can be met with proper preparation. With the support of experienced industry professionals and with proper planning this concern can be handled so that the inconvenience of a business upgrade is manageable and your project is successful. The Preparation Stage involves a realistic assessment of the amount of time, money, and planning of a necessary upgrade. A key element is establishing a budget. Involving a general contractor in the preparation/budget stage will afford you up-to-date costs of materials, processes, and time, and will be a benefit right at the offset. An experienced general contractor keeps up with changing costs of materials and processes in the construction industry which have impact on your design decisions. A good working team which includes your design professional and your general contractor focuses on developing realistic costs for the scope of your project and serves you from the start. Three C�s�, communication, collaboration, and cooperation, are essential for a healthy project and experienced architects and contractors enhance each other�s expertise as they work to meet your needs. One important budget consideration is how much your business will be worth in relation to the cost of improvement: What will your budget produce in relation to your investment? What�s the cost of not doing the upgrade? A hotel owner needing an overdue upgrade has to ask how much revenue is being lost by putting off improvements. A realistic budget should be based on a realistic return on investment.

 

Enlisting a reputable general contractor will help to identify issues and problems as the scope of the project develops. �Upfront Value engineering enables clients to get �the biggest bang for the buck� when making design and materials decisions in the planning stage of a project�, says Bill Lehrke of Rose Construction. Also, business owners may not realize that there are seasonal implications to construction and that typically, a winter project is more cost effective than a spring/summer project. Often there are comparable costs saving substitutes for heating/ventilation systems, equipment and materials, window replacements, countertops, and lighting fixtures. Understanding the pivotal lead times are central to a practical strategy for keeping your business doors open during construction. Without this knowledge a project could be delayed and the business would suffer. Lighting fixtures, for example, typically take 8 to 12 weeks of lead time. Another important consideration is the longevity of a material or product. As a business owner you must think about how long you want your facility to remain in its new and improved condition. Experienced construction professionals provide Value Engineering and guidance for these important planning decisions. Attention to preparation, a realistic budget, and adequate planning pave the way for a successful remodel as the project moves forward into hands-on construction.

 

Scheduling, Phasing, and Facilitating a Business Renovation

 

The start of construction often entails dealing with unforeseen conditions that were unknown during the planning phase of a project. These include the discovery of old asbestos, faulty wiring, dry rot, mold, or hidden plumbing problems that often don�t show up until the hands-on construction has begun. An experienced general contractor will recognize these conditions and factor their resolution into the construction schedule. After you and your general contractor have done your collaborative planning, and after any hidden conditions and problems have been brought to light, there is the need to revisit the budget and make adjustments to the scope of work and to the schedule to accommodate the unforeseen conditions. Your general contractor will make economical suggestions about how to fix the problems. Next, you and your general contractor create a project schedule which aims for the least disruption to business as usual. Weighing the financial and practical impact of possible solutions is something you and your contractor spend time examining in order to create a reasonable and effective construction schedule. A successful example of this was the recent renovation of the landmark Marin Suites Hotel in Corte Madera. A major concern of the management was keeping the facility open for room rentals. Bill Lehrke says, �The problem was asbestos abatement around the proposed new window installation, removal of old windows, and the prep and painting of the window trim. The original schedule was 10 working days, but rendering a room uninhabitable for that period of time was unacceptable. Instead, the rooms were vacated by 10:00AM when the abatement contractor set up a collapsible, portable tent around the windows. At 2:00PM the testing lab took air samples and clearance was received by 4:00PM which allowed the abatement contractor to install the pre-formed, pre-painted window trim, eliminating the need for drywall repair. The hotel experienced no loss of revenue during the window installation process.� This is how proper scheduling and phasing can lead to creative solutions that accommodate the needs of your business.

Part Three: Proper Wrap-up of a Renovation, can be found at

www.rose-construction.com

 

Phyllis Kirson, Marketing Director, Rose Construction
(415) 454-9994 

                                                       

 

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