Office design strategies come in all shapes and sizes, though they largely all have the same goals in mind – to boost morale, to boost productivity, and to save space. These three rules, generally, are golden – meaning that we at GXI Group are well-versed in operating on all of these levels when working alongside a variety of different clients. When it comes to planning your office space, you may be keen to focus first and foremost on the outward look – the colours, the partitions, the storage – but in our opinion, it is the office furniture going into your new space that you should be giving the most attention to.
Office furniture has a reputation, built up over the years, for being somewhat cheap and unreliable – everyone remembers the squeaky and slightly flimsy wheelie chairs of old – this trend, and stereotype, has thankfully evaporated. A modern office is one which is not simply concerned with cost-saving and spatial promotion – it is one which is actively concerned about the morale and well being of its employees. Office furniture in 2017 – that which is actively used by employees on a constant basis – is now designed and provided to be ergonomic and to promote healthy habits – it is no longer costly to provide orthopaedic chairs and desks to your staff should they require it.
Furthermore, office furniture has become more fluid over the years. Static desks, chairs and storage units can now be easily packed up, moved and stored as hot-desking and open-plan office design came into vogue a few years ago. This means that you are no longer – literally – tied to your desk. Partitions, too, are up and moving. Office furniture is now actively designed and provided to operate on three clear means – to offer working comfort to their users, to provide essential practicality and functionality, and to save and promote spatial working. Office furniture is no longer an afterthought, or a ‘means to an end’. It is an active facet of office design – and your choices and use of certain fixtures and fittings will greatly define the look and operation of your future office space.
As experts in office fit out and interior office design, we at GXI Group are proud to be able to consult with a wide variety of professional firms to find practical, inspiring looks for their workspaces that really speak their brand – and really boost their workforce.
