New! Managing Facilities for Results

I have space allocation on the brain these days. My husband and I are in the process of modifying the layout of the condo we are purchasing. Square footage is a premium in highrise apartment living, and modifying the space to suit the needs of our lifestyle (heavy kitchen use, multiple computers and other tech, a boisterous two-year-old, overnight guests, etc.) has been a complex process of analysis and design.

Libraries everywhere are in similar situations. Chances are your library has added or modified services in recent memory in order to meet the changing needs of those served. How were those services handled in terms of physical space and furnishings? Was the space altered to suit the new service, or was the service modified or limited because of spatial constraints?

If your library has a habit of implementing workaround solutions when it comes to facilities management, I encourage you to take advantage of the advice that Cheryl Bryan delivers in our newest PLA Results Series book, Managing Facilities for Results: Optimizing Space for Services. Starting with the fiscally sound premise that library space is a valuable asset, not to be neglected or misused, Bryan walks through the processes of

• project definition and planning,
• committee organization and data collection,
• resource requirement determination and allocation,
• gap analysis and recommendations, and (perhaps most critically)
• recommendation presentations and reports.

The 23 workforms will give you and your committees a running start in assessing needs and implementing changes to best support your library’s services, and can be included in your recommendation presentation as evidence of preparedness for the project ahead. And my personal favorite feature, the Toolkit for Calculating Square Footage, offers a host of quick reference information, such as

• a comprehensive list of square footage requirements for public-use furniture and equipment
• typical square footage needs for staff office and cubicle layouts, and
• guidelines for calculating shelving space allocation.

I’ll let you know how my space planning turns out. If you have success stories that you want to share, I’d love to link to some before and after Flickr pics as inspiration for others.