Remodeling your business doesn’t have to mean closing your doors and saying goodbye to your income. With the right commercial remodeling contractors on your side, you can perform a complete renovation – all while continuing to take care of your customers’ needs.
If you’re in the process of planning a business renovation, take note of these tips to keep that ‘open’ sign on your door:
Develop a Phasing Plan
During an occupied renovation, where a business stays open throughout the remodeling, a phasing plan is crucial. Instead of remodeling your entire space at once, your commercial renovation contractor crafts a plan that breaks the project into sections so your team can keep working and your customers can keep being served.
Along with dividing your business into sections, experienced remodeling contractors also sequence by priority. This means that they identify the parts of your business that are needed the most and schedule their remodeling when demand for them is at the lowest possible level.
A quality phasing plan should consider:
- The areas that need to stay accessible at all times
- The areas you can close temporarily or relocate
- How a remodel carries on seamlessly from one area to the next
Thoughtful phasing ensures organization, predictability, and customer convenience.
Prioritize Safe Access and Containment At All Times
While you can’t always hide business renovations from your customers, you can ensure convenient, safe access to your business while work is underway. When planning your renovation, commercial remodeling contractors will create clearly defined work zones to separate these spaces from occupied areas.
While construction industry workers already abide by OSHA safety standards, they implement many more when a work zone is also being occupied by the general public, including:
- Well-marked walkways for employees, visitors, and customers
- Barriers between construction zones and areas for the general public
- Well-marked temporary entrances and exits when the regular ones are out of order
Control Dust and Noise
The unfortunate reality is that even the most experienced commercial renovation contractors can’t prevent dust and noise. They are a standard part of most renovations. However, remodeling teams can certainly put measures in place to limit their impact.
For example, the loudest work can be completed during off-hours, while dust containment systems keep dust in customer and employee areas to a minimum. Construction teams use a number of different dust containment systems, including:
- Telescoping pole and plastic barriers
- Rigid, free-standing temporary walls with PVC panels and steel support posts
- Mobile containment carts that isolate overhead maintenance and ceiling access
- Specialized tools and attachments that attach to dry dust extractors and HEPA vacuum cleaners
Create Separate Entry Points
When you would prefer that your customers enjoy a straightforward, stress-free experience in your business, consider a separate entry for your remodeling contractors.
Customers can still use the main entrance they’re familiar with, but workers can access the job site more easily through an alternative entrance, such as a back service door or loading dock. This also prevents the need to traipse building supplies through an area where customers may be browsing or discussing their needs with employees.
Schedule Remodeling Around Operating Hours
When possible, schedule as much of your renovation work as possible around your operating hours to reduce the impact on your customers and team. This could mean shifting high-impact jobs like demolition, drilling, and utility shut-offs to early mornings, late nights, weekends, or closed holidays.
When utilities must be shut off during business hours, build a contingency plan, such as power generators, mobile service counters, and water rerouting.
Communicate, Communicate, Communicate
As soon as you sign on the dotted line to get renovations underway, communicate what’s going to happen to everyone involved in your business. That means customers, the occupants of neighboring buildings, and your team.
Use email newsletters, newspapers, social media, and in-store signage to tell customers you’re improving your business. Where necessary, include instructions for how they can still access your building – such as through the main or alternative entrance. Be sure to provide this information as early as possible so you can reach everyone your remodeling project affects.
When renovations are underway, keep everyone updated on the progress. In particular, make sure your team knows what renovations are happening and when, so there are no surprises.
To handle complaints, queries, and questions, assign one person from your business and one from your contractor team. This can prevent miscommunication and ensure everyone is on the same page.
Plan Your Commercial Remodel with DRC Construction in Texas
Your opening hours shouldn’t prevent you from transforming your commercial premises into something truly special for your team and customers. To plan a remodel while your business stays open, connect with the team at DRC Construction in Rockwall, Texas.
As industry experts specializing in commercial remodeling, we understand how important it is to keep your business running. Let us provide the turnkey, high-quality remodeling experience your business deserves.