Employee well-being and productivity are still crucial in 2021, in line with pandemic-era workplace practices. However, our expected workplace design trends for this year have shifted dramatically. When it comes to workplace design in the COVID-19 age, keeping employees safe from health threats is the first priority.
"What all firms will have in common after COVID-19 is a renewed focus on providing safe, healthy workplaces that embrace wellness ideas and practices."
The epidemic has altered how individuals and businesses approach workplace design. While many offices have interim safeguards in place to guarantee health and safety, there are also substantial long-term improvements that will persist long after the pandemic worries have subsided. Over the last year, more individuals have become aware of the importance of health and safety measures in safeguarding our well-being. A year of wearing masks, regular hand washing, and social separation altered our perceptions of office safety and cleanliness.
Some of the ways offices are modifying their office layouts are as follows:
Workstation pods : While plastic shields keep things clean, they can be damaging to collaboration and teamwork. Many businesses utilize desk pods to enhance both safety and cooperation. Desk pods allow three to four people to communicate while also giving distance.
Distancing at the desk : Leaders can talk to their staff about the necessity of social separation, but an office architecture that favors it is more successful. Many businesses are switching desks and workstations so that they face away from each other, making it simpler for employees to keep their distance.
Outdoor workstations: According to research, outdoor activities with plenty of air had a reduced chance of getting COVID-19 than inside ones. While it is not feasible for all businesses in all climates, many firms are establishing outside offices to increase safety.
Smaller meeting rooms : Smaller conference rooms facilitate the use of small groups. Instead of two or three individuals speaking in a tiny cubicle, which might be dangerous, they can keep a safe distance without taking up a huge conference room.
Office design can foster healthy practices and make workers feel more at ease after returning from remote work. They can also assist to foster a collaborative environment while also ensuring the safety of their employees.
What are the most popular workplace design trends for 2021?
We wanted to learn more about how the workplace's layout - and the technology within it - are changing as a result of the epidemic. While safety is the underlying theme of today's workplace design trends, many also aim to improve employee welfare and enjoyment.
Here are the top workplace design trends we anticipate to see in the next months.
● Strict sanitary protocols are included into the office architecture:
In the COVID-19 age, organizations will need to make it easy for employees to maintain good hygiene. According to reports, this might include installing sinks in kitchens and break rooms, as well as placing several hand sanitizer stations in strategic locations throughout the company. Other changes to aid with workplace hygiene, such as designating lockers, file drawers, or cabinets to individuals, will also be critical. To improve hygiene, trash cans should be positioned in common spaces rather than at individual desks.
• In the contemporary office, unassigned chairs with shielding and barriers:
The necessity for successful collaboration among teams and across departments motivates new types of meeting rooms in offices. This resulted in the pre-COVID-19 practice known as 'hot desking,' which eliminates the typical personal working area and instead allows employees to select where to sit every day on a first-come, first-served basis. Hot desking upends traditional workplace layouts by including various co-working zones such as think areas. More limits or barriers, such as curtains, walls, or shields, will be required in modern office design so that employees may pick seats that allow them to remove themselves from others. Seats will also need to be arranged so that colleagues do not have to face one other directly.
• Technology-inspired workplace design that is "touchless" or "hands-free":
Workplace design and technology are inextricably linked. The infrastructure of a corporation must be accommodated by the office design. Consider beacon technology and wireless systems for presentations or video conferencing in collaborative work spaces.
● Hands-free technology:
It will be a prominent office design trend in 2021 to prevent surface touching and hence the transmission of viruses in the workplace. Touch less check-in solutions for guests, who just scan a QR code at front desk kiosks or access control points such as entrances, turnstiles, or elevators in a building, are examples of hands-free technology. Touch less Check In through mobile phone QR code scanner tablet. We will also see increasing usage of voice activation or VOIP communication tools, artificial intelligence, and other hands free controls in the workplace. Smart materials and nature-focused office design to boost air quality and circulation.
"We must emphasize materials that are simple to maintain, resistant to mold, and support excellent indoor air quality," Antimicrobial materials, such as copper, can also be employed. Offices are also becoming more environmentally friendly, with nature-inspired workspace designers incorporating parts of the outdoors inside. The goal of biophilic design is to create visual connections between humans and nature. Plants and wood flooring adorn this trendy natureinspired workspace. These relationships are sometimes lost since employees spend the majority of their working time indoors (particularly during a worldwide epidemic). Office plants, such as Living Walls, also serve to enhance air quality and contribute to a better way of life for employees. Nature will inspire workplace design with a living plant wall. and much more Office design in the future will be safer.
Companies are welcoming new office design advancements and technology to improve workplace safety, productivity, and general well-being, even in the midst of an increasingly dispersed workforce And, while we continue to deal with the aftermath of a worldwide epidemic, we can look forward to a brighter future filled with innovative office design advances that assist employees better satisfy health and work-life balance requirements.
We at GXI will strive to create settings that bring people together while yet keeping them separate." We are a company that focuses on workplace wellness and benefits its employees. A healthy work environment is essential for every company's success, development, and profitability because it impacts workers' perceptions of how they feel about their employment. Only that viewpoint drives their performance and devotion to the organization's improvement.
