Workplace facilities

[subaqua]

on old position where i was permanent site based facilities were always good - lockers showers drying room with a good blower, only thing let it down was wheelbender rack . so nobody used them and locked it to the hoarding support steels.

new position is multi site visits and some are really dire but i don't mind riding to whereas some are great for facilities but I wouldn't ride there.

I have solved problem with a £30 a month swimming membership with the "better " group in London . I can ride to local pool ( IRB in city) lock bike outside in view of CCTV have a swim before work , leave bike stuff in locker all day go back after work have another swim then ride home.

also means i get "free" swimming at weekend with my kids.

 

[HLaB]

I must admit I forgot to ask at my interview if there was any facilities; for the first month at least though I'll be joing the A1 petrol heads; would have rather took the train but it costs about as much as my monthly increase is calculated to be.

 

[jongooligan]

Used to work in local authority leisure centres which are just about perfect for commuting. Bike brought inside the air handling plant room, wet clothes hung in the boiler room, plenty of showers and my own locker.
Now I work in an office. It's not bad as we have secure cycle storage but the showers are in the disabled toilets and there's nowhere to dry wet clothes.

 

[Biscuit]

Fairly lucky here. Secure inside storage in a spare room for several bikes, unisex access to the shower, and we made a clothes dryer area in the shower room for our stuff. I brought in some tools and a track pump and others have chipped in with spare locks etc for trips into town at lunchtime.

Sorted !

Tried the B2W scheme but management not interested.

 

[steve292]

We have showers, a covered bike shed, 2 lockers each in a dedicated locker room with nice warm radiators. the firm provides a stock of towels(lots).
We also get issued flip flops for shower wear. The site is manned 24/7, with cctv & security, with all entry to the site pass controlled.
Best firm I've ever worked for tbh & it shows in the low sickness rates & staff retention.

 

[Crankarm]

We have showers, a covered bike shed, 2 lockers each in a dedicated locker room with nice warm radiators. the firm provides a stock of towels(lots).
We also get issued flip flops for shower wear. The site is manned 24/7, with cctv & security, with all entry to the site pass controlled.
Best firm I've ever worked for tbh & it shows in the low sickness rates & staff retention.

Who do you work for? Any jobs going?

I don't see why many cyclists think we are owed facilities? Sorry. I have had jobs where the employer has had showers and very secure cycle parking etc and it has been nice don't get me wrong. However businesses are businesses. Installing such facilities costs money and the facilities have to be kept clean which costs time and money or the time of some one to clean them. How many cyclists that have access to showers also take time to clean them? Few I would think. Where I work now I can take my bike into work so it is safe inside. Last year I lost £300 of locks as they were removed from my parking space, bike was not locked up at the time. However my employer does not have any showers but tbh as nice as it is to have a shower I have become used to baby wipes. I can change and get clean quickly with these and I don't smell. Also why do cyclists think they must have a drying area for their clothes? Ok I suppose for your outer cycling jacket if it's been pissing with rain, understandably you want to hang it up to dry like with any coat, but everything else, your cycling kit, you are having a laugh! Just take a change of kit in with you so you have clean and dry to ride home in and put your wet stuff in a dry bag and take it home with you to wash for next day. SImples.

 

[steve292]

Who do you work for? Any jobs going?

.

The showers and the towels aren't because of the cycling, rather we are an industrial site with rotating shifts 24 hrs a day 365 days a year.

 

[summerdays]

The bike sheds are under the building and store about 80-100 bikes I think, accessed by card. However if you are late in then there is no space left so then it's the Sheffield stands in front of the building or watching to see where someone leaves from.

As far as I know there are no lockers, basically you just hang wet stuff on your chair or on one of the coat racks.

They are about to move more staff into the building so where they will put their bikes I don't know. Then in the future we will move to yet another building which hasn't been kitted out yet, so no idea about the facilities.

 

[biggs682]

we have finally got a covered shelter

 

[fretted]

I have just been allocated a bike rack at work, which is open but CCTV monitored by reception. Plus a shower room/drying room

 

[Jebb]

we have individual bike boxes and a locker which is great but no shower or drying room, just started commuting so not arrived wet at work yet, that fun is yet to come!

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Showers in changing-rooms & towels (it's a Hospital, so just get them from the linen cupboard in the department)

We have 'Sheffield Stands' outside, with covers, but, they're not really covered by the plethora of CCTV around the place.
One of my collegues, got a Planet X, via 'C2W', & it was stolen on the first day he rode it there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (& guess???, no CCTV showing that stand)


When I ride in, mine (& a couple of others; Consultant & Registrar) get put in the male changing rooms - we said we'd use the female room, but too many lockers in that one, to get them in)

A couple of Medical Consultants even take theirs up to the 5th floor, & keep them in their offices!!

There's also a few of the fully enclosed (bolted to ground) holders, but they tend to have permanant residents, who leave their locks on them all year

 

[w00hoo_kent]

I work for a university with three campuses and each is different. All have shower facilities and lockers although mostly the lockers are all allocated out so I only have access to one on my main campus. No towels supplied, hadn't even occurred to me, I use one of the thin quick drying travel towels. No drying facilities anywhere, I hang stuff on coat racks and hope it's dry when I change back at the end of the day. With students around I couldn't leave stuff unattended anyway. Every site has access to basic tools including a track pump.

At my main campus there are a few locking bike cages but they are massively over subscribed. Sheffield stands are dotted about but have public access and after my bike was stolen from one I now hide the current one in a basement room behind two locked doors.

Another campus is also just Sheffield stands, although under awnings. Again I have a locked room I can sneak the bike in to.

Third campus has a dedicated steel cage (3 metres high built to withstand ram raiding by a lorry) with key code entry changed 3 times a year (you sign for the code) full CCTV coverage and Sheffield racks inside. I still lock the bike well, but it's the most secure feeling option. Also public access covered Sheffield racks dotted about.

The new building was given afterthought Sheffield racks in a corner of the underground car park. Can't see me using them.

We use the government C2W scheme.

Generally it feels like we're well catered for. But levels all depend on the specific site FM manager and the council regs.

 

[Scotchlovingcylist]

I work at a mental health unit. We have a covered bike shelter outside and managers are relaxed enough to let us bring bikes inside on the night shift. Access to showers, towels, changing room with radiators and since im the only one who does any 'serious' mileage im the only one who uses it. C2W scheme is available at certain points throughout the year so all in all pretty good

 

[fossyant]

Looks like we still have no place to put our damp kit in the new building we move into next month. The manager is still doing his best, but I managed to wind up a colleague and asked her if it was OK to put our kit up on a washing line in the open plan offices. She wasn't amused .

Think the project staff don't realise how many staff will cycle in everyday. We gave a conservative estimate of at least 20. Out of a meeting of 15 folk this morning, 3 of us cycled in every day.

Well nothing has changed. Had it confirmed that it's likely to be after we move in that we have somewhere to put out kit. Same colleague above ^ saw me pull up at site this morning covered in sweat and dripping wet, and re-iterated "have you found somewhere for your kit yet" ! Lovely to feel so wanted. PS this person is all dolled up, and looks as though she'd never get 'grubby' with exercise...

Plan B is needed.

We have lockers but they aren't vented, nor do they have hangers. Think I'll take in a piece of wooden dowling, cut approximately to size and a junior hacksaw and wedge the dowling inside the locker. I can then hang my kit on hangers. As for drying, a couple of USB desk fans coupled to a mobile phone 'emergency' charger - should power the fans long enough to dry kit. Feckin genius me !!

Today's site visit reminded me why we need a place to dry stuff, getting back into soggy shorts after a meeting isn't nice !