Over the course of the last 20 years, Building Service Inc. (BSI) has completed thousands of interior projects for Aurora Health Care. From simple décor updates to complete build-outs, BSI has created functional, aesthetically-pleasing environments in multiple departments and at nearly every Aurora facility throughout Wisconsin. A tremendous working relationship that BSI credits to the company’s dedication to outstanding customer service and its comprehensive Design, Build, Furnish (DBF) platform.
“When done properly, the DBF process produces a delivery system that sets up opportunity for long-term relationships between the DBF team and the end users,” said Roger Daniels, senior vice president of Architecture and Design at BSI. BSI’s long-standing relationship with Aurora exemplifies that.
With single-source responsibility, BSI can take projects from schematic design through furniture install. From project initiation, a team including one of the firm’s four architects and one of 13 interior designers works with the project manager and an estimator through the design process while maintaining a close eye on the budget. “Throughout the process there is a check and balance between aesthetics and cost trade-offs,” said Daniels. “This allows the team to be proactive in their design decisions and selections so that the overall budget can be maintained.”
The DBF platform also keeps BSI nimble. For instance, when Aurora St. Luke’s needed a new patient suite quickly, BSI was able to organize its in-house resources to create an award-winning space within an expedited 45-day time frame.
Similarly, BSI was able to fast track work on Aurora’s new corporate headquarters, completing the renovation of 70,000 square feet spread over three floors in less than five months. “The DBF process allowed us to save valuable project time on the front end of the Aurora corporate project by overlapping work in three early design phases,” says Tom Haydon, vice president of health care construction at BSI. “Demolition was started while both permitting and design review were being finalized.” Project-phasing and regular on site progress meetings kept the project moving on time and on budget.
A long-term relationship built upon the DBF platform also breeds familiarity that improves project outcomes. “We understand Aurora’s expectations and corporate standards and therefore can translate those into every project whether it’s for an exam room, clinical space, surgery suite, common hospital space, or a staff training center,” said Haydon. Additionally, BSI can bring to bear the team’s insight into the unique demands of working in occupied clinical and hospital settings which operate non-stop. “Our knowledge of Aurora’s needs allows us to extensively and carefully pre-plan for the magnified needs of the health care setting.”
