Carpet for corporate needs

Building Operating Management, Sep 2001 by Hunt, Richard

MOORE'S LAW, the theory that the speed of computer processors doubles every 18 months, applies to computer hardware. But given the rapid pace of business decisions and strategic initiatives, something like Moore's Law compresses the support requirements for high tech businesses as well. Mergers, acquisitions and changing market opportunities can require major business changes quarter-by-quarter - far faster than the traditional five- or 10-year horizon of real estate plans.

Like many tech companies, Informix - a 20-- year-old data management technology company with $1.2 billion in annual revenue - changes the real estate portfolio frequently to fit current needs. During the 1980s and early 1990s, this meant double-- digit growth of revenue, people and space. We typically outgrew facilities within two to three years of a five-year lease term; often that meant moving to a new location and abandoning tenant improvements that were not fully depreciated. In the mid '90s, acquisition of other database development companies brought the need to combine offices. Most recently it has meant consolidation of existing offices as more workers telecommute, work from customer sites and have less need for fixed space.

Informix competes with software giants like Oracle and Microsoft for business and employees every day. Corporate appearance in both customer contact and employee areas of the office is important to demonstrate the commitment to a quality environment that facilitates a positive image and productive workplace.

Informix is a global organization, with corporate headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif.; development labs in the San Francisco Bay area, Portland, Ore., and Denver; and a service/support facility in Kansas City, Kan. Additionally, there are more than 100 field sales offices in 40 countries worldwide. All properties are leased under a variety of gross and net leases.

In the past, carpet and carpet maintenance were procured in traditional fashion, utilizing landlord standard finishes and tenant improvement allowances to fit out office interiors. Five years ago, Informix began to develop a carpet program that could deliver aesthetically pleasing design, durability, maintenance and reuse capabilities - all important factors in a dynamic workplace. The goal was to provide flexibility of space without disposing of the carpet and starting all over. But the quarter-to-- quarter mentality made it very challenging to change the mindset that assumed it was better to buy cheap and throw it away.

The first step was a series of visits to field and corporate office locations. Informix typically takes leased space in prominent Class A buildings in the tech corridors. Fit and finish are usually first rate, and a standards program exists for furniture. The furniture program has worked extremely well in providing quality workstations for employees as space was reconfigured for a growing company.

During these visits, it became obvious that Informix had great space, good furniture and dirty carpet. There were several reasons for this, among them the fact that Informix didn't have on-site dedicated facilities personnel in field sales locations and people just got used to the fact that the carpet was going to be dirty. It was usually addressed as a maintenance issue, but the janitorial companies provided by the landlords weren't interested in a high quality carpet maintenance program.

Our goal was to develop a carpet maintenance RFP to bid out the work for all of our North American facilities. The goal was to contract with one vendor that could provide a consistent solution in all markets. Informix issued bids to the top four carpet manufacturers and selected what we felt was the best combination of cleaning technology and the administrative infrastructure to deliver a consistent service in more than 50 buildings across the United States and Canada.

Carpet Option Evaluations

After addressing the maintenance problem, the next logical step was to institute a strategic plan to address the entire carpet program. Although there are inhouse jokes about our "holistic, organic" approach to real estate and facilities management, these ideas aren't just New Age fads. They are part of a concept that allows us to understand and balance corporate needs with fiscal responsibility to build programs that work.

* Holistic. The best way to fix a problem is at the beginning of the process. A solid maintenance program is critical to good-looking carpet, but it was vital to determine what other factors needed to be built in at the beginning. Construction, color, pattern, installation, manufacturer support and maintenance all have to be factored into product selection and carpet program management. Carpet that looks great on the color board but is difficult to maintain is not a responsible design practice. Informix worked with designers to come up with a product that would look as good in year five as on day one. A lot of people laugh when they hear that level of expectation, but at sites where the program has been instituted, the carpet consistently looks great.