Office remodeling is challenging and expensive, yet occasional. According to the stats, home and office remodeling has increased by 5.4% since 2010. Office remodeling not only changes the personality of your office but it also motivates the employees, adds functionality to the workspace, attracts new clients, and adds value to the property. However, the first step for initiating your office-remodeling project is to create a budget.

Consider the Costs of Flooring

Flooring defines the personality of your office. Wooden or tiled flooring is ideal for workspace. However, it is necessary that the flooring is comfortable to walk. Different types of floorings have different costs, ranging from $473 to $1310. Visit the market with your contractor to find out the suitable flooring for your office. If you are on budget then replace the flooring of most used areas only, including doorways, passages, and stairs.

Painting and Wall Art

Ideally, wall art creates a dramatic look and personality to your office. However, choosing a nice color for your office paint is a cheaper way. You can also use different types of wall paints and designs to save the cost of wallpaper along with adding motivation to the workplace. The price of professional paint costs around $250 to $650.

Improve the Lighting

The productivity and comfort of your employees and clients largely depends on the lighting. Too much brightness or dim light causes discomfort. Professional lights like energy efficient bulbs are better for offices than wall lamps. However, you can install wall lamps and small chandeliers in the meeting room to add royalty and confidence. The cost of lighting ranges from $95 to $350 for small offices. Consider energy-efficient lights to save the cost of bills in long run.

Make Windows More Functional

Replacement of windows is beneficial only if you make them more functional. Energy-efficient windows cut the electricity bills up to 35% per annum. Tinted energy-efficient windows reflect the dangerous UV lights but allow healthy sunlight to enter the workspace. These windows also improve the brightness in the rooms and reduce the requirement of artificial light. Installation of the simple windows costs around $350 to $750. Installation of energy-efficient windows is a little expensive than simple windows but it is also one time investment, and ranges from $650 to $1450.

Furnishings and Renovation Items

The cost of furnishings and renovation items completely depends on your choice. You can cut this cost up to 100%. However, furnishings, decoration, and renovation items are important to make the workplace a livable and more functional area. Average sized shelves cost from $250 and more. The desks cost from $450 and above.

Budgeting According to the Room Size

Remodeling of the entire office space is important for professional touch. However, you can reduce the costs by remodeling the important areas only. An office from 200-300 sq-ft space requires at least $850 or more for remodeling. A 400-500 sq-ft office requires at least $1,500, and a 500 sq-ft office requires at least $2000 for remodeling.

1. Measure the total area of the office and divide it into high-priority and less-priority areas.
2. Note down the required items of remodeling along with their costs.
3. Calculate the total estimated cost of remodeling.
4. Compare the cost with your estimated budget. If the total cost of remodeling is higher than your estimated budget then re-check the requirements of remodeling and cancel out the less-required items.
5. Calculate again to estimate the total cost of remodeling.

When preparing the budget, make sure to add at least 35% extra cost as a backup of your project. Remember that office remodeling is an occasional project and cutting out less-prioritized items may make you suffer a loss to some extent. Therefore, always prepare the budget carefully and re-check it as many times as possible to finalize a foolproof budget plan. For more information and consultation on office remodeling, contact us today!

 

In any type of project, specifically construction project, time management is crucial for success. For construction project managers, failing to meet the deadlines is a red flag for manager’s career. Moreover, the construction industry is already blacklisted for delays in completion of the projects. A planned and systematic schedule could help you save a lot of money and complete the project before the deadline successfully.

These dos and don’ts of time management in a construction project will be helpful even if you complete your projects on time.

Dos of Time Management

1.      Do Create a Detailed Plan

Many construction project managers fail to complete the project before deadline because they do not plan the project in detail. When planning your construction project, make sure to list down everything in detail, including micro projects and write down the estimated time to complete each project. This will help you create a timeline of activities.

2.      Do Motivate Your Crew

Motivation is exceptionally effective in keeping your crew on track and encouraging them to be more productive for your company. A motivated crew is potent to complete a project even before the deadline. Apart from encouraging your employees, set up a motivation plan including offering free food occasionally, starting the day with a quick motivational speech or quote, and mentioning the best workers of the day after the completion of a working day.

3.      Do Find Overlapping Spaces

The construction managers can overlap the activities on the site by putting multiple activities in progress simultaneously. The managers can find the overlapping activities while planning the project beforehand.

4.      Do Estimate Realistic Completion Time

It is ideal to complete a project at least two weeks before the deadline. However, it is your responsibility as a construction manager to find out the practicality of this dream. Make sure to estimate the practical time to complete a project.

Don’ts of Time Management

5.      Don’t Add too Many Restrictions and Conditions

It is the responsibility of the project managers to make sure that the project fulfills the essential construction and safety rules and regulations. For this, you may need to restrict the mobile phone usage on the site. However, do not impose too many conditions and restrictions as it results in de-motivating the crew.

6.      Don’t Ask For Updates Time and Again

The project managers should realize that asking for updates repeatedly may put pressure on the workers. It is important to share the updates with the crew before starting a working day. Assign the responsibilities and get updates only once or twice a day. Make sure to evaluate the behaviors. If you find a procrastinator in the crew, do ask them about the updates more than other workers on the site.

7.      Don’t Forget Smart Management

Accurate digital workforce training, planning, and updating is ideal to manage the projects smartly. Technology helps save time, money, and hard work, and brings a lot of other benefits pertaining to the nature of the job. Smart management includes the usage of project management tools, digital automation of the estimates, sharing the plans with the crew, and using construction management apps.

Completing your projects on time not only helps in saving costs and time but it also helps in building good market reputation and increasing your industrial value.

Let us know how we might help you – contact SiliconX Construction today.

A successful construction project does not revolve around just planning and execution. The project managers have to own projects like their own babies and implement effective policies to make it a successful construction project. The managers need to be thoughtful, innovative, technical, and unbiased when converting their efforts into practical success.

These 5 keys will help you manage and complete every construction project successfully.

1.     Free Flow of Communication

Free communication from stakeholders to suppliers and workers is essential to ensure that you pass the instructions in the most accurate manner. There are many benefits of practicing free flow of communication. Firstly, it saves a lot of time. There are no job repetitions. It helps build a sense and practice of teamwork among employees. The workers realize their importance and give their fullest to complete their daily tasks.

2.     Continuous and Innovative Planning

Most of the construction projects do not complete in their estimated time. Common problems include absence of employees, lack of supplies, and mechanical problems. Exceptional cases include incompetent or quarrelsome workers and change in deadlines or requirements by the client. In either case, it is the responsibility of project manager to make sure that the project is completed before the deadline ends.

Continuous and innovative planning helps unfold the next stages of the project and find clever ways to complete the jobs while saving more time. Assigning more workers on one task and keeping a backup of supplies are good techniques to escape common construction project management problems. Again, it is ideal to stay in touch with the clients.

3.     Pay Attention to Tasks on Site

Some project managers prefer spending time on their desks and going through the daily progress reports only. But as a project manager, you also need to be present on site and be attentive to observe the operations. Ask questions, establish links with the workers, and offer them tips and ideas to complete their jobs in lesser time. It also helps retain the clients for good.

4.     Use Online Tools to Calculate and Monitor the Costs

The costs of a project are calculated in advance. The contract of your project contains a clause that describes the range of extra costs. In worst cases, the cost may exceed the range described in the clause. You can use online tools and calculators to keep a track of the projects costs and create estimates by shuffling the costs of different projects. Completing a construction project within the cost given by the client is a success in itself.

5.     Implementation of Automated Reporting System

Some projects include only 50 workers on site. In contrast, some projects include more than 1000 workers on site. Apart from workers, there are also many other people involved in a project. As a project manager, you cannot afford to spend time replying hundreds of emails a day. Implementing an automated reporting system will help clients, suppliers and workers to directly report to you and receive the next instructions.

Along with all this, you also need to be a dynamic team player in order to complete the project successfully, professionally, and timely.

Silicon X Construction has been providing excellent quality and service to its Bay Area customers for years.  Why not give us a call at 408.520.2450 or send us a message to find out how we can make your next project shine?  We look forward to hearing from you.

Commercial remodeling projects are not only budgetary but these are also hectic and daunting. Considering office renovation is like preparing to sign a business deal that may or may not end up well. For making office renovation profitable, you need expert’s advice as well as an understanding of how office remodeling can turn into a moneymaking business for good.

1.     Attracting New Hires

IT professionals want to work in organizations like Facebook and Google not only because of their services in IT but also because of their work environment. Google attracted more talent from all around the world after the release of ‘The Internship’. If you already use social media content marketing and social media recruitment techniques, then you can easily attract new hires with photos of your remodeled office.

2.     Demanding Higher Price for Services

Perception and first impression are the strongest power-players in a business deal. Your customers choose you above other businesses because they conceive your business to be ‘more premium’ and ‘efficient’ than others. Office remodeling completely changes the perception of your business in customer’s mindset. For the first-time buyers, a perfect professional environment is all you need to win at least 50% of the contract.

3.     Motivating Employees for Productivity

A majority of the companies include gym, gaming zone, and fresh colors for office renovation. These remodeling steps are not for making office ‘a fun place’ but to affect employee psychologies and motivate the employees for more productivity.  For example, neutral gray and white offices are now considered boring. Similarly, cubicles take more space in offices and decrease intra-organizational communication. Open space office desks reflect modern and more productive organizational infrastructure.

4.     Expanding Employee Base

If you are considering hiring new employees in your company or add up a department of IT or maintenance but lack enough space at workplace, then office remodeling has good solutions for you. For example, open space offices can easily make room for three to eight extra employees on a floor.

5.     Retaining Employees and Customers

Office remodeling is one of the most modern keys for employee and customer retention. It not only reduces new hire and training costs but also makes it easier for you to negotiate with your customers.

6.     Expanding Your Online Customer Base

Commercial companies like grocery item manufacturing companies use office remodeling as a tool to attract new customers. For example, if company A manufactures soft drinks, then the company may associate the concept of ‘Employee Care’ with their in-house services. Similarly, a women’s magazine may include gym and spa in office remodeling project and associate it with ‘Fit Women’ or ‘Women Power’ for corporate effectiveness.

The commercial property remodeling industry has increased by 3.3% and earned revenue of $59bn from 2010 to 2015, according to IBIS World. The report further reveals that high consumer spending on office remodeling, decrement in office rental vacancies, and bigger corporate profits will lead to robust increment in the industry of commercial office remodeling.

 

For more information about Silicon X Construction, and Borelli Investment Company’s property management services, please contact us today.

Commercial interior designing is trickier than home remodeling. The focus of home renovation is on customer choices, preferences, and personality. However, the focus of commercial property remodeling is primarily on the business goals.

Some common trends are predicted to rule the sky of commercial property designing and remodeling. Have a look on the most popular commercial property design trends in 2016.

Use of Deep and Reflecting Tones

White is no longer an ideal color for commercial properties. However, you can make combinations of white with catchy and bright colors like red and orange.

Many offices prefer wide French windows for extracting the benefits of nature for the employees. If you want to blend natural attraction with work environment, then low and cooling tones like beige and brown in textured and patterned tiles would be a good choice.

 Eco-Friendly Buildings

The corporate sector is all set to embrace the pressure of meeting environmental obligations. Many organizations have already converted into eco-friendly infrastructure and some organizations are already in the process.

Some important eco-friendly commercial property remodeling trends include more use of glass in external frames, placement of air-cleaning plants in corridors and offices, installation of solar energy panels, and reduction in energy-consuming equipments like replacement of desktop computers with laptops.

Installation of photovoltaic glass is also a primary commercial property design trend in 2016. A photovoltaic glass is future-seeking material incorporated with next generation solar cells that make a building self-sufficient in energy production.

Collaborative Design

Modern organizations encourage intra-organizational communication and believe in the power of corporate unity. Collaborative commercial designs improve the flow of constant communication and interaction and allow the commercial space to operate as transparent panels. Full-scale refurbishments are not necessary for transforming into collaborative designs. Just a few alterations like replacement of cubicles with attached workstations are enough.

Quirky Designing

The commercial real estate has taken quirky designing as a gift from home remodeling, which has now shifted to classic European designing. Quirky designing involves including any attractive theme or design in office space that may or may not match the overall theme. However, it needs right professional knowledge to blend quirky designs with overall commercial theme.

Smart Buildings

Installation of WiFi is just one of the obvious facilities in work environment. Smart buildings or intelligent buildings are emerging technology that has taken almost a quarter of the century to come into physical form. These futuristic designs include an automatic fire and security system with amazing ease of data sharing and transferring. The smart buildings comprise of three key components including hardware, software, and network.

Luxury Services

The commercial real estate has become more flexible in recent years. Gym, spa, hotel, rest room, medical facility room, and other such facilities are not included in luxury corporate services in 2016.

The corporate sector has always talked about three key assets – cash, bonds, and stocks. Commercial real estate and office design is the fourth asset to demonstrate the capital sources, corporate transparency, and quality of services of an organization.

 

Contact us today to discuss your commercial remodel project!