Construction and energy-efficiency contractor McKinstry Co., which is based in Seattle and has a big presence in Spokane, has launched a new service meant to help building owners and managers optimize their facilities while occupancy is low due to Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s Stay Home, Stay Healthy order. 

The service also aims to prepare for safe reopenings when people return to workplaces.

Adam Gloss, general manager in charge of the new offering, says the company’s Return with Confidence service includes a free phone consultation, followed by a tailored assessment and action plan. The service offers evaluations of indoor air quality, ventilation, temperature, humidity, mechanical systems, and water quality.

“We have resources that we can provide to them, if that’s something like they feel like they want to manage on their own, or we can outline a plan to help them through a variety of steps that would start with developing a plan to help enable people to return to work at those facilities safely,” Gloss says.

Because many people are working from home, buildings that would normally be occupied are left empty or mostly empty, Gloss says. This can lead to a host of issues, from water system stagnation to wasted energy, he adds.

“Our customers were asking us, ‘What should we do about this system or that system?’ or ‘Are there ways you can help us to make the building safer?’” Gloss says. “As we started talking internally, we realized that a more holistic or cohesive approach to this would be helpful to our clients.”

McKinstry can return to monitor and adjust systems operations as occupancy needs and federal guidelines shift, Gloss says.

Gloss says he expects Return with Confidence to remain on McKinstry’s menu of services for a while.

“We anticipate that we’re going to see buildings in lower-use states potentially for the next year,” Gloss says. “There will be some need for a service like this at least through the next year.”