We were very excited to work with Dr. Jean Battig, one of only 153 Board Certified Veterinary Dentists in the world. She teamed up with Norwest construction contractors to design and build the unique and spacious Animal Dental Clinic. One of the challenges we faced was designing and building a one-of-a-kind space: a surgical island that allows two vets to work on four patients simultaneously. This is a completely unique dental operatory, and we were delighted that Dr. Battig chose us to make her vision a reality.
Once her clinic was open, Dr. Battig again hired us to build additional treatment rooms all while avoiding any treatment interruptions in her existing space.
Why choose Norwest Construction Contractors?
Dr. Battig spoke with two other contractors before choosing Norwest. We asked her why she decided to go with us and this is what she said:
“My reason for continuing with Norwest was the amount of detail they provided in their service. I felt very comfortable with how they spoke with me, specifically when we got to meet with Mark Ingram. He was very, very knowledgeable and it was obvious when he first spoke with us that he knew exactly what he was doing. He was passionate about it. He was interested and eager to work with us, and to me, that’s what I was looking for.”
Controlling Costs & Staying on Budget
At Norwest Construction Contractors, we know that controlling costs and performing excellent, thoughtful, and budget-friendly work is vital to the success of any project. We asked Dr. Battig how we did in managing expenses during her project.
“ As far as controlling costs, I think that Norwest contractors did a really good job in giving us estimates. They weren’t the least expensive estimates out there, so they had to show us what the differences were. Once I saw what they included in their estimates, it made perfect sense to me why some of the other ones were quite different. I appreciated that I knew what the costs were going to be up front….I think that they did a good job allowing me to keep my expectations equal with reality….
“Mark kept me on the straight narrow, and I found that really helpful. It was stressful enough just making the decisions that I needed to make and to know that he and all of the Norwest gang was watching my back all the way was really, really nice.”
She also notes that when Norwest says they will complete work at a specific price, they do so even if they have to absorb any extra expense:
“There was a situation in which an entire countertop was mistakenly put in too low, and I brought that up to Norwest, and they were there the next day to have their subcontractor correct it, and that did not cost me any more at all. They would cover the cost of the things that were predefined and approved at the agreed upon expense no matter what it cost them to redo something if it needed to be redone.”
Collaborative Design & Build
One of the most unique aspects of the Animal Dental Clinic project was creating the truly one-of-a-kind dental suite that Dr. Battig had envisioned. She told us what it was like to work with us on something that had never been done before:
“One of the most interesting parts of the build-out was trying to create a functional operatory using four tables in our dental suite. We went from having two. We wanted and needed four but being able to put four complete dental operatories along with all the anesthetic, monitoring, x-ray, and dental machines together was very difficult. I was very specific about how I wanted it to look. It took awhile for me to try to take the vision that I had from my head and put it on paper. As far as I know, it’s one of the most unique dental operatories in the world. There are not very many veterinary dentists anyway and to have a large facility like this that is only for dentistry and animals was very unique. Norwest hadn’t built one of those before.
“It took a lot of collaboration with their designer, their engineer, and their contractors to discover how to build it, what was going to be required structurally, and how we were going to put it all together and make it work. It took a little while, but once we got all the kinks out, I’m amazed how it came together. It’s about exactly what I wanted and actually functions about like I thought it would, and it works great. The collaboration of all the people that Norwest has to work with, I thought it was really excellent.”
Giving Norwest Contractors An “A”
In the end, Dr. Battig shared how she would rate Norwest. You can read what she had to say below. However, we feel that the best rating she could give us was in hiring us again, which she did!
“If I were to rate the overall care that I received from Norwest from the designer, the subcontractors, electricians, everyone that they employed and their help in putting it all together, I couldn’t be happier. It was really fun to work with them, too…. They’re kind, they get back to me when I need it, they were there to listen and to make sure that I was happy in the end. They would keep saying, well Jean if you don’t like it, let us know because we want you to be happy when it’s all done and I am. I would give Norwest a high A grade.”
We are so happy to have helped Dr. Battig design and build her unique veterinary dental clinic! It was a rare opportunity to create something completely one-of-a-kind for a very niche industry.
Are you hoping to create a unique space for your business? Find out how we can help by contacting us today!
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