One of the biggest decisions any business will make is when they decide to build a base of operations of their very own.
This could be the plan from the very start or the result of rapid expansion of a small company with success and aspirations that have far outgrown their initial offices and workshops, but when a company starts to see success it needs to expand into a space of its own.
Exactly how this space will take shape is a common dilemma for many companies; is it important to be ready as soon as possible with a functional, effective working space or should a company take its time to create a headquarters that is built to last?
In other words, is it better to use a steel frame building kit to create immediate capacity or spend considerable time and money developing a traditionally constructed building to act as your primary headquarters and manufacturing area?
To answer this thoroughly, we need to ask a few specific questions that will shed further light on the priorities of your business and your current situation.
Do You Need To Expand Right Away?
Time is a valuable asset in business, and one of the hardest challenges for any small and medium-sized enterprise is knowing exactly when to expand.
Expanding too quickly can create an abundance of additional costs that can quickly eat away at a company’s runway, but waiting too long can constrain your success and potentially cause you to miss the moment to reach the next level.
In the abstract, it is a difficult question, but assuming that success and expansion will come either way, do you need additional space now or can it wait several months or over a year?
Both are valid answers, but if you need additional capacity straight away, a prefabricated factory floor such as one provided by a steel kit build is the better option to take, as long as you have land to put it on and all of the other resources you need to ramp up production.
In practice, most expanding companies will use both; they will have a temporary headquarters whilst planning for the future with an expansive traditional building.
How Important Is Sustainability?
The concept of green construction is an incredibly important consideration for many businesses as metrics such as embodied carbon become a primary consideration for many businesses.
Traditional construction, particularly of industrial and manufacturing facilities, relies on a lot of concrete, a material that not only generates a lot of carbon dioxide through the energy used to create and transport it but also inherently produces carbon pollution as part of its manufacturing and mixing process.
You can make facilities without concrete and with sustainability at the forefront in some cases, but this comes with a significant financial cost.
However, prefabricated steel is a fantastic, sustainable alternative, as the metal is one of the most recycled and recyclable materials on the planet, with each component constructed to avoid waste materials and without the need for binding mortars to fit them together.
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