Ensuring workspaces are designed to promote well-being is key in creating a positive working environment. As employee wellbeing and satisfaction can have a direct result in a happier, more productive workforce, it is worth investing in an office environment where workers feel comfortable, with their needs met. 

This article looks at the following areas, which we consider important elements to office layout design that help to create a productive office environment:

What is office design?

How does office design affect productivity?

Green Spaces

Breakout spaces

Natural Light

Ergonomic Design

Colour Scheme

Office Temperature

Top Tip: Check our Meridian Interior’s Guide: Must Have Office Features Employee Will Love 

What is office design?

The way an office is designed is paramount to how ‘good’ it is. Good office layout design impacts favourably on staff well-being and productivity, as well as creating a positive impression for visitors and customers alike.  Making investment in office design, smart business sense.

Office design utilises space planning practices to create effective layouts, to ensure footfall flows efficiency throughout the space, air and light moves effectively and collaboration between staff and departments is possible. 

Graymatter – Milton Keynes

How does office design affect productivity?

As well as the physical layout, good office design also considers the emotional well-being of its users, which can have a massive impact on the productivity of staff. In the past there has been a common misconception that working hard correlates with high productivity. Confinement to a desk within a booth, without sufficient down-time and nutrition intake reduces productivity, despite spending longer on tasks. Office layout ideas can be simple, but effective, to create a good working environment that meets the needs of workers while reflecting your workplace values and business model. 

So a well-designed office, where there are dedicated spaces to relax, quiet areas for doing tasks that require more concentration, collaboration spaces etc. can not only produce better productivity through smarter working, it can improve staff’s work life balance. Businesses  are only as good as the staff we employ!

More than ever, office design will play a key role in the productively of staff and subsequently the success of a business.  As many of us have become accustomed to working from home (whether you have enjoyed this experience or not), we should take learnings from this experience and use it within future office design. 

Green Spaces

Green Space is an area that many will have been able to enjoy when working from home (especially in the summer months) by working or taking a break in their garden, on a balcony or near an open window. In many workplaces this does not present itself as an option because it has not been incorporated in the office design or the office is located in an urban location with little outside space. 

However, the centre for Sustainable Healthcare found that staff who said they regularly spent time in their sites’ green spaces during the working day “reported significantly higher levels of wellbeing.” This implies that by bringing more of the outside in, with living walls or planting within offices, can also help with staff’s well-being and therefore productivity.

The Parks Trust – Milton Keynes

Breakout spaces

Any well-designed office that takes staff well-being and subsequent productivity into account, needs to plan their breakout spaces. 

There are different types of breakout space, and it is important to consider what the user is seeking to gain from the space.

Most people think of a canteen or large seating area, where staff can eat their lunch, when they think of breakout areas. Whilst these may be required, especially in larger offices, this type of environment isn’t for everyone and might not necessarily give staff that well-earned break!

Providing more private spaces, smaller spaces, more relaxed areas, where people can actually have a rest from work and carry out personal responsibilities, should be considered.

The purpose of a breakout area is to get away from your desk, to protect staff from stress and anxiety that comes from being overworked. An area to retreat to is therefore essential and staff should be encouraged to break from their desks, and a good employer should provide a separate space to do this.

Point of Difference – Banbury

Natural Light

It’s scientifically proven that wherever possible we benefit from natural light and this is a precious resource in any office, as we spend so much of our day in this environment. Natural light is particularly important, not only because it helps us to see, but because of its impact on our circadian rhythms, hormones and mood. 

Therefore, at the planning stages of any office design, it is important to include the location of natural light into your designs, to see where windows or light wells are and how to best utilise these for maximum effect. 

Equally, the intensity of the natural light is to be considered, to promote the most productive working environment. It is no good having natural light streaming through the window, but staff can’t see their screens clearly.

Ergonomic Design

Using ergonomic design in offices to help with productivity is key, as it is essentially the process of designing workspaces to best suit the people who work in them. 

Productive staff will be the ones who are comfortable in their workspace. They will have the correct type of chair with good support, desking that moves up and down so they can stretch their legs, the correct screen and mouse configuration with wrist support, footrests, the list goes on…

Ergonomic design needs to be considered in workplaces in particular, due to the length of time people spend there. All chairs essentially do the same job, but they are designed to do different tasks. Some are designed to be used briefly, like in a waiting room, and therefore do not offer comfort but others, like a task chair in an office, will need to offer many elements of support, for different sized people and to be used for long periods of time. Throughout a workplace, different types of seating will therefore need to be considered for the different areas created.

The Parks Trust – Milton Keynes

Colour Scheme

As with natural light, the colour of our surroundings can dramatically affect our mood, which impacts on staff productivity. It makes sense that happy, more positive staff will be more productive. 

Choosing a particular colour scheme for your office can often be led by brand presence, as this gives an element of identity to a space. However, as colour can directly affect our morale, it’s worth considering what type of people make up your business and what type of environment you are trying to create, before selecting your colour scheme.

Calming colours such as white, blue, green and purple can be used to promote rational decision making. Warmer colours such as red and orange could be used in a more dynamic space, but used in smaller doses, so as  not to overwhelm the user. Yellow works well in a kitchen or break out area, as it helps to brighten your mood and energise you.

Office Temperature

This element is often fought over within offices, especially in open plan spaces, because people find different temperatures comfortable and the nature of ventilation systems is that within an open space, there will be some colder spots and some warmer spaces. 

The fact that it is so hotly contested (excuse the pun!) in workplaces around the country just illustrates what an important element it is to the productivity of staff within an office. Too warm and people may become lethargic and if it is too cold people find it hard to concentrate, as their energy is going into keeping warm. 

The discussion points in this article barely scratch the surface, as there are so many more elements to consider, which goes to show how much is involved in getting your office design right. It may therefore be useful to speak to the experts when you decide to plan your next office.

At Meridian Interiors we have 20 years of experience in helping clients design office schemes, so please contact us if you would like our guidance. You can email us on [email protected] or ring 0333 3448 772 today. 

One of the enjoyable parts of embarking on an interior design project for your office or commercial space is getting to choose the colours and materials that will make up your new working environment.

The skill comes from knowing how to put all of these elements together to create a well-laid out space, which offers a nice environment for staff and clients alike.

One way in which this can be achieved is to use contrasting floor coverings to distinguish between areas, which works especially well within open plan office environments.

Different types for different purposes

Flooring can be used for different purposes, from creating a safe, slip free environment, to a luxurious and opulent space.

Even within one building there will be the opportunity to use different types, textures and colours of floor covering, whether it’s to differentiate between a break-out area, Kitchenette, Boardroom or walkway.

Within a large open plan office you may want to distinguish between departments, with a subtle change in colour or a patterned verses plain carpet tile.

What would we suggest?

Within an open plan office environment we would suggest using contract grade carpet tiles, which are hard wearing and easy to replace in a small area, if needed.

Another benefit of contract grade carpet tiles is the vast choice of colours, styles and shapes that can be used to create impressive designs. We can now choose from planked carpet tiles, offering more ways to design flooring layouts, create zones and add flashes of colour.

Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT), which are available in ranges that offer the aesthetics of real wood and stone, can be used in partnership, alongside carpet tiles, without causing a trip hazard. This can work well as a clear way to distinguish between a Reception and office area, a Kitchen within an open plan office or a walkway within an office.

At Meridian Interiors, we are experts in design and planning and would be happy to help you with all aspects of your interior refurbishment, especially discussing all of the possible flooring options and how it can make your refurbishment come to life!

A simple guide to increasing productivity at work through the use of colour in office design.

Whether you are an employer, or an employee you may be looking at methods to increase productivity within the work place. Did you know that it could be as simple as adding colour to your office space?

Colour is a powerful tool to not only increase productivity, but also to stimulate, engage and excite those in the workplace.

To choose the right colour for your office space, follow our simple guide!

Blue – For the Mind

Blue is a colour known universally as the colour of peacefulness and serenity. When used in both living and working spaces, it can create a sense of calmness and order. Science has proved that blue aids in lowering heart rate and blood pressure – not only calming the mind, but also the body.

The colour blue is also a leading colour used within the corporate world. Companies such as Dell, American Express and HP all use the colour within their logos. Blue is so widely used corporately as it is a colour consumers perceive as safe, trustworthy and honest.

In a workplace where productivity levels need to be high to complete daily tasks and various tasks – blue is the perfect colour to adopt into the office theming.

Green – For Balance

Green – the colour synonymous with nature and the environment is the perfect colour to aid in creating balance between the body, the mind and emotions. When the body and mind feel balanced, innovation and creativity are heightened.

For workplaces where innovation and creativity is a key component of the business, green is the ideal colour to use within the theming.

Red – For the Body

Red is the most physically stimulating colour; increasing the heart rate and raises blood pressure. Its attention grabbing, which globally is known as a colour to portray warning. The stimulating nature of red makes it the ideal colour to use within offices where employees are highly detailed-orientated.

Within office design, it is recommended to use red as either an accent colour, or use warmer tones such as burgundy.

Yellow – For Positivity

The radiant and uplifting nature of yellow creates greater confidence and positivity, which in turns increases productivity. It’s a fun and cheerful which not only grabs attention, but can create intensity which in turn creates a welcoming and warming environment to work within.

Similarly to red, yellow is best placed within office design as an accent colour. Painting a single wall yellow is just enough to enforce the cheery and optimistic nature of yellow. Yellow is the ideal colour to incorporate in a space which requires energy and stimulation.

This week sees the launch of Meridian Interior’s Floor to Ceiling campaign. Offering website visitors insight and techniques associated with office planning, fit-out and refurbishment, the campaign will feature a series of comprehensive on-site articles each profiling an individual area of interest.

Paul Kyriakou, Operations Director for Meridian Interiors made the following statement about the campaign: “over our years of working with businesses we have developed established systems of office planning. By providing potential and existing clients with access to our knowledge we hope to help strengthen our existing connections and attract new business.”

He went on to add “in 2017 we are placing a greater focus on utilising the internet as one of the primary tools in our communication strategy. This is why we have opted for an approach that centres of using our skills and ability to provide visitors to our website with an insight into the real value of our service”

The first topics of the two articles are key considerations that companies should review before moving into a new property and a closer look at deploying partitions within an office environment to aid efficiency. The business produces the content in a raw format and then using the services of a professional content expert to style the information into an engaging and intriguing article.

Not only is the campaign intended to assist SMEs in effectively planning office layouts and understanding the furniture options available, it also forms part of a larger web strategy for the business. Through content marketing Meridian Interiors hopes to widen their audience base on popular search engines including Google and Bing.

Meridian Interiors has been in business since 2002. Operating in the commercial sector, they provide clients with a fully comprehensive office interior service. This includes initial design consultations, furniture supply and managing the installation of essential services.