It all starts with design

Great design makes great buildings. Simple. The design of all spaces are ultimately what gets built. But you need to think beyond just walls and doors and cabinets. You need to give the full range of design careful and honest thought. What makes great Tenant Improvement design?

Form and Function are both important

Louis H. Sullivan coined the term “form follows function” 125 years ago because he needed new design ideas for tall buildings. Sullivan had to establish new paradigms to make sense of taller and taller buildings. His guiding principal that he never intended to violate was the shape of the space must be dictated by the use of the space.

Sullivan’s wisdom is still true today. But there is a need for the aesthetic and beautiful too. You can no longer hide behind the mantra of “form follows function”. Appealing spaces matter more than you think. Whether you are tyring to sell cars or fix teeth, your customers and employees make judgements about you and your abilities based on what they see. What makes great Tenant Improvement design? Form and function.

Visualize yourself in the space

The next step in really great design is visualizing yourself in a space. Mentally standing in and walking through a space is probably the most valuable exercise you can do. This steps will force you to imagine the project in 3 dimensions. You will imagine the experience rather than the techicalities. This visualization step will allow you think about the feel over the technical details. You may discover spaces that feel cramped or too spacious. You may decide a wall needs an architectural feature. It could be you realize you need even less space. The point is you should try to understand the space before you commit to costly design time and construction. You need to feel as comfortable as possible the project is going to meet you expectations.

The visualization step may be difficult for you. If so, spend some time thinking about it and comparing your project with spaces you know well, like your house. You should find that imagining your project will get easier with practice and it’ll be well worth it.

Keep changes to a minimum, but don’t be afraid of them

Once your construction project starts, your planning should set you up for success. But you’ll find that changes to the plan are almost always necessary. Maybe your business plans change and you need a larger space. Or perhaps you find an endangered dung beetle on the site you’ve chosen. Maybe somebody screwed up. There are always changes.

But, the important thing for you to remember is: avoid all but the necessary changes. A change to your project plan is easy and cheap if you make it during the design phase. You only own lines on paper at that point. You may be charged a bit for the Architect’s time. But that is chump change compared to tearing out a newly constructed wall, or adding a 3rd toilet over by the reception area. The 3rd toilet might be important to you and you should not avoid that change. The rule here is the further along in construction you are, the more disruptive your changes will be.

Contractors matter

Next, your selection of the contractor will affect the outcome of the space. Picking the right contractor for the job is essential and is not only abuot money. Money is important, but you would not want to select a General Contractor that specilizes in building houses to work on your denist office. You won’t go wrong if you pick the right contractor that has the right experience.

Don’t skip the details

Finally, dont forget about the the other things that go in the space. Furniture, artwork, plants, TVs, printers, magazines, coffee makers, refrigerators, computers and time clocks are things you should consider. Make sure to take the time to find a home for everything and you’ll be pleased with how well it all comes together.