Working With a Designer on a Commercial Project

Making the right choice is essential for the project team, because the interior designer will have contact with every employee in the company-from the rank and file employees up to the executives. Interior designers are an integral part of the design team, and it's important to choose one who understands facilities and excels at managing relationships with the design team, with the facilities team and with the employees. The role played by the interior designer will be based upon the type of project. Is the project new construction or is it an extensive interior renovation?

With new construction, the interior designer will be part of the project team made up of the facilities manager, project architect, other assigned facilities personnel, and engineer. The project architect will take the lead. With an extensive interior renovation, the make up of the project team will remain the same, but the interior designer will take the lead. Facilities managers need to ask is, "Should architectural and interior design services be a turnkey job using the services of one firm?" Or "should separate firms be brought in to act as a check and balance for the project?" Ultimately, the decision is the responsibility of the facility manager and the following information will serve as a guide to aid in making the best choice.

Education, examination, and experience are credentials that are expected from a professional interior designer, but there are other characteristics that are also important. To ensure a successful project, the interior designer must understand the company's culture, the image to be projected, and the ins and outs of the organization in order to develop a successful design that meets the company's and employees' needs.

Interior designers must work hand in hand with the facilities team and exhibit the following "facilities" skills in order to be deemed worthy of hiring:

F=Flexibility

A=Aesthetics

C=Communication

I=Interior material and product knowledge

L=Logic

I=Interactivity

T=Teamwork

I=Installation knowledge

E=Environmental sensitivity

S=Savings orientation

Flexibility is the watchword for today's facilities design, so the interior designer must be willing to meet the organization's changing needs, which are constant in today's global economy.

Companies are embracing designs that help them provide more efficient and productive work environments for their employees while helping them remain competitive. Consequently, designs must be developed that can easily be adapted as changes occur.

In the past, facility managers have been frustrated with change. They wanted to "nail the systems furniture panels to the floor" to keep them from moving. Now, seeing and accepting change is a daily routine.

Aesthetics are based on the image that the organization wants to project to the community it serves and to its employees. Interior designers interweave this image into every aspect of planning and designing of a facility. Employees are an organization's greatest resource, and companies are exploring new approaches to workplace design in an effort to recruit and retain them. The cold, monotonous appearance of past work environments is disappearing, and spaces that are softer and more appealing to workers are being designed with natural light, colors, textures, and different shapes; designers' portfolios are reflecting decisions based on those changes.

They are also including special amenity and collaboration areas for employees to foster networking and communication. In the office area, interior designers are working with facility managers to provide employees with comfortable, user adjustable work areas that provide minimum distractions from noise and appropriate lighting to reduce glare. These needs are balanced with cost.

Communication is key to the completion of a successful project. The interior designer will be communicating with the design team, the on site facilities team, the employees, outside consultants, furniture installation crews, and the building contractor. There is no such thing as over communicating, and written documentation of any changes should be copied to all project team members to ensure the requested change does not affect other areas of the project.

Interior materials and product knowledge is required to select the best materials and products for the project. New products are constantly being introduced, and the interior designer must stay abreast of new products that may increase the efficiency of the work place. In the case of a renovation project, extensive research may be needed to integrate new products with existing ones that are discontinued but cannot be replaced due to cost.

Logical decisions backed up by sound programming skills and business principles make the sale of the project design to upper management easier. Many factors such as aesthetics, budget, timeframes, and environmental issues will affect the choices made. Identifying viable options, explaining why they were or were not selected, and giving sound reasons with supporting information for why choices were made is a business approach that upper management understands. Using a business approach does not take away from the creative process, it paves the way for its acceptance.

Interactive discussions between the facilities team and the design team are needed to understand the scope of the project. These talks should ensure an understanding of corporate philosophy and politics and building and work station standards.

Also, communication between the employee and the interior designer is needed to understand the parameters and the process of the work. Being a team player is a key ingredient to the design process, so pick someone who respects other opinions, supports team decisions, and can build trust amongst project members. Egos and personal agendas must be set aside for the good of the project. Team members can play and feed on each other's ideas, and the diversity of the team helps to create powerful projects that are better than a single concept.

Installation knowledge is critical to the process. It's difficult to specify products if the knowledge of how they fit together is not there, and change orders will be needed because of incomplete specifications. Organizing, planning, and paying attention to details can limit the number of change orders required.

Environmental issues include concern about being a good corporate citizen. Organizations are more sensitive to-and understand the importance of-conserving the country's renewable resources by using the concepts of sustainable design in projects. Interior designers must be familiar with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, and they must actively search for ways to reduce energy consumption. This may require them to experiment with (or specify) products that can be recycled in the future.

Savings orientation, is always the first expectation when organizing and designing projects . Companies are streamlining operations to remain competitive, and interior designers should be aware of new ways to save money, time, and resources for their clients. In today's environment, facilities managers are asked to make decisions as if they owned the company, and interior designers should respect and follow that philosophy.

While there is quite a bit of initial work when selecting an interior designer, the facility manager who establishes a relationship with one who displays the "facilities" skills criteria can form a win-win partnership for all future projects.

Sue Markham, ASID, is Sr. Facilities Designer for Gulf Power Company, a Southern Company. She is NCIDQ certified, and has a bachelors and masters degrees in interior design from Florida State University. For more information, e-mail Sue at msmarkha@southernco.com.