Partial occupancy is a pressing issue for commercial buildings across the US. Partially occupied buildings don’t generate the same revenue as fully occupied ones, which puts pressure on their commercial viability and also reduces available funding for necessary investments. The International Facility Management Association (IFMA) listed partial occupancy as one of the leading challenges of 2024 and the last several years because it is difficult to address and because of its knock-on effects.

Not meeting an occupancy KPI means there’s also less funding to invest in making buildings more sustainable, which is another of the biggest challenges that the IFMA has found facilities managers currently face. The capital expenditure needed for ‘big’ projects, like rooftop solar panels, for example, just isn’t there. As a result, those projects get put on pause and it becomes difficult to achieve sustainability goals. Energy efficiency, waste reduction, and minimizing the environmental impacts of a building all require you to spend some money – money that’s unavailable because of reduced occupancy.

The rise of flexible working has contributed to the partial occupancy of many commercially leased buildings can be approached as an opportunity too. There is a way forward.

Making an Environment Fit for Flexible Working
Flexible working and desk sharing can help improve the sustainability credentials of a commercial site such as an office building. Because of the split between home, flexible, and in-office workers, companies can now feasibly use a smaller footprint inside a leased office. This allows the same leased offices to cater to more companies who share the space. If properly managed, the results can be a better, more efficient use of resources. For example, the energy required for lighting and HVAC atmosphere control for 2,500 sq. ft. is used to full efficiency if it’s occupied by two flexible-working companies sharing the space, rather than a single company using half of the space.

Creating an environment suitable for sharing also addresses the need to meet occupancy goals. By having a commercial space that is suitable for multiple companies, even entrepreneurs and freelancers, buildings can start to fill their spaces again. Add to this the simple fact that people like to be around other people in busy environments, and making an environment fit for flexible working patterns is a recipe for returning occupants.

Meeting occupancy KPIs by improving space sharing is also a chance to reverse the negative knock-on effects for investment in sustainability projects, and a chance to make a positive impact too. Getting people back allows the ‘big green projects’ to be taken off pause. And as a facility becomes more sustainable, it becomes more commercially attractive to companies looking for leased space. Today environmental social and governance (ESG) issues top the priority lists of many companies. Leasing a sustainable space helps them address those issues.

Access Control for Shared Working Spaces
The lynchpin to creating an attractive shared environment is access control. Companies leasing shared commercial spaces need to know they have access to all the spaces and facilities they need, however they also need to know that their assets, such as files or devices, and employees’ belongings are protected. Ensuring success requires many stages of access control, beginning with building access.

For the best results, building access can be managed centrally using RFID cards and smart locks, which can also be combined with RFID door controllers. As a keyless solution, it saves facilities managers time and money creating keys. It also prevents the possibility of lost or stolen keys.

By being centrally managed, RFID locks allow building managers to give different user groups access to different areas. For example, two companies and several freelancers could be given access to a shared floor; all of their RFID cards could be programmed for access to that space. Each of the companies could be given access to their own storage spaces. Ultimately, giving users access to different areas within a shared facility helps strike the balance between flexibility and control that a shared office needs to attract occupants back.

After building and zone access, access control solutions are needed for individuals too. In a shared space, employees will need somewhere to store their belongings. Lockers are a simple solution but management of them can be demanding if each employee or freelancer requires one, especially if they’re working remotely part of the time.

However, when equipped with a locking solution that allows for flexible access control, facilities managers do not need to match lockers to users one-to-one. Instead, they can create bays of lockers that are enough to cater to the daily capacity of users. Saving floor space and maximizing locker usage.

Using an RFID lock allows personal storage lockers to be centrally managed. This is a good option if facilities managers want to control which locker bays employees have access to. For example, if a floor is divided between two or three companies, facilities managers may want to provide access to select lockers for each company’s employees. Mechanical coded locks that are programmed by the user with a new code each time they’re locked could be a better, simpler alternative.

Where Does That Leave Facilities Managers?
Using access control to build environments that strike the balance between flexibility and protection helps facilities managers to make spaces that appeal to companies looking for shared workspaces.

Sharing partially occupied spaces reduces waste and increases efficiency, which helps to address sustainability issues within buildings. It also tackles partial occupancy head-on, getting people back into commercial buildings to recover lost revenue. As we’ve seen, this has positive effects because it means there’s potentially more money to reinvest in the facilities themselves.

Matt Welty is Vice President, Americas, at Codelocks Inc. Founded in 1991, Codelocks is a global business with its company headquarters in the UK, with offices and distribution centers in California and Australia. Facilities, estates and maintenance managers buy our locks to install or replace outdated locks in buildings within the health, hospitality, education, office and leisure markets.

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