Thread: What would you do different?

For all the facility owners and managers here....

If you could go back and do something different in the construction, design or layout of your facility, what would it be?

Steve

Steve

One of the biggest development mistakes that I still see being made is not laying out the entrance to allow access to the office without having to go through the security gate. It becomes such a barrier for not only new potential customers, but for existing customers who are stopping by to make a payment.

MisterJim444

drive through loading bays

Oh yah and a big penthouse on the roof overlooking the lake ... some may think I'm kidding. And the helipad got chopped out due to the reccession ... once again I'm not joking. All I can say is some business partners have the most interesting requests.

At my particular site I would change many things.
-We have freight only elevators, I would have passenger/freight combined.
-We have regular doors on the inside units, I would have wider roll up doors.
-Two buildings are drywall/wood inside, I would have them corrugated metal NO PAINTING!!!
-I would change the unit sizes of several downstairs larger units to many little ones.
-I would never have built the buildings the way they are designed ie: rounded corners, metal sheathed back half of building.
-The manager apartment would have a seperate entrance (not through the office) and a balcony/deck bigger than 8' x 4' that doesnt face the parking for the office.
-I would have designed the entrance with the fact in mind HUGE moving trucks may need easy access.

I think that's enough!

Shane

Construction: Hire a contractor that knows what they are doing. Just because they assembled several metal buildings or attended the manufactures certification class does not mean their crew knows how to do it properly. Make sure the engineer is working specifically for you and not the contractor.

Design: Hire someone that has actually worked at several storage facilities as onsite manager/operator and has a background in construction and/or design. They need to be able to read and understand prints....... Their experience will provide a unique knowledge about how the overall flow of customer and manager interaction will take place throughout the facility, and all the different problem areas.

Layout: Duel gates, one for entry & one for exit. Entry driveway long enough to accommodate any vehicle and trailer entering the facility without blocking passing traffic.

Put the office inside of the building instead of a long parking lot away!

I would take better care of my teeth!

Originally Posted by Tall Terri

Put the office inside of the building instead of a long parking lot away!

OK, you got me!!!!!!!

What do you do when it’s raining? Do you furnish umbrellas?

Originally Posted by SMSSId

OK, you got me!!!!!!!

What do you do when it’s raining? Do you furnish umbrellas?

Kind of - I have a large umbrella that I use that can fit one other person, but I usually suggest that the customer get into their vehicle and meet me in the rear.......that's where the chance of them just taking off comes into play.....