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Health Facilities Management Magazine
Finer Furnishings
by Amy Eagle
Using the RFP process to make the best choice
In drafting a request for proposal (RFP) for health care furnishings, more is always better. The more information a health care organization requests, the more useful each response will be. Responses will also be better targeted if the organization supplies clear requirements and detailed information about itself.
A basic RFP for health care furnishings will allow a facility to conduct side-by-side product and pricing comparisons of different manufacturers. A more detailed document will yield important information about a product’s safety, suitability to the health care environment, environmental benefits, maintenance and training requirements, and a wealth of knowledge about the strength of its manufacturer.
Lew Vassberg, AAHID, owner, president and principal with Valley Designs Inc., Harlingen, Texas, recommends including a certified American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designer in selecting furnishings. She and other experts also recommend considering the following issues when putting together RFPs for health care furnishings.
Safety comes first
As with any decision that impacts patient care, safety comes first. Vassberg works closely with the risk management department of each of her health care interior design clients to determine if furnishings, particularly those with moving parts, like recliners, are designed to be safe to use. To help make this determination, an RFP should include questions about safety features. Michael Zusman, CEO of furniture and wall protection manufacturer Kwalu, Atlanta, says features like his company’s patented steel-reinforced joint construction can keep patients and visitors safe from harm and protect the hospital from litigation.
Learning what testing the product has undergone also can reassure a facility about the safety and reliability of that product. The Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturer’s Association (BIFMA), Grand Rapids, Mich., and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Washington, D.C., have defined standards for testing furnishings; additional regional or local standards may also apply. “A facility should be aware if there are codes specific to furniture that they need to ensure a manufacturer can meet,” says Debbie Breunig, vice president, health care market, for furniture manufacturer KI, Green Bay, Wis.
It is also important to ask if the product is available with features designed specifically for the health care field. For instance, Vassberg also consults with clients’ infection control experts in choosing furnishings; she recommends health facilities request easily cleanable, antimicrobial finishes with antistain and antiabrasion properties.
Hospitals are 24/7 environments where the furnishings get hard use, even in nonclinical spaces. Vassberg recalls recently seeing a woman using the seats of lobby chairs to serve nachos with cheese to three children, without even the aid of napkins. To ensure furnishings can stand up to the type of abuse the public can dish out, “durability really needs to be emphasized in writing that RFP,” she says.
Facilities that diagnose and treat specific patient populations should inquire whether products can meet these patients’ special needs. Is there a bariatric option available? Do the chair arms and seat height make it easy for geriatric patients to rise to a standing position? Are the products strong and safe enough to be used by pediatric or behavioral health care clients? Are the pieces sized appropriately? Some furnishings are designed to assist in the treatment of certain conditions. Find out if the products will help the organization improve care for particular patients.
Maintenance issues
Maintenance requirements for any product should be understood in advance of purchase. These include the cleaning instructions for all finishes, and information such as whether the furniture can be broken down and repaired in the field. Zusman notes every health facility he has ever visited has a room or corridor devoted to broken furniture. “Some products can significantly reduce the burden on maintenance people,” he says.
Depending on their design, furnishings can also reduce the burden on the environment. Sustainability is an increasingly important issue in health care. Several organizations, such as the Greenguard Environmental Institute, Marietta, Ga., and the Institute for Market Transformation to Sustainability, Washington, D.C., certify products based on environmental standards, ranging from the amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by a product to an environmental analysis of its entire life cycle. Ask if any environmental certifications apply to the product in question. When obtaining cleaning instructions, find out if green cleaning products or techniques can be used.
Besides determining the sustainable qualities of a company’s products, health facilities should inquire about the company’s overall environmental policies. “We get asked quite readily about these,” says Katie Dana, marketing specialist with Case Systems Inc., Midland, Mich., manufacturer of plastic laminate furniture and casework. Environmental stewardship goes beyond the materials used to create a product; manufacturing processes, packaging and many other factors are involved.
The availability of customization is another avenue to explore, as “it really seems hospitals are going more for a customized fit,” Dana says.
A manufacturer may be able to custom design a product to meet the facility’s exact interior design and programming needs. This may include everything from designing a specifically sized decentralized nurses’ station to mixing and matching features from the manufacturer’s own product line to create a custom table to using textiles from another manufacturer (known as COM, or “customer’s own material,” fabric) to upholster a chair. Find out what customization is possible, and what the premium for this may be.
Health care expertise
A product is only as good as the company and service that stand behind it. For health facilities, the most important quality in a furniture manufacturer is experience in the health care field.
“[The number of] years of experience in health care is very important,” says Breunig. She notes that particularly in today’s economy, some manufacturers from the business sector may shift into health care. “They may not have that expertise, the years of experience and research and development in the health care market—and it is a different market,” she says.
The health care environment has many unique requirements that set it apart from a contract business setting. Make sure the manufacturer can address those needs. The number of years the company has been in business, its financial strength, the awards or recognitions it has received, the breadth and depth of its product offerings and recommendations from past clients can help a hospital make this evaluation.
Service is key
When it comes to service, pre-sale consultation and post-sale follow-up are both key to a successful purchase, says Breunig. This can be facilitated by access to a local dealer or sales representative. Hospitals that are members of larger health systems may want to make sure representatives are available throughout the system. It can also be helpful if the manufacturer offers multiple means of support, such as online order tracking, Breunig adds.
Be sure the length and terms of the product’s warranty are clearly spelled out, including whether repair or replacement costs are prorated during the warranty period. “There’s often some small print in there,” says Zusman.
Price integrity is another consideration. Knowing how long a company can hold a price will assist in project planning. Health facilities that participate in group purchasing organizations (GPOs) should make sure the company can work with their GPO.
Delivery options can be important, too. “Space is sometimes limited for dock delivery at hospitals, so it’s important to identify how that would be set up,” Breunig points out. A facility may also want to find out if the company offers a quick-ship program for products that are needed on short notice.
While manufacturers strive to make their products as intuitive to use as possible, some training is often necessary for facilities to realize the maximum performance from certain pieces, such as convertible sleep furniture and ergonomically adjustable task chairs. Make sure the type of training available, whether in-house, online or written, meets the needs of the health care organization, particularly in covering all staffing shifts.
Finally, be sure to include any relevant information about the hospital or the intended use of the product that will help the manufacturer understand the organization’s needs. Note whether the product will be used in a patient, clinical or administrative area. If no changes or substitutions can be made due to health system or GPO requirements, make that clear.
Also be clear about the hospital’s payment terms. If there is a deadline to be met, that information can be critical to the manufacturer. Ben Hubbard, sales manager for Carstone Seating, Somerset, Ky., remembers finding out only after winning one project that the pieces, which take six weeks to fabricate and manufacture, were needed by the facility in about three weeks. “I wish I’d known that up front!” he laughs.
Just ask
Any information that will help the company properly quote a price is appropriate for an RFP. So is any question that will help a facility properly assess a prospective manufacturer and its products and services.
Breunig says manufacturers view clients as the experts in what works and what does not work for their organization. “I don’t view any question that they will put on an RFP as unnecessary or a waste of time. I look at it and say, ’If it’s important to them, it’s important for us to answer that,’” she says.
Amy Eagle is a Homewood, Ill.-based freelance writer and a regular contributor to Health Facilities Management.
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