Space Planning
Top 6 Ways Designers Create Nature-like Environments in an Office Space
In my last blog, I listed five elements designers use to bring nature into an office space. In this blog, I want to review the top six ways office space designers combine those elements to create a nature-like environment in the office.
- Spot the Plants – Small office? Low budget? Then adding a few potted plants in and around the office space, including work areas and meeting areas, is just one of the easiest most economical ways to establish a nature-like environment in an office space. How few or how many would depend on the size of your office, the size of your budget and the “stage” you want set for your employees.
- Nature Theme in Non-Nature Items – In addition to adding potted plants, some office space designers would recommend adding nature-themed artwork along with furniture, floor, wall or window treatments with floral, leaf or wood designs in their respective materials as a way of incorporating nature into the office space.
- Central Indoor Office Garden – With office spaces adopting more of the warehouse or open concept, some office space designers would recommend having a garden with a variety of live plants, stones or even a fountain or pond somewhere in the centre of that space so that it is visible to a majority of the office staff sitting at their desks or meeting areas as a great way to incorporate nature into the office space.
- Indoor Botanical Garden/Sanctuary – Even with the push for collaboration in many offices, smart businesses and office space designers recognize the need for staff to take a break and have time on their own in order to rejuvenate. Having a live garden within the office space that is separated from the rest of the work area either by glass walls or taller shrubs and climbing plants is one way to incorporate nature in the office space and still provide a “get-away” for staff. This application can include small wildlife such as birds or fish along with the flowing water as an added touch to this garden sanctuary.
- Indoor Garden Walkway – Nature does not have to be limited to one select area in the office area. With the use of wooden and/or “golf green” pathways spotted with plants along the way, getting from one area of the office to the other could seem like a “walk in the park” for your staff.
- Living Walls – The latest and most unique and innovative way of incorporating nature into the office space is by applying vertical gardens or “living walls” into the office space design. These walls are made up of a variety of plants whose roots lie in and are fed and watered by a vertical structural support which can be fastened to a traditional wall. It is a great application that takes up minimal space and poses as living artwork depending on the layout of the plants.
Nature adds many benefits to an office space. It improves air quality, can improve acoustics, and encourages well-being among people, just to name a few. It is for these benefits that office space designers will continually strive to find new and innovative ways to incorporate nature into the office space design.
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DJ Mcgauley and Associates Inc. is your Office Space Planning, Renovations and Relocation Project Management Company of choice. If a renovation or relocation of your office space is in your plans, please contact us to arrange a no-obligation site meeting. By the end of that meeting, you will know all that would be required to make your office renovation/relocation project a successful reality.
Call 416-239-1931, email [email protected] or visit our website for more information and to complete our contact form.
Reference:
Green Over Grey Living Walls and Designs, http://www.greenovergrey.com/living-walls/what-are-living-walls.php
5 Objectives Colours and Textures Fulfill in an Office Space Design
Throughout the history of office space design, the use of colours and textures have helped companies strive towards the image and business goals they aimed to achieve. Below are just a few objectives colour and texture can fulfill within an office space design:
- To Establish or Reinforce Corporate Identity – the colours within a company’s logo, for example, can be applied throughout the decor of the office space in order to further emphasized corporate identity to both staff and visitors
- Promote a Positive Mood – it has been said time and time again that a positive environment promotes positive mood, which in a corporate environment promotes productivity. Choosing the right colour and texture combination in an office space design to bring about a positive environment can in turn help increase productivity.
- Inspire Creativity and Innovation – I believe that similar to promoting a positive mood, the right colour scheme mixed in conjunction with a variety of textures sends an unconscious or subconscious message to its onlookers that “anything goes”. As a result, employees, though consciously unaware, are spurred on to “think outside the box”, and come up with creative and innovative solutions to whatever challenges the company faces.
- Differentiate workspaces and meeting areas – There was a time when walls and doors defined a workspace. Over time, walls became shorter or more transparent in order to promote a more collaborative open office space design. Today, walls, for the most part, have disappeared but both colour and texture are used in conjunction with one another to help differentiate workspaces and meeting areas.
- Help organize individual workspaces – Files are not the only thing that get colour coordinated within an office environment. Companies are now “splashing” individual workspaces with specially coloured desk trays, filing cabinets, pen holders and other workspace related items in order to help the users of those workspaces remain organized while working in those areas.
Over time trends in office space design have changed, but colour and texture, though re-purposed, have been two of the primary tools used to ultimately create the ideal office space.
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DJ Mcgauley and Associates Inc. is your Office Space Planning, Renovations and Relocation Project Management company of choice for the Toronto, GTA and surrounding areas. If a renovation or relocation of your 2,000 – 25,000 sq.ft. office space is in your plans, contact us to arrange a no-obligation site meeting. We guarantee that by the end of that meeting, you will know all that would be required to make your office renovation/relocation project a successful reality.
Call 416-239-1931, email [email protected] or visit our website for more information and to complete our contact form.
Office Pods– A New Solution to Privacy in an Open Office Space Design
Among the many office space design trends that currently exist, the open office space design has been the one popular design choice spanning several industries to encourage collaboration amongst staff and put all employees on an equal playing…or I should say, working field. But no matter how attractive the open office space design is to today’s organizations, there is always that looming need to create quiet areas or areas of privacy to handle regular business operation tasks such as making client phone calls meetings. Traditional offices closures and conference rooms have been the solutions to date, but a new solution is coming over the office space design horizon that more closely fits with the open office design concept.
Introducing office pods.
Office pods are self-contained portable sound proof enclosures created for the sole purpose of providing a quiet space or place of privacy in the midst of an open office space design.
Office pods offer several benefits:
- They offer flexibility to an office space design. Office pods are not enclosures that are fixed to a building. They are in fact portable or mobile, so like furniture, they can be placed anywhere inside or outside the office area—wherever best compliments the open office space design.
- Office pods are modular by nature, therefore can be dismantled, moved and reassembled from one office location to the next. They can even be easily extended to grow as your company grows.
- Office pods come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colours, therefore can be creatively designed to complement the office space design theme of your organization.
- Office pods offer full and partial enclosure options. The full enclosure office pods, similar to an enclosed office or conference room, are ideal for business meetings, conference calls, and other operational tasks that require one’s full and uninterrupted attention. The partial enclosure office pods–sometimes referred to as office booths–offer opportunity for staff to still collaborate or find a quiet space work or relax in an open setting but with less noise interruption from surrounding office activities.
- Office pods can have a combination of clear, glazed and/or solid coloured walls to further compliment or enhance the office space design theme while still maintaining a balance between open office space design and the need to respect confidentiality.
So, if your current or future office space design is one of an open concept but you still want to allow for areas of quietness or privacy for your staff’s and overall business’ well-being, or your landlord forbids fixed reconstruction of an office space, adding office pods to your office space design could be the best solution.
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DJ Mcgauley and Associates Inc. is your Office Space Planning, Renovations and Relocation Project Management Company of Choice for the Toronto, GTA and surrounding areas. If a renovation or relocation of your 2,000 – 25,000 sq.ft. office space is in your plans, contact us to arrange a no-obligation site meeting. We guarantee that by the end of that meeting, you will know all that would be required to make your office renovation/relocation project a successful reality.
Call 416-239-1931, email [email protected] or visit our website for more information and to complete our contact form.
References:
Urban office Interiors, Office Pods, https://www.urban-office.com/podscreens.html
OfficePod, OfficePod Lift the Lid on Dead Space, http://www.officepod.co.uk/about-officepod/
A Good Design Begins with Asking the Right Questions
In some ways, office space designers are not hard to find …once you can differentiate them from residential designers. They, in general, are quite creative and become very excited to offer their suggestions on how you can improve the look and feel of your office space once they are exposed to it. However, a really good office space designer can’t even begin to produce a proper office space design for a company without first understanding that organization’s wants and needs as it relates to its office space. The best way to know that is by visiting the site and asking the right questions.
What are some of those questions?
Well, to understand the culture and flow of your business, an office space designer may ask the following:
- How many employees (full time, part-time and contract included) does your company have?
- Do clients visit your office space to meet with your staff?
- How important is collaboration or teamwork?
- How important is privacy within the office?
- What is the flow of a regular workday for you and your staff?
- Are there any challenges within your current office space layout that you would want addressed?
- Are there any benefits within the current office space that you would want preserved or duplicated within your new office space?
This is just a sample of questions an office space designer may ask. With answers to the above, an office space designer can create an initial layout for your company that would immediately address any wants, needs or concerns that are not being met within the current office space layout. In other words, an office space designer that is truly client-focused will save you time and money by doing his or her best to present a design that is conducive to the optimal operation of your organization and best represents the character of your business.
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DJ McGauley and Associates Inc. is your Office Move, Reconstruction and Reconfiguration Project Management Company of choice for the Toronto, GTA and surrounding areas. If an office move or reconstruction of your 2000 – 25,000 sqft office space is a remote possibility, consider contacting us to arrange a no-obligation site meeting. We guarantee that by the end of that meeting you will know all that would be required to make your office move/reconstruction project a successful reality.
Call 416-239-1931 , email [email protected], or visit our website to complete our contact form.
5 Cost Effective Tips on How to Bring Spring Into Your Office Space
Spring is finally here! But if your office space only allows you or your employees to enjoy spring when outside the office, then there needs to be a change. Here are a few tips on how your office space can be transformed into a spring paradise:
Tip #1: Take a cue from nature and accent your office space with spring colours. The spring colour trend for 2015 leans towards more subtle pastels, understated bright colours and nature-like neutrals. Changing your office accents such vases, pen/pencil holders, accent pillows in a seating area, or even an area rug with these current spring colours could be an easy cost-efficient way of bringing spring into your office space. Of course you should make sure that the colours you choose compliment your main office colour theme.
Tip #2: Change your wall hangings or photos to reflect the spring theme. Whether it is a painting or digital photo wall hanging, an abstract or actual scene, a picture that shows a spring scene or spring colours will help bring a visual sense of spring being in the air.
Tip #3: Change things around. Not sure if you have the right pictures to act on Tip #2? Then take the wall hangings you have and change where they placed. Similarly, you may want to change where your office furniture is place in certain areas of the office. Such simple changes can provide a fresh view of the office and send a message to your staff that there is a change in the season.
Tip #4: Add plants and/or trees. Spring is all about nature coming to life. So, adding nature to your office space in the form of living plants and trees is a great way to bring spring into your office space. They not only bring the look of spring, but they also help to maintain a healthy air quality. Of course, if allergies are a problem, then artificial plants and trees can be effective in at least bringing the look of spring into your office space.
Tip #5: Turn one of your employee common areas into a spring sanctuary. This idea culminates the above tips and more. If your office space allows, select one area or room within the space that can have the spring colours, a garden of natural plants, and a bench or seating area that your employees can feel free to go to when they need a few minutes of respite from their regular work routine to unwind, and rejuvenate before going back to their desks. If the area is in an open space, you can create the look and feel of it being a closed in space by surrounding it with many trees and plants. If the area is within a closed-in space, you may want to consider adding soft music or a nature-sound track to the room so that those entering can hear the sounds of spring as well see it when they walk in.
Of course there are other ways to bring spring into your office space but those I would only recommend if your office is being fully renovated and you want the spring theme to be a more permanent year-round theme in the office.
For now, take the more cost effective, time effective approach to bringing spring into your office space. In time, it could prove to be productivity effective because as you take care of your employees’ well-being, they will take care of your company’s well-being.
Permit Grade Design: The Real Deal
One of the biggest mistakes businesses make when choosing an office space designer is basing their decision on a conceptual drawing or a block floorplan of an office space simply because they assume that the block floorplan is the exact way their completed office will be when the job is done. Not the case. While a block floorplan has its merits, the real decision-making factor is in the Permit Grade Design.
Similar to a block floorplan, a Permit Grade Design is a ceiling-view drawing of an office space with its different subsections blocked in—workstation area, closed in office areas, exits, washrooms, elevators, stairs, furniture, etc. However, the Permit Grade Design is drawn to scale based on the exact measurements and layout of your office space and furniture. With a Permit Grade Design, businesses and decision-makers will have a clearer view of what the final layout of their office space could look like. Presented with various Permit Grade Designs, businesses can make a more educated decision on which office space designer to hire and get the job done based on the best floorplan presented to them.
Permit Grade Designs are easy to obtain—just request one from the office space designer(s) you are considering to hire. In the short term, it may cost you a little money upfront to account for the extra time the designer takes to measure every aspect of your office space and furniture, but it would prove beneficial in the longer run because (a) you will gain a greater confidence in the office space designer you choose to hire, and (b) you will minimize the possibility of some common and sometimes costly problems such as furniture not fitting properly into their assigned office areas .
So, when it comes to hiring an office space designer based on a floorplan, remember that the Permit Grade Design is the real deal-maker!
Don’t Be Fooled by a Block Floorplan!
There are many main factors that come into play when choosing a designer to create and “build” your ideal office space—three of which are pricing, personality and the plan (floorplan that is).
Pricing: This is obvious. You want the best quality for the lowest cost possible (the best bang for your buck).
Personality: Relatively obvious. You want someone who works compatibly with you and your team while working towards realizing your ideal office space.
The Plan: Deceivingly obvious. The designer that presents the most favorable looking floorplan is likely to be the professional you will want to choose. That is the premise most decision-makers bank on. However, many fall into the trap of making their final decision on the wrong floorplan.
Let me explain.
Designers vying for your business will likely present you with a block floorplan. As the name suggests, a block floorplan is a ceiling-view schematic drawing of an office space with sections “blocked” on the page to represent individual office and workstation areas, bathroom spaces, stairways, elevators, exits, etc. Some block floorplans may even include top-view drawings of furniture such as a desk or a sofa just to give an idea of furniture placement within each blocked space. Block floorplans are great for providing a conceptual view of how your office space could be laid out, but they do not represent an exact view of your office space simply because they are most often not based on the actual measurements of both your office layout and your furniture.
Now, a block floor plan does have additional benefits: it can reveal to a decision-maker what a designer is capable of creating and may even give some insight to the question of whether or not the designer can identify with your business needs in relation to your office space. However, as a cover letter is with a resume, a block floorplan should be seen as part of an introduction to a designer who could potentially provide a solution to your office space– not as the actual solution to your office space.
Block floorplans may help narrow your choices of designers to use for your office space, but the real determining factor would be in the permit grade design…but we will discuss that in another blog.
5 Tips On Avoiding the Post-Office Relocation “Growing Pain” of Insufficient Office Space
There is probably nothing more frustrating than moving into an office space that is insufficient in meeting your current and/or your future business needs. Avoiding this dilemma requires some proactive planning.
First, you need to know what you are starting with and what you want to end up with by the end of the lease term. You can do this by
- Acknowledging what you have and/or need in the short term (staff wise and equipment-wise)
- Having a five-year business plan that details anticipated changes in staff and equipment
Second, take measurements of all the office furniture and office equipment you plan to move into your new office space in the short term. With this information, you will be able to accurately plan the layout of your new office space based on actual rather than assumed information related to your office furniture and equipment.
Third, consider your staff (current and future) and the type of work spaces they will need to function most effectively. How many will need to be in collaborative workstations? How many will need closed-in offices? What about meeting rooms, lunch areas, storage areas?—how many would your organization need? Your answers to these questions multiplied by the knowledge that the standard space allotted to each room or staff member ranges from approximately 36 sq.ft (for a small cubicle) to 300 sq ft (for a large office) can help determine the total ideal size your new office space should be in order to meet your current and future business needs.
Fourth, when checking out a potential office space, walk with a measuring device and use it to document the square footage (or square metres) of the office space. If the office space is somewhat irregular in shape, then take note of wall lengths and heights and the angles these walls create when they meet.
Finally, before signing any lease agreements, take all the information from the previous steps and create basic office space design layout. This can be done either by using design software or on paper with 2-dimensional cut-outs representing the office furniture and equipment, or you can have a professional office space planner provide one for you if you do not have the time or resources to do this yourself. Having a visual of each potential office space can help you determine which space would be optimal for your business. Just make sure your office space layout is to scale so that your decision is an accurate one.
There are other factors to consider when choosing the right office space such as electrical and internet capacity, but following the above can at least help ensure that your next office space is the right size to facilitate your current and future business operations.
Office Space Design – Your Secret Weapon to Attracting Ideal Candidates
It is no secret – the interview process between companies and candidates is actually a two-way process. Not only is the interviewing company aiming to hire “good fits” to join their team, but the potentially “good fits” are also deciding if the interviewing company is right them. What does this have to do with office space design? A lot, considering companies can increase the probability of hooking their ideal candidates through their office space design.
It is happening in Europe and in different parts of the United States – -Companies are revamping their office space design to fit the mentality (and thus attract the top talents) of the young and up and coming workforce, namely the Generation Y and Z populations.
What exactly does that mean?
It means companies looking to attract the top talents of the Generation Y and generation Z populations (i.e. those born after 1979) are creating office environments that encourage creativity, collaboration and meet tech savvy needs. For some companies, that means trading traditional high-walled cubicles for lower-walled ergonomic workstations clustered in small groups. For other companies, it means trading the traditional boardroom table and chairs of a meeting room for either soft leather couches and coffee tables to create a relaxed “living room” styled social area, or with high cafe tables and bar stools to create a “café” styled office space design–all to encourage collaboration and teamwork. Open ceilings and bright bold primary colours accent the new office space design to encourage the concept of “no limits” on creativity.
Besides being collaborative and creative, both Gen Y’ers and Gen Z’ers are very comfortable with technology. In fact, most are tech savvy. So, if companies want to hook their ideal candidates from these generations, they will need to consider adding additional usb and other connection ports throughout their office space design or add a tech –heavy social networking meeting areas so that people can connect their laptops, IPads/tablets or other technical devices while meeting with their colleagues or clients in person or online. This will become more and more of a need once the younger Generation Z population enters the work force.
So what about clear-walled offices and meeting areas? Will they become a thing of the past? I would suggest no because they will help meet one more need of the Gen Z’ers—the need to on occasion work alone and only collaborate with others through online methods.
References:
About.Com Legal Careers, Generation Y, http://legalcareers.about.com/od/practicetips/a/GenerationY.htm
Blogger, JuJu Blog Site, Characteristics of Generation Z, http://characteristicsofgenerationz-juju.blogspot.ca/
Top 5 Tips for Making Your Workspace ‘Work’ For You
You must admit. It is wonderful to get a new computer or laptop, new desk, new office chair or even a new keyboard and mouse for your workspace, but getting these items is not enough to help you work more efficiently. Even if your workspace has everything you need, getting these items to work for you is necessary for you to work better with them.
So how do you get your workspace to work for you? Well, here are a few tips:
Tip #1 – Make sure your workspace includes a chair with a back rest to support your lower back and is adjusted to a height to facilitate an optimum sitting posture. An optimum sitting posture is one where your torso to thigh angle is roughly 100 degrees, your feet are flat on the floor or on a foot rest, and your knees are bent at a 90 to 100 degree angle.
Tip#2 – Ensure the h.eight of the desk or table of your workspace is roughly 64cm to 75 cm up from the floor to compliment the optimum sitting posture and facilitate an optimum arm angle of 70 to 90 degrees when working with a keyboard or mouse.
Tip #3 – Whether your workspace includes a laptop or desktop computer, make sure the top of line of text on your screen is adjusted to be at your eye level and is roughly 40cm to 76cm away from you. Also, your keyboard and mouse should be placed beside each other and positioned so that your wrists are relatively straight when using either of them.
Tip #4 – Have proper lighting in your workspace to minimize eye strain. If necessary, position a desktop lamp opposite your dominate hand to add sufficient lighting and minimize shadowing to your workspace. Also, control glare by either positioning your workspace beside or parallel to a window to minimize glare from windows, or between rows of overhead florescent lights to prevent glare from them. Otherwise, you can adjust the angle of your screen or add anti-glare screen protectors to help minimize glare.
Tip #5 – If using a phone or mobile, make sure it is within arm’s reach to reduce repetitive over reaching. Alternately, consider using a headset.
Why settle for an insufficient workspace? Follow all of these tips and your workspace will ‘work’ towards optimizing your comfort, reducing strain on your body and allowing you to function more efficiently.
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