We get a lot of questions from new clients about creating a successful facility management plan. Here are three things that every organization should know before meeting with a facility management company:

Like many of you, we have clients in both urban and rural settings.  With these different settings, our process with each client is based on their unique set of needs, timelines and goals.

I’ve written a lot about retrofitting and remodeling existing facilities to maximize the space. Now I want to share with you some of the tips we give our clients about staying open while your facility is under construction.

I recently met with colleagues for a discussion on senior housing trends and thought I’d share the three things we’re seeing in this growing and evolving industry:

In these lean times, many clients are looking for ways to enhance their existing space or seeking to relocate to a more appropriate existing building. Before you decide to retrofit a facility, keep these three points in mind.

When you’re planning a new space or updating an existing layout, consider designing flexible space that can be used for multiple purposes. Multi-use rooms can be very economical, saving costs and increasing efficiencies. Here are three places to consider creating flex space:

Here are four things to keep in mind when evaluating your facility management practices:

Whether you’re planning to replace or repair, relocate or remodel, there are certain expenses that should be made up front, to save you more at the back end. Here are four things to think about:

To determine if sharing or outsourcing facility management is right for your organization, ask yourself these three questions:

Last week I was talking with colleagues from the architectural and construction teams. They had a couple of interesting points about consolidating space and thoughts to keep in mind when looking at a new site that I wanted to share.

Facility managers are looking for ways to cut back and ideas on how to get more for less.

One option is to conduct an audit of existing spaces. The analysis may shed light on areas that can be consolidated for smarter, more efficient uses.

Like many of us, we’re carefully reviewing budgets for every line item. However, this is a good time to put into place some relatively simple ideas to enhance the patient experience. Service is not costly, and updating your environment can be a minimal expense if done right. An “experience audit” costs little but can yield great information on how your patients are treated and how they view your organization.

Healthcare is shedding jobs, the credit crunch is forcing facilities to defer projects and long-term economics outlooks are bleak. You can take advantage of this unchartered territory with some cost-saving measures.

While the economy has slowed, this may be the perfect time to evaluate your systems and begin implementing LEAN process improvement. What can LEAN do for your organization? Here are three things:

Since originally championed by Toyota in the1950’s, we’ve seen LEAN Process improvement and design move from manufacturing into a variety of industries including aerospace, engineering, architecture, and today we’re seeing its growth in healthcare. While becoming more accepted and even “commonplace,” there are some misconceptions;

While getting through 2009 is going to be a challenge, we still need to plan for 2010 and beyond. Here are a couple of thoughts to get prepared for the future:

With uncertainties looming in 2009, facility management in the short term is critical. Here are three areas we are working with clients on in the coming months –