Buccini/Pollin Group in Delaware Business: Best Practices for a Modern Workplace

Around this time last year, The Buccini/Pollin Group created their “Back to Work” task force in order to bring their 110 associates back into office in the Brandywine Building in Wilmington, DE as safely as possible. It was all hands on deck to provide the safest policies and daily adjustments in order to make this transition as easy as possible for associates.

“Our design team was tasked with designing and installing [3,000] signs and [300] bottles of hand sanitizer; facilities/property management/HR had to critically think about how best to handle office worker’s usage of the office pantry, the use of meeting space, the appropriate physical protection between work stations, the pedestrian circulation throughout the space; IT led research on the usage of technologies, including the text every employee receives in the morning checking in on their health; our president was personally responsible for figuring out the protocols and most efficient means of testing employees; and most recently HR partnered with a local nonprofit to create learning Pods for associates to have their children attend virtual school from a location near their workplace,” BPG Co-Founder Chris Buccini told Delaware Business, a Delaware State Chamber of Commerce publication, earlier this winter.

All associates returned to their desks in Downtown Wilmington on June 15, 2020. This was an opportunity for the company to stress test their plan, and after nearly a year of implementing these safe practices the Back To Work plan has been successful; they have been fortunate to not have had a single case of COVID-19 contracted from being in the office.

“Being back in the office certainly isn’t easy. We are vigilant about wearing masks, respecting social distancing, and the many protocols that are in place. But our state needs us to get back to work in a safe and reasonable way. We need to keep our local economy going. The pandemic has had a devastating effect on small businesses. Our staying home is destroying the sandwich shop, the dry cleaner, and the shoemaker. So put your mask on, continue to wash your hands, socially distance, and join BPG in getting back to work. Our city, our state, and our small businesses need you. We miss seeing you!”

Download and read the full article here.

To read more about our Back To Work plan, click here.

Support Local Students in Need: Annual BPG|360 School Supply Drive

Although this school year is uncertain, our students still need supplies to succeed, whether from home or the classroom. BPG|360 has joined forces with The Warehouse, a partner of Kingswood Community Center and Reach Riverside, to distribute the supplies to those students most in need in our community.

Please join us in supporting Wilmington’s students during this especially difficult time by donating to our annual School Supply Drive. Collection bins have been placed in the following office buildings in Downtown Wilmington DE: 500 Delaware Ave, Brandywine Building, Nemours Building, and I.M. Pei Building.

If you are working remotely but would like to contribute, please click here to donate directly to The Warehouse who will purchase supplies on your behalf. Your generosity is greatly appreciated!

Requested Items Include the Following (Click here for a printable list)

• Backpacks

• Pencils Cases / Pouches

• Agendas / Planners

• Pencils and Erasers

• Pens (Blue, Black, and Red)

• Notebooks

• Pocket Folders

• Binders

• Highlighters

• Coloring Materials (Markers, Crayons, and Colored Pencils)

• Glue

• Rulers

• Index Cards

• Scissors

Please place your donations by Wednesday, September 2, 2020.

BPG|360’s Customer Service for 2018

As we close out 2018, we wanted to share some of the statistics we track in our online work order system – Workspeed. Tenants who utilize the Workspeed system receive real time updates on any request for service needed. Whether it be a janitorial need, lights changed or temperatures adjusted, this system is our preferred method of making sure we are on top of all of the office buildings daily needs.

Fun statistic going into the holidays - our property teams have responded to over 14,000 requests for service during the past year. On average, the response rate for initiated request from the tenant entering the information at their desk to final completion by our staff was 12 hours and 32 minutes over our 6 Million square foot office portfolio. This is just one tool that we use continually to evaluate the performance of our property teams and make sure we continually push ourselves to deliver high levels of service to all of the customers we service.

Workspeed is a free service to all of our tenants. If your company is not registered to use the online work order system, please contact your property manager today.

BPG|360 Is Pleased to Introduce I.M. Coffee

I.M. Coffee, a new coffee venue located within the architectural icon, I.M. Pei Building at 1105 North Market Street is now open to the public for business! They are excited to have the opportunity to bring people together over craft coffee and freshly prepared foods. One of their specialties - The Cappuccino: A carefully extracted double shot of espresso with tightly foamed milk steamed just at the right temperature with the ratio of 1-part coffee to 3 parts milk. A must try!

Holiday Events Hosted by BPG|360

The BPG|360 property teams hosted several holiday events for our tenants throughout the month of December. Each property team coordinated individual efforts to provide continental breakfast, afternoon cookies and treats or holiday gift baskets to the many clients we have the privilege to serve throughout the year. On behalf of the BPG|360 team, we wish everyone a wonderful Holiday season!

BPG|360 Team Completes Major Roof Top Replacement Project

The BPG|360 Pennsylvania team along with one of our mechanical contractor partners Mechanical Solutions completed the replacement of 16 roof top air handlers during the weekend of October 20th.  The project was planned to be completed over the weekend to accommodate the building tenants needs and avoid major disruption to their line of business.  Work began Friday afternoon to disconnect all of the units scheduled for replacement.  Saturday morning, all of the old units were removed and the new ones set in place.  Sunday, electric and gas service was hooked up and all units were operational for the start of business Monday morning.

BPG|360 Completes Chiller Replacement Project at Union Meeting Road

Image Source: https://surplusgroup.com/all/used/water-cooled-chillers/200-ton-water-cooled-chiller-4/

The BPG|360 Pennsylvania team and one of our mechanical contractor partners, Johnson Controls recently completed the replacement of two chillers at our Union Meeting Road building.  During this past spring, the original chiller experienced a catastrophic failure that required us to position a portable chiller at the property to maintain cooling for the building while the project was engineered. 

The two new 200 Ton York chillers replaced a set of Carrier units that had operated at the property for 20 years.  The work was scheduled over several months and also included the replacement of the Chilled and Condenser Water Pumps along with the installation of Variable Frequency Drives for improved energy efficiency.  A significant amount of coordination was required and the team led by Maintenance Chief Paul Pashley worked tirelessly to make sure the work appeared to be seamless as possible to the tenants.

BPG|360 Undertakes New Third Party Management

Image Source: http://www.cbhassociates.com/projects/details/the-pilot-school/

In September, BPG|360 entered in to a new management agreement with the Pilot School for facility maintenance assistance.  The services we are offering to the school include engineering and mechanical along with assistance with contract evaluation and bid leveling.  Initially, the school reached out to us for assistance evaluating their mechanical service provider since they were experiencing multiple problems with their HVAC system. 

Once our team engaged and provided an overall analysis of the problems they were facing, we were quickly able to provide a plan of action and path forward.  Over the past two months, we engaged in extensive work to clean the water source loop, including all of the unitary filter strainers, cooling tower, pumps and heat exchanger.  We have not only corrected many of the problems they were experiencing, but also oversaw changes to the automation system to improve energy usage at the property. 

The initial team consisted of SVP of Commercial Operations Ralph Rossi, Director of Operations Paul Watts, Director of Engineering Ed Levering, Chief Engineer Brian Twitchell from Bellevue and Commercial Maintenance Technician Neal McHugh from Delaware Corporate Center.  Neal McHugh will be assigned to the school on a full-time basis moving forward.

BPG|360 Participates in New Castle County Vocational Tech Career Fairs

As a part of our continuing need for qualified, technical associates to enhance our team structure, the BPG|360 team participated in several career fairs at the New Castle County Vocational Technical High Schools to meet with students and discuss our company and needs. 

Statistically nationwide, over 40% of the professionals currently working in the building maintenance industry will retire within the next 5 years. 

By careful planning to be prepared for this major industry change, we look at ways to stay in front of the curve and attract young professionals in the HVAC, Plumbing, Electrical and Information Technology fields to meet future staffing demands.

Comcast Signs 10 Year Lease at 400 Commerce Drive

Comcast has signed a 10-year lease and will move the majority of its Delaware workforce to a call center in 150,000 square feet of office space in Ogletown.

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Concord Office Plaza is About to Become Mixed-Use

With new construction nearing completion, The Buccini/Pollin Group has rebranded the Concord Plaza office park at 3535 Silverside Road. ResideBPG will manage the residential buildings, and BPGl360 will continue to run the office portfolio.

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Tenant Appreciation Event

BPG|360 held a tenant appreciation event at their Bellevue office location. Associates working within the stunning office park enjoyed complimentary ice-cream.

Downtown Baltimore Landmark Increases Occupancy More than 20%

One North Charles, a BPG|360 managed property has increased occupancy by 20%. The property, at the corner of Charles and Fayette Streets, was one of downtown Baltimore's first modern high-rise office towers and a key component of the Central Business District's Renaissance.