Let’s Be Open About Open Plan Offices

Offices have long featured rows and rows of cubicles, which often feel quite claustrophobic and isolating. This is why there has been a major shift in the past few years and businesses are embracing open plan offices.

Open plan offices are a great choice for any business, and there are loads of benefits to this popular office layout.  Most popular reasons are listed below:

• Easy Lines Of Communication – with the reduction of walls individuals find it far easier to communicate with each other. As it is much easier to communicate within an open plan office people are far more likely to discuss projects, share ideas and ask for team mates input, even seeing an increase of innovation thanks to the increased communication.
• Reduced Cost – the cost of setting up an open plan office is significantly lower than that of the standard office design, due to less materials and construction costs.
• Flexibility For Change – as the business grows the office will have to grow with it. In an open plan office environment desks, loose furniture and storage can quickly and simply be shuffled around to create a whole new floor plan.
• Benefit Employees Wellbeing Individuals are far less isolated allowing them to feel part of the team, humans are social creatures hence why open plan offices are so popular in boosting staff morale.

Though open plan office environments clearly offer many positive attributes for both the business and staff there can be a few obstacles that may get in the way. With a few simple changes to the design and the right selection of office furniture products, these obstacles can easily be solved.

Lack Of Personal Space – due to the lack of walls employees may feel they have no space of their own. A simple solution to this is pairing privacy screens with the workstations, we have a range of screen options including upholstered screens, Aura panel privacy screens and ducted and non-ducted screen options. Offering many colour options that can be customised to the individual office, team or person. Privacy screens provide the right level of solitude while still allowing ease of communication. Personal storage systems can also provide individuals with a place to store their personal belongings, including under desk storage or lockers depending on the available space.

Distraction From Noise – as employees can easily communicate with each other in an open plan environment the office can become quite noisy at times leading to distraction. There are a variety of solutions to reduce the noise and improve the productivity within an open plan office.

• Sound Proofing – our range of privacy screens can provide a good level of sound proofing for individuals. Our Aura Panel Focus Screen provide personal space with acoustic properties for increased focus.
• Choose the Right Furniture – we have a selection of items that can be used within an office space that is designed to provide a peaceful work-zone.  Our soft seating range also provide a haven for a personal workspace, more intimate meetings or informal presentations, perfect for a busy open-plan office.
• Addition Of Plants – using plants or living walls will help absorb some of the noise while also looking great, adding a pop of colour to liven up the office.

Share