Construction Options
Do your homework and experiment with care

By Alan Huntington

Using materials and designs that have worked for other carwashes will give a new location a great starting edge.

Quality, long-term construction materials and innovative architectural elements aren't always synonymous with inexpensive overall project cost, but they can be. When building a new location, by utilizing methods and materials that have stood the test of time in other carwash facilities, you can save thousands of dollars and create a spectacular looking facility. The trick is proper planning, a clear understanding of your objectives, an experienced design team and a critical path time line.

The building is truly the heart and soul of your business. Poor design, wasted resources and lack of necessary safety elements can cost you forever in lost opportunities and inefficiencies. That is why the formation of your facility design team is the single most critical decision you will make. Trust your instincts and enlist the best architect, builder and equipment representative you can find. Do not try to start with one of them and then slowly bring the team together...assemble the team at the same time, and early on in the game. Each member should bring specific and valuable experience that when blended with the others allows the project to start down the proper course and minimize wasted energy, false starts and the inevitable change of orders.

Do your homework first! Meet with and analyze as many potential team members in each category as you can. Ask questions and listen to the types of ideas and overall project guidance they offer. They should give you substantial input relative to their particular area of expertise at your first meeting. It shouldn't take long and you will have chosen the people that you feel you can work with effectively. If the potential candidate is asking you all of the questions rather than offering experience and suggestions to improve your facility, it might be in your best interest to keep looking. Once you have selected the team members individually it's time to orchestrate the group approach.

Before finalizing anything, get the group together for a "kick-off" meeting. Make sure the chemistry works between all of the participants. This group will have to work together very closely for the next several months and there is simply no room for conflict. Lastly, if you feel the "team" coming together then you can determine who will chair the meetings, where they will occur, when and how notes and information will be disseminated and more.

Learn from the experiences of others

There are thousands of carwash facilities around the country. While each has its own unique character yours can be made better by learning from their mistakes. There are hundreds of exceptional operators who are willing to share their experiences and help you think through the potential pitfalls. I believe I was fortunate to have been mentored by some of the best. I will never forget the first time I heard one of my customers talking to a potential customer of mine. After being asked what he knew about designing a carwash my customer responded: "We have been doing this for over 15 years and I have made almost every mistake possible...but I never make the same mistake twice!" I will never forget those words. Take advantage of other's experiences in the design of your facility so you can spend time concentrating on operating the business.

Since you don't want to waste crucial budget dollars on inexperienced team members, it's best to get the top people on board from the very beginning. The design phase is NOT the time to train people. Assemble the best and task them to get the job done. Your team members should be providing information and ideas...not asking if and how.

Get a jump on your project

Preparation and organization are the keys to a great facility design. Because buildings are complex structures with hundreds of individual details it is impossible to remember everything you want to discuss. Start a three-ring binder now and collect photos, magazine articles, brochures, notes and ideas from everywhere that you can. Organize them into categories such as signage, room finishes, structure, glass and doors, equipment, heating and cooling, plumbing, electrical...the list could go on and on.

Often it is just as important to document what you do NOT like even more than it is to record what you do like. It may sound strange, but you're trying to convey your likes and dislikes as quickly as possible to your design team. Every one of the items that's tested on you that you don't like costs time and money. The overall project image that you are aiming for will be conveyed to your design team quickly and accurately if you do your homework first.

Let the building do the talking!

Strive to create a first-class looking facility that turns heads and serves as your business' first "calling card." Anyone can design a facility that will get the job done. Separate yourself from your competitors in your building's design and creature comforts.

Creating your own image starts early on in the design process and should tie into your wash's overall theme. Color, shape, height, materials, lighting and surface textures all have varying degrees of impact. Providing appropriate customer-friendly areas as well as efficiently located employee work zones all help. Consider what types of dramatic lighting can be utilized during those "closed" hours to reinforce your business identity. Make a statement with the building both inside and out by paying attention to the details.

Details, details and more details

Contrary to what you've always heard, business is not always about people. By doing as many things as possible with the structure and associated details you minimize your business reliance on employees. The facility shows up for work every day. The more you can do through the structure, the less you have to do with the people. Here are a few examples:

• Doors and windows are a major expense and require substantial maintenance if not done properly. Standard steel fabricated lintels require painting every few months and always look rusty and unfinished. By using pre-cast concrete lintels over doors and windows wherever possible, those maintenance items are gone forever. Utilize stainless steel or aluminum walk doors and frames in place of the traditional hollow metal (steel) doors and frames used universally on all commercial buildings. If you are building a full-service facility, the incorporation of insulated glass to reduce sound transmission into the customer waiting area and angling the glass surface to deflect glare all day all come into play.
• Concrete seems simple enough but requires proper planning. The concrete floors are probably the single most critical item. Make sure you consider not only the type of concrete but also the slopes necessary for proper drainage--although it's crucial not to make these slopes so steep as to create a safety hazard.
• Floor pitches and surface finishes can make all the difference. Shallow pitches and textured walk areas may seem like common sense but are all too often missed in the detailed plans. The result is a traditional hard trowel finish that could make even walking dangerous once a little soap and water are applied. Consider exposed aggregate in areas where customers may walk or to help identify paths to and from change machines, lobby areas or vending areas. The surface looks cleaner at the end of the day because of the random color, keeps more of your customers' shoes above the water and provides a non-slip finish. Concrete is forever so do it carefully.
• Equipment is important, but will not make you a more successful business by itself. There are dozens of choices to be made on all of the primary and support wash equipment. If you do happen to buy the wrong equipment, you can replace it in years to come. Unfortunately, that's not always true when it comes to your building materials decisions.
• Parking and drive areas are among the first visual cues your customer has once pulling into your site. How do you place a value on the first impression made on your customer? Locating concrete areas strategically around manholes and catch basins, curbs and cornering areas may actually save you money after the first couple of years. If you select asphalt curbs and you live in a northern climate, it is likely that they will end up broken from snowplows hitting them over the years. Perhaps concrete is actually a less costly choice long-term in this area as well.
• Roof and wall construction techniques and materials vary widely from area to area and state to state. Generally speaking, concrete masonry units (CMU)-- or "block walls" as they are commonly referred to--are forever. You may chose to utilize fiberglass reinforced panels (FRP) over the block, or perhaps ceramic tile or a glazed block. With few exceptions, painting is less costly but simply does not stand the test of time or cleaning. Aluminum or plastic liner panels are available and standard framing types of construction have been used when cost was the driving consideration.
• Roof construction (in the wash areas) again is best with pre-cast concrete panels...simply because they just last forever. If necessary, wood trusses with vinyl soft covering, steel joist framing or even exposed lumber such as cedar will work. Keep in mind the refraction of noise when choosing materials. A simple rule to remember: the easier to clean, the louder it will be. Ceramic tile cleans great, but resonates sound. Porous materials just don't stay as clean but they do absorb noise readily.

Set realistic goals

Like everything else, it's up to you to strike a balance. Almost every aspect of your facility requires compromise. Work with your design team to balance aesthetics, cost and durability as you go. Fiscal responsibility is always the benchmark that you will be challenged by.

If you live in an area where freezing temperatures and winter weather slow construction, don't ask your contractor to be a magician. While he may be able to caulk the building when it's 25 degrees outside, when his fingers are freezing it will be almost impossible for him to do a good job. The quality will undoubtedly suffer, as in years to come the caulk will begin to fall out because it was applied to a frozen surface.

We all want more...quicker...and cheaper...but the reality is your project's overall quality may well correlate directly to the time spent under construction. A project is never behind in the first weeks, it's always during the finishing phases near the end that everyone gets squeezed...especially in the areas concerning what your customers see and that you live with forever.

Getting an early start on the planning and design of your facility will pay off in the future if you incorporate all of the facility and process efficiencies necessary to compete in today's tough business climate.

Alan Huntington is the Director of Market Development at Belanger, Inc. in Green Bay, WI.

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