The design of office space or office planning was a very rational matter in the past. The main goal was to use space efficiently, to meet economic aspects, and to meet the requirements of occupational safety. If you managed to get all of your employees safe and fit for work in one building, the task was usually already done.
This resulted in the common office that we all know: long corridors that give way to the left and right of cell offices. Creativity and appealing corporate communication were usually limited to the reception.
However, office design has developed from a pure hygiene factor to an important success parameter for the operational success of companies. The office became the center for shaping the corporate culture.Contact here for the best service for Office painters and decorators.
The demands of today’s offices have changed:
- Digitization and individualization enable a location-independent way of working
- Flexible work does not have to take place at a dedicated desk
- Work content is complex and networked and requires a healthy mix of teamwork and focused work
- The boundaries between work and leisure are blurring
These requirements for a modern workplace form the foundation on which the interior designer builds his office planning.
The formula for success for office planning:
Are you looking for the formula for your perfect office? Unfortunately, there is no such thing. Just as every company is unique, the office space must also be individually tailored to the needs of the company.
A logistics company works differently than an advertising agency and therefore also needs different room layouts. There are also different roles within the company that places different demands in the workplace. The work environment of the accountant differs significantly from that of the salesperson. Before the interior designer can start planning, an intensive analysis must first be carried out.
Office planning – the introductory phase: what exactly do you do?
The perfect office not only looks great, but it should also optimize the exchange of information. As is so often the case in life, the focus is on relationships. For this reason, every office project starts to like the first date for interior designers: with lots of questions.
- Which departments interact intensively with each other?
- How many employees need a permanent job?
- How clearly are the departments separated?
- Are there customer visits?
The needs analysis is the critical point in the planning phase, as the information gathered has a direct influence on the result. That is why it makes sense not only to speak to the management but also to involve representatives from the individual teams in the discussions as early as possible.
Joint workshops led by the interior designer, often with the help of questionnaires, which cover all important aspects of daily collaboration.From the information collected, the interior designer can now work out, for example, where an open office makes sense, how many retreat rooms are necessary and what size the meeting rooms must be.All these aspects are processed by the interior designer in the floor plan before the design phase begins.
Office planning – the design phase:
The floor plan is ready, the room layout is fixed, we start with the more creative part on the way to the finished office. In the design phase, everything focuses on the goal of presenting the company in the room and reflecting the corporate identity.
To do this, one uses the large interior design toolbox:
- materials
- surfaces
- Floor coverings
- light
- Acoustics
- plants
- When selecting the different elements, functionality, external appearance and the well-being of the employee must be brought into harmony.
For example, The noble parquet floor gives the visitor a high-class impression, but in terms of acoustics, it is a no-go for employees who want to work concentrated.The corporate identity should always influence the selection of style elements and materials. Which atmosphere/mood should be created? What does the company stand for? Offices with cold surfaces such as concrete, steel, glass, and industrial design exude modernity and are often associated with IT / technology companies.
A room characterized by natural materials, warm light, and lush vegetation (biophilic design) suggests to the visitor that it is a sustainable company.As in your own home, the office design should exude what the company stands for.
