It is a common misconception that office refurbishment must always occur as one big project. However, due to budget, operational, or strategic reasons, many organisations do not undertake refurbishments, and this leads to ongoing issues with the quality of the workspace. Phased refurbishment is a solution that allows making gradual changes while continuing business operation and mitigating financial risks.
All or Nothing
Traditional office refurbishment always includes shutting down operations and undertaking a large-scale strip-out process followed by the whole office’s reconstruction. There are cases when this approach works perfectly. Namely, if the lease expires and major renovations are required anyway; or there is an issue with building’s structure; or you have a temporary location option.
But most companies find themselves in another situation. They cannot afford to pause their operations for weeks in order to refurbish their office. Nor can they fit a large amount of spending in their budget for this year. And there is no way of forecasting future space needs, considering the hybrid nature of today’s workplace. This does not mean that changes should not take place—just a different method must be used.
Financial Benefits of Gradual Changes
It makes much sense financially to implement changes in phases rather than in one big batch. Firstly, splitting £150,000 of investments into three phases (each worth £50,000) allows staying within the operational budget. Secondly, it helps avoid using outdated pricing models for the entire office refurbishment while still achieving results from previous phases. Thus, you may get some inflation-adjusted prices in later phases, whereas the first phase brings you the instant effect.
Prioritising According to Impact
In order to make phased changes as valuable as possible, it is crucial to assess workspace deficiencies systematically and understand how impactful each change will be. As any improvement will have its price, and it should be spent wisely.
Typically, the highest impact-to-price ratio belongs to changes like acoustic treatment, lighting upgrades, and furniture rearrangement. In 3,000 square foot office, such alterations cost around £15,000-30,000, yet they change the workspace entirely. Implementing such improvements in Phase 1 gives you the effect right away.
If there is some critical infrastructure upgrade needed—such as ventilation, electricity, or data infrastructure—you will probably require implementing them earlier. Bad air, poor temperature control, and limited power capacity will ruin your efforts otherwise. So, starting with the infrastructure is the right approach.
Making visual changes also helps a lot because people react differently to new interior fit out spaces. Redecoration, installing new floors, and renovation of the reception area can help you show the clients and employees that you have invested in the workspace.
Minimising Disruption
The hidden cost of a major office refurbishment is the disruption of work that comes along with it. The lost productivity, additional expenditure on relocating staff to other places, and revenue lost from temporarily inaccessible facilities should not be overlooked.
Phased approach helps significantly cut the amount of disruption. For example, implementing the changes floor-by-floor lets organisations continue working on other floors while refurbishment works proceed. Staff members are simply relocated within the premises of your building, so the disruption of collaboration is minimal.
If some works must be especially disruptive to continue on weekdays, they can be undertaken during weekend and evening hours. This means more costs for paying workers who perform tasks on unusual schedule, but it also means avoiding loss of productive working time.
Completing a part of the office in phases lets employees benefit from changes as soon as possible. Meeting rooms are ready, then collaborative space follows, then the focus area gets upgraded—this creates a positive atmosphere and keeps people motivated.
Flexibility and Learning Experience
A phased approach also gives you the advantage of being flexible throughout the course of the project. The period between phases lets you review results of previous works and decide on the changes to be made further.
Collecting usage data after Phase 1 completion allows you to determine whether assumptions were correct and readjust space allocation accordingly. It can be too late for it in single-phase projects, which means you will need to undergo additional disruptions to correct mistakes.
Getting employees’ feedbacks in-between phases is another useful trick. By now, they would have enough experience to form an opinion about the changes, and it can serve as a basis for future stages. This makes them feel heard and boosts satisfaction levels.
Finally, technological advancements allow incorporating new tools in the latest phases even in case if the plan was developed long ago. Improvements to audio visual equipment, building management system, or workspace booking platform can be implemented gradually rather than in one step.
Budget Management Approaches
There are several ways of organising your budget to make phased refurbishment feasible:
Capital allocation for several consecutive years—this will allow making £40,000-50,000 of improvements each year. In total, it would be £120,000-150,000 for a three-year period, which is easier for most SMEs than £140,000 in one year.
Revenues from optimised space or cost reductions achieved by introducing improvements in previous phases may help pay for the next stage.
Flexible scope of each phase allows changing the budget allocation depending on your performance each year. This makes phased project adaptable.
Planned for Coherence
The main risk of a phased project is inconsistency in results. In order to prevent this, it is necessary to apply various planning tools:
Developing masterplan before start of the first phase will let you see all the details of the project beforehand. Having plans for all phases will make sure that everything happens in a logical sequence.
Procurement approach, allowing obtaining all furniture and materials in advance, can solve the problem of price fluctuations and material availability.
Single project manager for all phases will keep the design concept consistent despite the long-term implementation.
When is Phased Approach Suitable?
It is good for those cases when organisations:
- Cannot afford comprehensive refurbishment right away
- Cannot temporarily suspend operations for months
- Have no certainty about future needs
- Want to try before implementing the idea fully
- Have multi-floor offices or multi-building estates
Otherwise, phased approach may not be the best decision as it applies mostly to big office spaces that can sustain partial completion; to buildings with no structural problems; and to facilities whose leasing agreement obliges to finish works quickly.
Phased refurbishment is the practical way out when ideal conditions for a comprehensive project are not met. It combines budgetary considerations and need for improvements and shows how a well-planned project can be executed effectively.
Paradigm Interiors designs implementation strategy for phased office refurbishment and commercial fit outs that helps achieve desired results in phases.