Pharmacy renovation in Batumi: storage, shopfront, security

Pharmacy renovation starts with the storage requirements

The permit for pharmaceutical activity is obtained by the pharmacy owner, who confirms the requirements for the premises according to the type of permit. We carry out pharmacy renovation in Batumi to that list. It almost always includes storage conditions: what temperature and humidity to keep on the sales floor and in the stockroom, where the fridges go, and how the stockroom and the till are protected.

So we start the layout not with the shopfront but with the main stockroom, where most of the stock is kept. We place it by the service entrance, away from the sunny side and from the toilet, so that boxes don't go through the sales floor when deliveries come in. The staff room and the toilet go next to it. If the pharmacy will be preparing medicines, the requirements for those rooms are stricter, and we need their list before the layout.

Temperature and humidity on the sales floor and in the stockroom

The storage range is set by the manufacturer of each medicine and printed on the pack, and it has to be maintained all year round. In summer a sales floor with its shopfront on the sunny side overheats by midday, and in the rainy season damp builds up in it. Air conditioners in a pharmacy run day and night, so we use inverter units: they hold the temperature steadily, without swings.

A windowless stockroom gets its own air conditioner, or better two. If one breaks down in August, the second will hold the temperature until the engineer arrives. In the damp months we remove humidity with a dehumidifier or an air conditioner in dry mode, and look for the cause of the damp separately, as described on the page about dehumidification. Stockroom shelving is set away from the outside wall, so that cold, damp air doesn't stagnate behind it.

We put thermo-hygrometers on the sales floor, in the stockroom and in every fridge, at the height where the stock sits. If you need a log without manual entries, we install data loggers that store readings and send alerts to a phone.

Fridges and backup power

Some medicines can only be kept in a fridge, and an overnight power cut can cost the pharmacy a whole batch. Every pharmaceutical fridge gets its own circuit and its own breaker, separate from the sales floor sockets and the heater by the till. We install them with a gap behind for the heat to escape, not by the shopfront and not in direct sun.

The fridge and till circuits are connected through an uninterruptible power supply (UPS), or we leave an inlet for a generator with a changeover switch. A voltage protection relay guards against voltage swings, and a stabiliser too if the supply fluctuates noticeably. How they differ and which to choose is covered on the page about surge protection.

Shopfront, entrance and sign

Behind the glass of a south- or west-facing shopfront it is hotter in summer than on the sales floor, so medicines are not displayed there: only cosmetics, empty packs and advertising. The medicines themselves are kept further back, in cabinets behind the dispensing counter. We choose the profile and the glass in the same way as for a shop renovation: thermally broken aluminium that doesn't sweat, and solar control glass.

For a 24-hour pharmacy we put in a night service hatch with security glass, a tray and a call button, with a light and a camera next to it. A step at the entrance is a bigger problem for a pharmacy than for a shop: people come here on crutches, with walking frames and with pushchairs. If there is a level difference, we look for room for a ramp together with the building owner at the layout stage. The sign and the illuminated cross are put up under the building's and the city's rules; the owner checks whether they need a permit before ordering them, and we lay in the fixings and power supply in advance.

Security: alarm, cameras, safe

A pharmacy is protected more seriously than an ordinary shop, and the security cables are laid at the rough stage, not along finished walls. Sensors go on the doors, windows and shopfront, motion detectors on the sales floor and in the stockroom, and a panic button at the till. The alarm is connected to the monitoring centre of the security company you sign a contract with. Cameras cover the entrance, the till and the stockroom door.

The stockroom door is steel, with a reliable lock. If your permit requires special storage for certain groups of medicines, we install a safe or a steel cabinet and fix it to the wall or floor as those rules require. The shopfront and the entrance can be closed at night with roller shutters; their box is built in above the opening before the facade is finished.

A sales floor for pharmacy furniture

Pharmacy furniture is made to measure: the dispensing counter with the pharmacists' workstations, the cabinets behind it, open shelving for cosmetics, display cases. We measure for it against the finished walls and floor, but order it straight after the layout: manufacturing takes several weeks, and including it, renovating a pharmacy of about 70 m² in white frame usually takes us 6–8 weeks.

To each position at the dispensing counter we bring sockets for the computer, till, card terminal, scanner and label printer, as well as a network cable. The light on the shelves and the counter is even, and downlights are placed so that they don't glare on the glass of the display cases. The sales floor is laid with porcelain tiles, and we leave the owner spare tiles from the same batch: if a tile cracks under the dispensing counter, you won't have to hunt round the shops for a replacement.

How much pharmacy renovation costs in Batumi

Pharmacy renovation with materials costs from 870 to 1,200 ₾ per m². The price includes rough work, wiring with separate circuits, the floor, the ceiling and finishes. Pharmacy furniture and the sign are not included: made-to-measure furniture is priced per linear metre, from 1,380 to 1,920 ₾ per metre.

Within this price, the shopfront and the air conditioners move the total the most, and each has its own line in the estimate. An aluminium shopfront or entrance is priced by the glazed area, from 780 to 1,080 ₾ per m². Air conditioners are priced by the number of units: a 12,000 BTU inverter unit with installation costs from 2,100 ₾, and a second unit in the stockroom adds another line like it. Among labour-only items, laying porcelain tiles costs from 75 ₾ per m², and fitting one downlight above the shelves from 38 ₾. A pharmacy in white frame with a small shopfront is closer to the lower end; a 24-hour pharmacy with a night hatch, two air conditioners in the stockroom and a new entrance is closer to the upper end.

From a plan, a photo of the frontage and a list of the fridges we send a preliminary estimate within 24 hours on business days. The final cost is set after the site measurement, once the estimate is agreed, and the price of each stage is written into the contract.