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Business Without Borders
No matter where you're currently doing business, chances are that changes in the global economy are impacting your operations somehow. We'd like to take a few minutes to share with you some trends we're watching, and how our capabilities and experience can save you time, trouble, and money.
No matter how many building projects you undertake, early in the process you face myriad decisions that significantly impact capital, operational cost, and time. Now more than ever, the pressure is on to eke out any advantages, from the initial programming phase forward.
To get a perspective on your decision making, imagine a scale. On one side of the scale are information gathering, research, and intelligence. On the other side are calculated risk and a bold-faced clock that ticks away potential revenue that is lost until you become operational or open for business. Keep in mind that striking the right balance is not all up to you. Professional input is there for
the asking on all these decisions.
Decision #1: Selecting the best site for a specific building project.
The challenge is to get critical information in hand to intelligently compare several sites in a reasonable amount of time. There are three issues you can’t afford to neglect as you go through the evaluation process: What will it take in terms of time and money to develop them, to build on them and, possibly the most challenging, what kinds of entitlements will be involved?
Any time a catastrophic event occurs that is related to an industrial or manufacturing process, there is speculation as to how it could have been prevented. Was it human error? Were the safety standards followed? Did the company know there was a potential hazard?
Many companies equate assuring worker safety with following OSHA mandates. Although OSHA’s regulations apply to a long list of situations, not all environments where hazardous materials are handled are covered. Despite the fact that OSHA has been in force since the early 70’s, there are many vulnerable areas in terms of safety they have yet to address. Then too, with new technologies and products come new hazards.
That leaves the onus to fully protect workers on the companies themselves. To make this easier, SSOE advises its clients to apply “ready-to-use” OSHA procedures voluntarily even to areas or industries that are exempted or are not yet covered. One method for identifying potential safety hazards is a Process Hazard Analysis (PHA) that OSHA requires of companies engaged in the processing or handling of hazardous chemicals.
The Three Ws of a Process Hazard Analysis
PHAs take place in a single meeting, or series of them, and have a prescribed format.
New Business Leader Joins Columbus Office
Scott Hathaway has been named business leader in SSOE’s newly opened Columbus, Ohio office. In the course of his 15 years as a civil engineer, he has developed special expertise in coordinating site entitlements for both new and existing clients and developing new business. Scott has extensive experience with projects in the South and Midwest as well as internationally. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from The Ohio State University and is working towards becoming a LEED® accredited professional. You can contact Scott at 614.766.3675 (JHathaway@ssoe.com).
SSOE is Named ‘Hot Firm’ by ZweigWhite
SSOE has been named one of the fastest-growing architecture, engineering, and environmental consulting firms by management consulting and research firm ZweigWhite in its annual ranking, The Zweig Letter Hot Firm List. SSOE has made the list the past 2 years, advancing from being ranked 136 in 2007 to 40 in 2008.
The list features architecture, engineering, and environmental firms that have outperformed the economy and their competitors in terms of growth and profitability. It considers firms in both the U.S. and Canada.
A complete list of the 200 fastest-growing architecture, engineering, and environmental consulting firms was published in the November 3, 2008 issue of The Zweig Letter and is also available online at www.hotfirm.com.
At SSOE’s December Shareholders’ Meeting, the first annual Alfred H. Samborn Founder’s Awards were presented to 14 SSOE employees from 3 separate project teams.
These awards recognize individuals who exemplify the principles on which Mr. Samborn built the firm — quality, client service, and entrepreneurship.
The selection committee noted that the three teams distinguished themselves by delivering the ideal “SSOE experience.” They listened and responded to their clients’ needs, and achieved them through innovative approaches that resulted in significant cost savings and value.
One team’s innovative design and application of technology saved a major automotive manufacturer over $7 million in construction costs on a single project. Another team worked around the clock to get a manufacturer’s plant back online after an unexpected product recall and corresponding plant shutdown. They accomplished this in only 5 months although it would normally have taken 15-18. In addition, this team recommended improvements that will save the client over $700,000 a year in production costs. The third winning team customized SSOE’s already advanced 3D technology to save its client over $4.25 million dollars.
Decision makers in healthcare companies are spending more time than usual crunching numbers and making projections … and some are shrugging their shoulders. Like every major U.S. industry, they are trying to figure out how to do business in this unpredictable economy.
Although healthcare is traditionally one of its strongest segments (the sick will always be with us), people’s needs, behavior patterns, and priorities have shifted in response to the downturn. And this is all giving rise to new trends. Among the trend watchers are SSOE’s healthcare experts. They are helping clients take advantage of the slowdown’s effect on facilities’ projects.
“Where is the silver lining?” you ask. Lower revenues, tight money, and risk aversion call for rethinking your strategies, but “there’s an upside,” suggests Matthew Kennedy an SSOE healthcare planning expert. “This is the perfect time to focus on your development strategy and careful project planning. Without the sense of urgency to break ground or start filling beds, you have the time to examine a broad range of options related to facilities projects.”
We recently moved to a new space to accommodate our current Shanghai staff of over 100 employees and anticipated future growth. One reason SSOE China is growing is that Western companies are continuing to build facilities in China to meet the demand for goods generated by that country’s expanding middle class. With our established presence in Shanghai, we can help our Western clients navigate the process of developing facilities in a country with which they are unfamiliar.
Since we launched SSOE China in 2005, it has grown steadily and is now the 2nd largest of our 19 locations.
For more information on SSOE China, contact Andrew Kwok (akwok@ssoe.com.cn).
20F Yongda International Tower
2277 Longyang Road
Pudong New Area
Shanghai 201204
Phone: 86.21.587 85857
