How To Make Furniture Staff Friendly
Furniture is a very important element in the design of any office environment. The right furniture will allow staff to work better and will project the right image for your firm. EU regulations for the workplace and UK law ensure that workers are protected from Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI), eye problems etc. They include the need for adjustable seating, lighting and VDU’s and provision of footrests and stands for documents on the desktop. A survey of your current workstations will reveal in functional terms whether or not compliance with the regulations is or can be achieved with your existing installation. A move or reorganisation is often the time to upgrade to full compliance with all EU directives.
Desks
There is probably no more emotive issue within the office than the selection of desks. They are, after all, in closest contact with the staff and it is also an area where highly subjective views can be expressed. Your architect or office interior designer will have some views on function, finish, colour etc.
The starting point must be that of function. From there, a range of manufacturers’ products can be examined and various prices compared. The final selection may be one of personal preference for a particular appearance or style.
Don’t forget also that at each desk you will need an office chair. Together they form a workstation. The choice of chair is also important, both functionally and in terms of appearance. A good chair for the office is not cheap but it must perform its role for at least eight hours a day and it must last many years. Adjustability, stability and support are key features you must look for.
Screening and partitions
The screens and partitions in the office environment can have a dramatic effect. High screens arranged to form private “rooms” can create a visual effect in the office like pigpens (the commonly used term for this kind of installation). Work is becoming increasingly team-based and high screening is becoming outmoded.
Low screens can have the benefit of providing visual barriers reducing distraction, while still giving an overall appearance of openness within the office as a whole. They will not, however, provide a high level of acoustic performance.
Partitions are used to create closed offices or cellular offices. Partitions may be solid or glazed and they will provide varying levels of demountability (the ability to be taken down and re-erected in a different configuration) and acoustic performance.
Storage
This is frequently a neglected area – being considered as an afterthought. It is, however, as important as the selection of the desks themselves. Your designers should address the issue of storage at a very early stage as part of the space audit. This will establish the need for short, medium and longer-term storage. The short-te
