SAFE OFFICE INTEGRATION Service From Sonoma Construction

This Chicago-based general contractor collaborated with industry experts and clients to create a quick and cost-effective office transformation process for safer, healthier office environments.

Sonoma Construction LLC has introduced its SAFE OFFICE INTEGRATION™ (SOI) office conversion service — designed to bring a significantly higher level of health safety into the workspace, addressing the concerns of workers returning to their offices after the COVID-19 outbreak.

“Employers are facing a critical challenge in bringing employees back to the workplace currently, as well as, ensuring long term policies and procedures that create a safe office environment in the face of future viral pandemics,” said Sonoma Construction, LLC President Jon Runquist, a 30-year veteran of the office construction industry. “This pandemic has altered the way typical offices will operate for the foreseeable future. Moving forward employees need to be confident that their employers have created a safe and clean office environment which reduces physical contact by providing materials and procedures that promote safety and order. This new reality mandates that the office space of yesterday needs to be adapted to satisfy the safety needs of tomorrow.”

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The SOI service can include relamping existing fixtures in high traffic areas and installing UV light fixtures at the air distribution terminal to eliminate airborne particles.

Sonoma has been in contact with hundreds of clients, co-workers and industry peers, throughout this COVID-19 outbreak. According to Runquist, his customers are asking, “What can we do to enhance our office environments in both a timely and cost-effective manner?” and “How can we prepare our buildings and offices to satisfy the evolving landscapes of health and safety requirements while still providing for sensible spending?”

Sonoma believes safety and cleanliness are cornerstones of the new office culture and that it’s important to find ways of incorporating policies and procedures that reflect that. In response, Sonoma has collaborated with industry experts and clients in creating a quick and cost-effective office transformation process it calls “SAFE OFFICE INTEGRATION™”.

The SOI conversion focuses on the artful use of new non-porous materials and simple office procedures that help to reduce the risk of spreading contagions and to give peace of mind to the office population. It uses easy to implement steps that businesses can take to protect their workers. Key features of the portfolio include:

  • Wayfinding: New office procedures and signage create a new “Flow” of the office preventing unneeded contact and limited access to the workspace
  • Hands Free Door systems (Proximity sensors or toe actuators)
  • Welcome shields at reception (Plexi panels at desk)
  • PPE Stations (Entry locations)
  • Traffic Flow Indicators
  • Seating Arrangements (Shields/Private Niches)
  • Receiving Rooms (Reception isolation)
  • UV Lighting/Re-lamping (High Traffic areas)
  • Modified Conference Rooms/Virtual Conference Rooms
  • Policy and procedural planning how-to instructions
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Freestanding, demountable partitions can convert open office spaces to semi- or fully enclosed office quickly with limited modifications.

Installations are underway. Sonoma Construction is working with its suppliers to ensure materials are locally available for quick delivery, allowing them to complete the conversion while many of their clients’ offices remain vacant. Its goal is to make sure everything is in place before employees return to work.

Sonoma Construction LLC is a Chicago-based general contractor focused on the construction and renovation of commercial interiors, primarily office space.