There are many reasons to remodel your office or commercial space. But before you begin tearing down sheetrock and ripping up carpet, make sure you take these essential steps...
Don’t Start Remodeling Your Office without These Crucial Steps
1. Define a Detailed Budget
Long before you begin creating a plan, you need to know how much you can afford. Whether you have $2,000 for a new direct mount ceiling or $1.5 million for a completely renovated commercial office, having a clearly-defined budget (and staying disciplined to the budget) will help you have a much stronger remodeling experience.
While you’re thinking about the cost of office remodeling, you should also set aside a contingency budget of roughly 10% of the total project. The contingency budget should be separated from the main budget and only be used if needed. This provides a little breathing room while allowing you to stay on target. If not used for remodeling, it can be added back to the main business accounts.
2. Clearly Identify the Purpose for Remodeling
Having a clear and detailed purpose for remodeling gives your designers and contractors clear expectations for the project. Will you be updating the business to create a more efficient space, or you do simply need to upgrade the design to make it more modern? Do you need to install new technology, change the function of the layout, or enhance the visual appeal? Clearly define the purpose before you do anything else.
3. Use the Purpose to Guide the Design
Once you know the specific, primary purpose behind the remodel, you can start to use this as a guide for your blueprints and initial design. Perhaps the goal is to increase efficiency; in this case the purpose could lead you to design a new layout for desks or reorganize the location of departments.
4. Develop a Schedule with Multiple Phases
Even the shortest, most simple office remodeling projects need a detailed, step-by-step schedule. A common mistake is to assume that because you are remodeling (and not building a new facility) it will take less time to complete. While this is sometimes true, complex remodeling projects can easily take months.
Your schedule should include various phases of the project and define when the office will be ready for business.
5. Plan How Your Business Will Operate During the Remodeling Phase
This is closely tied to the schedule. You need to know how your business will operate during the commercial remodeling. If you have a restaurant, you’re likely closing operations until the job is complete, but if you run an online retail store, you may be able to move into temporary offices. Whether you will be out of your office for a couple days or a full year, keeping the business churning is an important step to the commercial remodeling process.
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