master planning
A Master Plan considers how facilities foodservice needs will evolve and develops a long-range plan to guide the facility in strategic and financial decision making related to foodservice. This highly collaborative process includes participants from administration, foodservice and facilities departments, and the design team to facilitate planning. Information gathering, analysis, decision making, and eventually recommendations are all part of the planning process.
Master planning will begin with information gathering and onsite observations, followed by a work session to validate the information. Samples of our tools developed for data collection are included as an appendix. The first work session will further define vision, values, goals for foodservice, campus context, future changes and constraints.
The consultant team will develop multiple options for review at the second worksession. Options will be presented and discussed to clearly identify the best aspects of each, relative to project goals and design criteria.
Feedback and further study by the consultant team will be used to refine options for a third work session presentation and review. Again, options will be presented and discussed to identify the best aspects of each. Following the third work session, a report will be issued with project recommendations, information supporting those recommendations and costs associated with the final options.
After over forty years of foodservice design planning, our approach recognizes the following criteria as essential for successful outcomes:
- Establish collaborative design team
- Identify all stakeholders
- Define communication pathways
- Plan participatory work sessions
- Define organization goals and vision
- Use goals and vision to test decisions
- Develop design criteria
- Include engineering/financial considerations early
- Multiple feedback loops to develop preferred solutions
feasibility study
Whether you operate a high-volume, multi-site system or a small volume operation, the key to successful planning is the initial systems and operational decisions. Time well spent on these issues can prevent unwanted capital costs, excessive operating costs, and disappointing food quality and service. A Feasibility Study includes the elements of a Master Plan, along with an analysis of the impact these solutions have on departmental finances. This compares the projected performance of the proposed options against operational and financial segment-related benchmarks.
