Wolgast Blog - Construction Trends, Tips and Information

Without proper obstruction, motorists accidentally drive their cars into buildings 60 times a day in the U.S., causing damage and loss to businesses and homeowners.

The Storefront Safety Council is a group of volunteers that are “passionate about ending vehicle-into-building crashes.” They have a variety of experts to help them address the causes and prevention of cars hitting buildings. Members include architects, risk managers, parking specialists, lawyers, and perimeter safety professionals. They have collected data from years 2014-2021 and have determined that there is an average of 60 vehicle/building impacts daily, 500 deaths annually, and 4,000 injuries each year.

The cost and availability of building materials can presently be described as highly unpredictable, so the pre-planning phase has become the key to Restaurant Construction more than ever before! We have strategies to share to get your restaurant or business operating quicker and generate income faster.

What Is a Groundbreaking Ceremony?

Groundbreaking ceremonies are an excellent way to start off your building project. With the need for content creation the way that it is these days, a ceremony is a sure-fire way to bring excitement and attention to your future building and business.

Office Remodel (Part II)

As a business owner or manager, you want to make your working space comfortable, attractive and efficient for your work force.  Currently popular in office settings is open daylighting, LED lamps, replaceable carpet squares and work stations with standing options.   If you don’t own your building, you may feel restricted to make these changes until your ownership status changes, but it’s more likely that your landlord will be willing to work with you to make updates and keep you as a tenant.

Neil Frank, Wolgast’s Director of Architecture, recently designed the remodel of a client’s medical clinic. They needed to reconfigure their space for several additional exam rooms at their existing location. According to Neil, “overtime, floorplans often have wasted space that can be put to better use”. A building’s flow can change eventually, compared to the original plan. He said, in this instance, “The biggest space gains were from reconfiguring their large waiting area. This allowed us to expand the number of exam rooms.” Another common area used for freeing up space is the storage areas that were once used for file storage. With electronic filing abilities, not as much room is needed for this use.

Great customer service for restaurants is changing. Many people I know have been understanding that staff is stretched in the back of house as well as the front of the house, but as the labor shortage continues, how long can existing staff keep meeting the needs of patrons? An answer could be automation or artificial intelligence to make specific tasks quicker and allow staff to focus on more meaningful tasks.

When do existing environmental hazards effect building ownership most?

Have you considered commercial investment properties to add to your portfolio?  On a surface level, it seems like a long-term, but easy investment that will generate ongoing income and also potentially appreciate in value the longer you own it.  For those who have capital to invest, is it the right type of investment for you?