Designing Operational Efficiency
When designing a new lifestyle center, design teams and developers often do not involve operations and facilities personnel in the decision-making process until it is too late. This article serves to outline some of the many ways that operations and facilities teams can contribute to create a successful project.
By Allen Dedels, AIA

Dedels

A lot of time and effort goes into the architectural design of a large lifestyle center. Decisions are made early in the design process concerning numerous architectural features that will be seen by the shopper — from the color of the sidewalk paving to the roof material of a special architectural feature. But, as important as the architectural design may be, there are many operational issues that can greatly influence and impact the design — and the overall success — of any large retail project.

In terms of cost, efficiency and overall effectiveness, it is critical to consider operational issues and their impact on the design decisions early in the planning phases of a lifestyle center. Incurring additional costs and expensive design changes can be reduced by involving the client’s operations department or facilities personnel early and often during the design process and team meetings.

At Mayfaire Town Center, in Wilmington, North Carolina, operations staff provided the dimensions of waste containers, required turning radii for trucks, and the needs of each tenant using each specific service court, which helped the team design service courts properly. © Allen Dedels

Sue Rice, director of operations for Mayfaire Town Center in Wilmington, North Carolina, agrees that being involved early on can be a life-saver down the road. “With any project, operations inherits what the design and construction leaves behind. To have some say in that early on was key.” Rice comments that for her “to be able to provide input during the design phase was extremely beneficial so that wise and practical decisions could be made that would facilitate ongoing operations for years to come.”

Communication with facilities personnel provides invaluable information to the design team. “Interaction typically starts early in the design process with the project architects,” says Tom Gilkeson, vice president of operations for Forest City Enterprises. “During these early meetings, we provide a list of items that should be included in the project and how we believe they should be incorporated into the project.” Discussing the specific operational issues of specific architectural features early in the design phase, before the concrete is poured and the streets are paved, can save a lot of time, money and headaches for all project stakeholders.

The Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel, Florida, demonstrates the success of the collaboration between operations and facilities personnel and the design team in the early life of the project. © Jim Roof Creative

The Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel, Florida, which held its grand opening in late 2008, is a case study demonstrating the success of the collaboration between operations and facilities personnel and the design team in the early life of the project. Gilkeson wanted his team “involved in all aspects as it affected the experience customers would receive.” For example, he notes that “public seating and landscaping are important elements that are instrumental in setting the tone for the shopping center and the experience delivered.”

“It is important to deliver this experience within parameters that meet our construction budget, but also be budget-friendly in the future,” says Gilkeson.

Regular project meetings for the Shops at Wiregrass included typical consultants such as lighting, landscape, mechanical, electrical and plumbing, and also brought in the Forest City operations team. There were several areas of design on the project where the information from the operations team guided and influenced the design team’s decisions.

Lighting Design

The lighting design for The Shops at Wiregrass has made the project come alive at night with decorative and specialty light fixtures. A lot of energy and attention was given to the selection of the particular fixtures and the lamp types. The decision was made to have multiple decorative light fixtures. The operations team suggested that the lamps should all be the same, so that the facilities team would not have to order and change numerous different lamp types. With this input, the amount of specialty lamps was kept to a minimum.

The operations team was involved with the selection of the decorative light fixtures in the main shopping areas, but also provided key input on the lighting design for the back-of-house areas. Operations and facilities personnel do not take the importance of ample lighting in areas where shoppers are not permitted but tenants must visit daily, such as the service court, for granted. Tenants need to feel safe taking their trash out or accepting deliveries at night. Low lighting levels in these areas can create shadows and dark spots which become a security issue. The Forest City operations team reviewed the lighting drawings for the Shops at Wiregrass and provided input to the lighting consultant on providing the right lighting levels and fixture placement in the service court areas.

Back-of-House Areas

Service courts are the unattractive, back end of a project, but are essential to the successful operation of any lifestyle center. There are many factors that influence the design and layout of these areas, such as who will use them and how they will operate. The size of the service court can vary depending on the tenant requirements, size and number of waste containers and owner operational requirements. For Mayfaire Town Center, operations staff provided “the dimensions of waste containers, required turning radii for trucks, and the needs of each tenant using each specific court,” says Rice, which “helped the team design service courts properly.”

Since the trash compactors and dumpsters are located in the service courts, coordination with and input from the waste management company or provider can be very helpful in the design. Waste management will provide design guidance with the layout based on the tenant mix. They can also review and provide design input on the service court size based on the size of their trucks and equipment. Waste receptacles for a specific restaurant may need to be housed in the building so that it can be refrigerated — it may be necessary to keep the odors to a minimum if the service area is near an exterior patio space. The leasing team may have to give up valuable space to accommodate the necessary waste receptacles.

In addition to the waste containers, service courts can contain numerous other “stuff” to support the operation of the center. Typically, there are loading bays for the delivery trucks. The length of the courts depends on the expected types of delivery trucks. Utilities can be located in the service area, such as electrical transformers and natural gas meters, and electrical connections for the compactors will need to be provided and coordinated. These items can take up a lot of space and need to be taken into account when designing the location, layout and size of the service court area.

Water Features

Fountains and water features can add a great deal of interest to a project. They can offer a sense of fun or tranquility, but they can become a headache for facilities and operations personnel. Charles Porter, principal at Development Management Associates, agrees. “We love to add water features to these open-air centers, but if they aren’t properly designed, we find the operations staff will not be able to maintain them,” he says. “The next thing you know, your wonderful $700,000 water feature has been turned into a large planter because operations can’t maintain it — and that we want to avoid.”

The Shops at Wiregrass has one specialty feature fountain with programmable lighting, and three “off the shelf” decorative bowl-type fountains. Each one of the fountains requires different kinds of maintenance and upkeep. When selecting the fountain for a project, operations provided input as to how they would maintain the features. This input was heavily relied upon during the final selection of the water features.

Landscape and Hardscape

The design of the landscaping and hardscaping are important factors in the success of a pedestrian-friendly environment. Early planning and discussions with the operations team on how the landscaping and hardscaping will be maintained will affect the design.

Rice agrees that being involved with the initial landscape planning was a huge cost saver. “Landscape maintenance is our largest common area expense. Being able to participate in the location and type of plants that were first planted was helpful, as well as being able to share with our designers our knowledge of the local climate and knowing what thrives — and doesn’t thrive — in this coastal environment.”

Irrigation techniques should also be discussed with operations personnel. “Suggestions were also made as the irrigation system was designed so that sprays, heads, etc., made sense for what would be adjacent to any particular area,” says Rice. “We were also provided with a very detailed map of all zones so that if an issue arises, a lot of digging is not necessary.”

Discussions with the operations team on the cleaning program can influence the design and selection of a lifestyle center’s paving material. Pavers require additional care when cleaning. The use of a pressure washer can cause the sand between the pavers to be blown out if too high of a pressure is used. Some types of pavers can be easily removed and replaced when damaged or stained, which can easily be completed by the facilities personnel.

Special Events

Holiday décor and promotional events can be serious revenue generators and adequate utility services for these activities are often overlooked. The center court or public meeting spaces have to be designed to accommodate multiple holiday and promotional activities. Early planning and discussions with the owner, operations, and even management’s vendors for the promotional programs are key to providing the design team with enough input to make an informed decision. These programs can greatly influence the design and shape of the public spaces and the surrounding buildings. Knowing the requirements to support the programs early in the design phase will result in the most effective infrastructure being installed and constructed.

Finding the right spot for special event electrical equipment needs to be reviewed since it can impact construction costs, building design and leasing. There are several potential locations including in-ground vaults, on the building exterior, or housed in unused retail space. Each one of these has pros and cons and should be discussed with the operations and management team, including the vendor providing the displays and decorations.

Having the operations team involved not only in the early design phases, but also during construction, is a key ingredient in the success and management of a retail center. Pictured here is Mayfaire Town Center in Wilmington, North Carolina. © Allen Dedels

If lighting will be provided in the trees, then electrical outlets will be required in the planter beds at the base of the trees. This may require additional electrical conduit and outlets. “We kept in mind the fact that a holiday décor package would be installed annually,” says Rice of Mayfaire Town Center, “and that available areas would drive decisions as to what pieces of décor would work for us.”

In case operations and facilities personnel find themselves not integrated in the design process, there are several ways to become involved. The easiest and quickest way is to attend the project design meetings. Participating in face-to-face meetings is one of the best ways to discuss project issues. If attending design meetings is not possible, then reviewing and providing comments on the design drawings is a helpful alternative. Creating operational guidelines in the form of a manual or criteria and providing the manual at the onset of the project is another way operational and facility people can provide input. These can range in complexity, anywhere from listing manufacturers and products to a single page of service requirements.

These are only a few issues that can shape and influence the design of a project. Many times, issues tend to be forgotten until they pop up later when the project is under construction or the grand opening has taken place. Having the operations team involved not only in the early design phases, but also during construction, is a key ingredient in the success and management of a retail center.

“It’s a fine balance between an efficient and functional design,” says Porter. “A productive dialog with operations and management helps get it done right.” 

Allen Dedels, AIA, is an associate director at Cooper Carry, a national design firm. He works in the firm’s retail studio.