Englewood Public Schools

The Challenge

Englewood Public Schools, located in Englewood, NJ, needed to furnish one completely new school building as well as a large addition to another school building. The requirements included student and teachers’ furniture as well as furnishings for cafeterias, labs, music rooms and libraries.

Englewood Public Schools wanted to order the furniture in advance, so that there would be no delays down the line and the project could be completed in as organized and efficient a manner as possible. The problem was that the furniture was needed for two buildings whose construction had just gotten under way, and there was no way to know when the buildings would be ready.

This presented two challenges, one logistical and one relating to pre-construction product specification and planning. With no extra space available at the school, Hertz Furniture would have to find a way to consolidate and store all the furnishings until the building were ready. Secondly, specifying and ordering furniture and equipment for entire buildings that only exist on blue prints is very tricky. Often, final dimensions of rooms and location of outlets and windows within them differ from the plans. These differences can render the furniture unusable and lead to problems for everyone involved.

The Solution

Hertz Furniture’s representative obtained the blueprints for each building in order to ensure as accurate a match as possible in terms of space. The rep then sat down with the architects, the principals and other involved parties in order to gain a full understanding of everyone’s needs in terms of function and design, among other considerations. The Hertz team specified the particular items that would be needed, making sure that everything fit the school’s budget.

In order to solve the problem of the school’s storage capabilities, Hertz Furniture placed the entire order and consolidated the items in their East Coast warehouse. This allowed Hertz to deliver and install the furniture and equipment as the buildings were ready for installation. The furniture was kept safely away from the construction site until needed and there were no delays.

The space planning issue led Hertz to assign a dedicated project manager to the Englewood Public Schools project. Among other things, the project manager was responsible to be in direct contact with the building contractors and school administration and ensure that the equipment that was ordered and delivered would actually fit the rooms when they were ready. The project manager visited the construction site on a regular basis, noting changes and potential problems. Ongoing due diligence and communication between the Hertz team, the administration and the vendors ensured that all the furniture and equipment fit upon installation.

The Outcome

As the construction phase progressed, changes made in the building itself necessitated adjustments in the school’s order. Hertz Furniture made the adjustments, which made it possible for the school to have its needs met without worrying about cancellation- and reorder-fees. Hertz also responded to post delivery product change requests at no additional charge to the customer.

Since the furniture was being stored in relative proximity to the school district, installation was carried out in phases as space became available in the building. A productive relationship was born, and Hertz Furniture continues to advise the school district on other school furniture projects.