Sawhill Athletic Club (A)

Sawhill Athletic Club was an athletic facility in suburban Scottsdale, Arizona. It was designed to provide a wide range of athletic opportunities, including racquetball courts and exercise facilities. The facilities were modern, and the staff focused on providing high customer service. To provide flexibility to its members, the club had a wide range of hours of operation. The members were primarily families and young professionals who lived in the area.
Membership at the club had been steady since it opened five years ago. To monitor the club's quality, members were often asked to fill out satisfaction surveys. Most members liked the club's attention to customer satisfaction, but many complained that the facilities did not have a good layout. They complained of having to walk long distances from one location to another, citing this as a significant inconvenience. Another complaint was that all the departments were separated with high walls, creating a "closed-in" feeling. A new athletic facility was going to be opening in the area in the near future. The owners of Sawhill thought that they had better listen to the requests of their customers in order to remain competitive.

Improving the Layout

Lauren Nicole was hired to manage Sawhill and to offer any recommendations for changing the layout of the facility. She was told to be creative and use her knowledge of facility layout design. She was even provided with a diagram of the facility 407408and averages of daily trips made by clients between each of the departments in the facility.

Case Questions

1. Develop an ld score for the current layout. What problems can you identify with the current layout?

2. Use trial and error to come up with a better layout that lowers the ld score. Explain the departments you thought needed to be in close proximity to one another.

3. Imagine an athletic facility such as Sawhill. What strategies would you suggest for creating an open environment?