Fast-track construction has long been the norm in New York metropolitan area retail construction. But now the growing trend of fast-tracking corporate office interiors is intensifying. There are almost always compelling reasons for accelerated construction schedules which architects and construction firms must accommodate. But those reasons differ greatly for retailers where time is actually money as opposed to corporate facilities.

For retailers, the most prevalent reason to fast-track is the high cost of rent per sf in the metro area. Fast-track construction equals time gained which fast forwards a store's opening and ability to start generating revenue.

Similarly, stores must to be ready for heavy seasonal shopping months, such as back to school and before the holidays, or must wait a full year before the cycle repeats itself.

Then there are publicly-owned retail companies which must open a certain number of stores per quarter to meet projections to shareholders and sat isfy investor relations. Big box retailers have perfected fast-track construction to an art and made the ability to meet their time schedules a requirement of the job. Costco, as one example, gives you exactly 109 days for project completion. On the 110th day, they open for business.

But why fast-track corporate interiors? This being New York City, there are companies which fast-track simply because they can. There's an urgency to complete and move into new space to more quickly consolidate functions, bring employees together and jump start anticipated increases in productivity.

There are also circumstances where a tenant has to vacate premises due to lease expiration and relocate quickly where fast-tracking is the only solution. With the nature of fast-tracking synonymous with fast, entrepreneurial-style decision-making, the need to obtain approval from many layers and categories of management with corporate interiors projects can also result in a compressed time frame for both the design and construction phases.

And then, there are extreme conditions and extenuating circumstances such as the need to fast-track office space for companies displaced by the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks Generally, the decision to fasttrack a corporate interiors project is, unlike retail fast-tracking, not economically-driven. Yet, there isn't a corporate interiors project that has come into our office which doesn't have an aggressive schedule.

Working on an aggressive schedule of 12 weeks, B.R. Fries & Associates, for example, completed the 52,000 sf new Manhattan headquarters at One Hudson Square of Nature Publishing Group, a prestige international publisher of scientific journals.

We also recently fast-tracked construction of two projects, an MRI facility, in Staten Island and a medical office in Queens, for Health Insurance Plan of New York (HIP). A prefab modular MRI building in Clove Lake Center was completed in six weeks. The second project, a medical office in Flushing, New York, was done in 12 weeks. In addition to the inherent challenges of fast-track construction, the MRI building required extensive site coordination and logistics since the building was prefabricated off-site, and the medical office renovation took place while the 30,000 square-foot facilities were being used.

The consolidation of NBC's news operations at 30 Rockefeller Plaza is a four-phase 150,000 sfproject being constructed by B. R. Fries & Associates, all of the phases requiring fast response and the ability to meet the challenges of an intensified pace.

There can be clear rewards with fasttracking, but it is not for corporations, architects or construction firms unwilling to take risks. It will shorten delivery time but may increase design and construction costs. The faster the time frame, the greater the need for more personnel, longer shifts and more costly, expedited deliveries. Fast-tracking also requires a different organizational approach to construction because tasks have overlapping production schedules rather than being addressed in the traditional, sequential method of project delivery. Thus, construction can be underway while owners and architects are still searching for optimal design solutions. Yet the move-in and occupancy dates never change.

Long-lead items must be identified early, constructability analyzed and confirmed and changes in specifications recommended if needed. Because of the intensive collaboration required in fast-tracking, personality compatibility is essential, as conflict takes energy and time from a project.

The biggest risk factors in fasttracking are the potential loss of control of budget and costs as well as high standards of quality and workmanship, which is why the decision to undertake fast-track construction is not for sissies. A constructor experienced in fasttracking, without compromising budget, function or quality, is key because no one--corporate decision maker, architect or construction finn--wants to deliver a job two months early and regret it for the next ten years.

BY BARRY R. FRIES, CEO, B.R. FRIES & ASSOCIATES, CONSTRUCTORS