How Systems Furniture Smoothes And Speeds Workplace Upgrades

People responsible for planning and managing a workplace upgrade undoubtedly experience some angst as they ponder the many activities that must be coordinated to insure the project runs smoothly, comes in on budget and on schedule. Not the least of concerns is assuring management that the upgrade will be achieved with minimal or no disruption to the ongoing functioning of the business through temporarily displacing company personnel.

"Upgrading an occupied workplace is a challenge, of that there is no doubt," says Mark Bassil, vice president and co-founder of MAiSPACE, a modular office furniture manufacturer based in Mt. Olive, NJ. "Managing the personnel side of the issue is an art onto itself. It calls for skilled orchestration by human resource and facility management professionals intimately familiar with the company's work processes.

"Coordinating the physical aspect of the upgrade - from initial floor plans to final move-in - is also an art," Bassil says. "Depending on the level of professionalism of architects, interior designers and systems furniture suppliers, it can be a nightmare or a dream. In our 15 years of experience shepherding firms through planning and installing new or remodeled office facilities, we've developed an approach that is proven time and again to be stress free and on target in timeline and budget."

Tips on Putting the Process in Motion

"Today, systems furniture is more and more the solution of choice in fitting out new or remodeled workplaces," Bassil says. "Systems furniture is flexible, attractive and multiple vendors are ready to bid on a project. A simple web search will disclose the wealth of resources available. But the homework assignment is determining just how professional these resources are in terms of taking on the entire project, not just delivering cartons to the receiving dock.

"We have found, and few will disagree," he states, "that from a client's perspective, simplicity is much to be desired. The act of locating, vetting, hiring and coordinating multiple vendors and contractors most certainly falls on the nightmare side of the issue. This is because when things go wrong, or deliveries are missed, or that the workspaces don't fit the floor plan, the result is a flurry of finger pointing."

The ideal approach, according to Bassil, is a general contractor able to manage the process from initial manufacturing through final installation including testing and approving the voice, data and power system cabling in the renovated facility.

Office Upgrades: The MAiSPACE Approach

MAiSPACE was established in 1993 based on an entirely new approach to serving the contract furniture industry. "This approach enables us to beat any competitor of comparable quality in terms of cost," Bassil says. "It is due to our global sourcing, supply chain management, just-in-time manufacturing and nationwide distribution system. This puts our price points an average of 40% below some of the most recognized names in the industry. It means we can fully provide fully furnished and cabled workspaces of any size, ready for move-in, at $12 to $15 per square foot regardless of the number of units involved." The MAiSPACE solution includes a lifetime guarantee and warranty against obsolescence.

Acknowledging that price is and should be a key purchasing criterion, Bassil point out that pricing being similar or equal the services offered by systems furniture suppliers should determine who gets the project.

Project Design Support

After creating and distributing RFPs to potential vendors, the next step is an evaluation of the candidates and the overall support they will provide to the project.

"Our approach," Bassil says, "is the MAiSPACE professional in-house design team to produce the best and most cost-effective layout not only to satisfy the client's current requirements but also to plan ahead. Our designers understand facility issues and employ the most appropriate product applications and space planning layouts," he says. "This entails the use of the latest versions of AutoCAD and GIZA specifying software to achieve furniture and floor plans that are virtually fault free. Related to this are accurate detailed specifications, product lists and installation drawings."

The objective here is to avoid last-minute installation glitches that throw the project off schedule and off budget. When the client and vendor to sign off on these plans it signals that all are in agreement and that there will be minimum if any surprises as the project moves forward.

On-Site Project Management

During the installation process MAiSPACE through its own, or its nationwide network of dealer and distributor professionals, provides on-site supervision including coordinating any last-minute changes desired by the client. "This can be particularly challenging when working with occupied floor space," Bassil says. "Scheduling the removals and installations overnight and on weekends is the least disruptive so that affected staff leaves their old workplace one day and returns to the new the next. An alternative is a 'rolling shut down' of particular departments or temporarily relocating them to empty or subleased space.

"Regardless of the method used, our objective is to make the changeover as stress free as possible for our clients," Bassil says.

Ongoing Service and Support

Purchasers should also feel confident that suppliers stand by their products over the life of the installation. "Lifetime warranties and guarantees against obsolescence are as much a part of the sales agreement as the products themselves," Bassil states. These are key elements to be covered in RFPs issued by savvy facilities managers."