As the stay-at-home mandates are lifted, corporate America is evaluating how to maintain safety measures within their current office space. From rearranging furniture to implementing one-way traffic flow patterns, and providing additional cleaning supplies, tenants and landlords are looking at office spaces and office cultures like never before. But are corporate offices equipped with the right infrastructure to support these changes? More specifically, do our office spaces and buildings have the means to store hazardous materials in abundance? Alcohol Based Hand Sanitizers are often a Class III flammable liquid and their use and storage are regulated by the Massachusetts building code.
Local building and fire codes regulate the maximum quantity of hazardous materials allowed in a building. We’ve taken a closer look at the code implications of increasing hand sanitizer and cleaning supplies in office spaces and recommend developing a Hazardous Materials Management Plan (HMMP) (or update the existing plan) to incorporate any additional hand sanitizer and ensure compliance with these provisions. These plans are also critical to the local fire department and other emergency response teams as the plans will provide the necessary information for fire-fighting and emergency response operations. A chemical inventory including type and quantity of hazardous materials should be maintained by each tenant. We recommend landlords revisit lease agreements and consider adding language to address storage of hazardous materials and to define allowed quantities for each tenant space. Communication between tenants and landlords is critical to maintain compliance and life safety requirements for the building occupants.
Jason B. Costello AIA, EDAC, is a Partner | Associate Principal and leads the Healthcare design practice at Margulies Perruzzi.
More information and articles published from the MP Healthcare studio posted regularly.
MP recently published “VOLUME 1: COVID-19 AND THE FUTURE OF THE WORKPLACE
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?” Download by clicking here.
Across the country, we are seeing numerous changes at healthcare facilities as they reopen for elective and non-critical care while still addressing potential surge capacity issues related to COVID-19. One of the biggest difficulties is getting into and through these facilities while practicing social distancing and minimizing risk to patients and staff.
MP’s John Fowler, AIA, EDAC, LEED AP, is featured in Healthcare Design – Healthcare facilities are employing a variety of strategies and tactics, including technology, to overcome the challenges of reopening amid COVID-19. Read more here: https://bit.ly/3iZms9r
MP has a long-standing tradition of Friday afternoon “snacks” where the entire office gets together to socialize, discuss projects, decompress and sometimes even vent about the stressful days. Our “beer thirty” often continues well into the evening where the laughter from great conversations among colleagues is amplified with cold drinks and the waterfront view of the city skyline from our roof deck.
But what happens when the world shuts down and hanging out on a Friday is no longer an option? Well let me start by telling you, it isn’t the same as human interaction. Look at this photo of us from the spring, the beginning of Covid-19; we are all so naïve. In a daily effort to keep sane and maintain connections, I had virtual meet and greets, coffees, and face-times. Then we all got exhausted. As some of you may already know, I am a social person, and I was over it.
Zoom fatigue is real. What is the last thing any of us want to do at the end of a long week? Sit on another call. But sometimes it may surprise you that yet another call marking this long-standing tradition, turns out to be just the thing you needed that week to help get you through. So keep going. Keep snacking virtually; and keep playing cards against humanity, drinking games, Pictionary and trivia with your coworkers because a good laugh is worth everything right now.
The first “snack” back in person is going to be one for the books, and we have that to look forward to when we pop online Friday afternoons until then. Someday the pandemic will end, we will be back to normal, and as Dan Perruzzi puts it in our daily email check ins – we are one day closer to that.
