Few issues are more daunting to a business owner than when his or her company outgrows its brick and mortar accommodations and it’s time to search for larger quarters. You can’t just page your Webmaster or contact the company that hosts your server and buy a few more megabytes to satisfy your growing needs.
When it’s time to expand your building or move to a new location, there are dozens of issues that arise. So what are your options? In this special section, SBN provides an A to Z look at what you’ll face when it’s time to consider how to physically expand your business.
There was no question that Susan and Bruce Pyle needed to find their business a new home. Packings and Gaskets Inc., a Chagrin Falls-based mechanical sealant manufacturer, had grown steadily since the couple bought it in 1993.
Five years later, they were feeling the pinch of that success.
“You just know when you have to move or expand,” explains Bruce Pyle. “You’ve just exercised all of your options as far as available space at your current location. It really leaves no alternative.”
After leasing for several years, the couple decided to build a new facility from the ground up. Looking back nearly 18 months after the move from their 18,000-square-foot headquarters into a new building nearly twice that size, Bruce admits the experience was a challenge.
There are several questions to answer before taking the serious step of relocating a successful company. Here are five that the Pyles asked before signing on the dotted line.
Should I lease, buy or build?
Bruce Pyle knew he and Susan no longer wanted to lease space, but were unsure whether they would construct a new facility tailored to their needs or buy an existing one. When their search turned up few prospects, they decided to build.
“If you’re a small company that is struggling, leasing is a good way to go,” he says. “We’re glad we made the decision (to build) and we were fortunate enough to find property that was conveniently located and fit our pocketbook. Leasing is good, but owning is better.”
How much land do I need?
The Pyles refused to sell themselves short. After moving from a building where there was no room for expansion, they needed a property that would fit their 33,000-square-foot facility, as well as provide some extra space.
They needed three acres, but were having a hard time finding a nearby property of that size. When they threatened to walk away from a deal, they finally got what they wanted.
“I told the guy thanks a lot, but we just can’t do business,” Bruce recalls. “He came back three or four days later and said we can make it three acres … You will find industrial land developers are pretty eager to sell their property, but they’re also very willing to work with the potential buyer to meet their needs.”
How much building space do I need?
Packing and Gaskets’ manufacturing facility is nearly double the size it was 18 months ago. The Pyles aren’t using all that space yet, but believe wholeheartedly that their company will eventually grow into its new home.
“If you think you need 10,000 square feet, plan for 15,000,” Bruce says. “We did and we’re happy we did. You have to project possibly filling that extra square footage, even if you don’t need it at the time. Even if you don’t utilize the space, it is still there when you decide to sell or lease the building.”
Who should I hire to do the work?
When it came to the crucial step of hiring a contractor, the Pyles did some serious research. They contacted business associates who had recently completed expansion or renovation projects to learn which firms they had used and whether the experiences were good ones.
They also took to the road, visiting nearby construction sites.
“We drove around to different industrial parks and talked to the subcontractors working on brand new buildings to find out their attitudes and who they worked for and why,” says Bruce. “After going through the interview process, we narrowed it down to two possible contenders and then interviewed them again twice before we made our decision.”
When do I want to move?
The Pyles weren’t joking when they explained to contractors during the interview process that they were on a strict deadline. In fact, the moving trucks were already reserved. They explained that they had to move by a specific date and required contractors interested in the job to make that happen.
“We were very, very demanding about how long it was going to take to build this building,” Pyle recalls. “The contractor said he’d like to have 120 days, although they could probably do it in 90 days. They did it all in 124 days start to finish. That’s pretty much on time for me.”
Jim Vickers ([email protected]) is an associate editor at SBN.