Preparing for the office furniture trends of 2019

Casual area office furniture

The office space is ever-evolving, and modern office furniture design must move with the times. Traditional office desks and chairs are always going to be around, but there are far more interesting options to outfit your corporate workspace.

There are various office furniture trend-influencing factors that dictate the direction design will go. And as we move into 2019, it’s helpful to have an idea of what the top modern office furniture trends are likely to be:

Furniture for shared office spaces 

The number of co-working spaces is increasing rapidly as freelancers, small businesses and remote employees adopt them for their working hours. This is a considerable driving force behind office furniture trends.

Hot desking and telecommuting is becoming popular, which one might think would render desk drawers and filing cabinets obsolete. But co-working spaces are providing personal filing cabinets, as a component of their desk rental packages. This allows the user to leave belongings at the office overnight, and people love the convenience.

Shared workspaces are known for having sizeable lounges and common areas  and therefore need furniture for reception areas, as well as tables and desks. Trendy places often feature sleek, contemporary couches and lounge chairs in dynamic colours to furnish their common areas, along with comfortable commercial flooring. This helps conjure a casual vibe, that emphasises comfort and juxtaposes the darker, more formal tones in the actual office; another growing trend in office furniture.

Casual work stations/lounge areas

Living room-like areas are becoming increasingly common in the office. This means lounge chairs, sofas, pillows and other similar furniture elements in bright pastel colours, interspersed by decorative glass installations, helping employees feel relaxed and at home. This fosters creativity and facilitates relationship-building.

Traditionalists may reel at the idea of such a casual workspace, but these areas are designated for short breaks and casual meetups – they aren’t supposed to replace traditional work configurations, merely complement them.

‘Smart’ furniture

In the past, tech integration in furniture meant inconvenient electrical plug-ins and complicated wiring. Now, there are tech innovations flooding the market that are transforming the way we interact with our desks. These include:

  1. Tabletop-embedded touchscreens with ‘personal assistants’
  2. Bluetooth-enabled standing desk controllers connected to your mobile devices
  3. Air-charge ports for mobile devices
  4. Magnetic cable-organising equipment

These advances in technology make it easier to integrate our desks with our digital lifestyles. It’s a reasonable prediction to expect voice-activated standing desks to become a popular option in the near future, as desks continue to evolve into a component of the digital workplace.

Private work spaces

The trend towards collaborative work spaces can make it difficult to eliminate distractions. Many employers are therefore creating dedicated conference rooms that can be havens from noisy common areas. Height-adjustable meeting tables come in neutral tones or a formal, treated wood aesthetic, and can inject an ‘active’ element into conference areas.

Distractions can be limited at individual workstations via privacy panels. Hardly a new concept, these panels are becoming easier to install and adjust on virtually any desk. They come in a wide range of sizes and colours, and are more affordable than they used to be. Some are now made using sound-dampening materials to help eliminate distractions and enhance productivity.

Going into the future

These office furniture trends will continue to shape the design of modern office furniture in 2019 and beyond. Technological innovation is the biggest contributor to the transformation of desks, making them fully-functional components of the digital habitat. This is likely to be balanced by calls for a return to more organic elements in office layouts, including vertical gardens, plants and green-coloured spaces that add a breath of fresh air to the stuffy, formal workplace. The push and pull dynamic is also reflected in the push for more collaborative spaces alongside more private ones. This Yin and Yang dynamic could be a defining element of office design trends for years to come.

Project management tools to help you redesign a workspace

Trello Project Management Screen Shot

Many a project management task is made easier with project management tools. This is just as true for redesigning a workspace, as it is for creating a website or a new document. They help with the co-ordination of tasks, assigning responsibilities, and allow for the collection of everyone’s work / input all in one place.

Here are some of the project management tools we think you might find useful.

1. Basecamp 

Basecamp allows you to centralise all communications in one place. Instead of sending emails to various people in your organisation about what type of ventilation or floor insulation you might need, even whether you require safety flooring in certain areas, you can do it all in one place. Then all those with views on the issue can reply in one place and it is easy to refer back to.

You can also use Basecamp to assign tasks to members of your team, and track their progress. There are also features for setting deadlines and meetings. Those involved in a project don’t have to be in your organisation: you can include suppliers in your projects, for example. There’s also an option to create templates.

2. Asana

Asana has plenty of features that make an office redesign easy. You can use previous workflows as a basis for any new project, or start one from scratch. For each project, you can create a list of tasks that need to be done, and assign them to yourself or others.

Tasks can be posted to shared boards, so others can see where the project is in development. You can also can break requirements up into mini-tasks. There’s even an option to start a new project should one task become too big or too complex.

Users can keep up-to-date with all information and the progress that matters to them in one place. Email subscriptions can also alert those interested in the progress of the project.

3. Trello

When you’re involving people in your workspace redesign who aren’t familiar with project management, you need to offer them a way to communicate without the jargon, or having them look at Gantt charts. Trello is a tool that allows you to involve those without much project management experience. It’s highly visual and intuitive to use.

Trello uses cards to separate tasks, with each card including a list of relevant tasks. Cards can be repositioned to adjust priorities.

A great feature of Trello is that when a project is started, an email address is created. Anyone involved in the project can share information by sending it to this email address.

How to protect your floor

Using entrance matting for protection for office flooring

Protecting your office flooring is important for health and safety as well as maintaining the professional look of your office over time. Here are three ways you can protect your office flooring from activities you’ll expect everyday.

When you’ve got a beautiful office, you’ll want to keep it that way. It helps to maintain a professional impression of the company to office guests, employees and customers. This can improve the value of sales and productivity across the business.

1. Protection from chairs and heavy furniture 

It is important when looking at the flooring your require to ensure you choose a floor covering that has passed the Castor Chair Test (EN 985 A-Pass for continuous use).

If your chairs don’t have castors, you might want to look at investing in chair glides. These are also a great idea if heavy furniture is regularly moved. These are easy to attach and there’s a great variety to suit your specific needs.

2. Protection from spills

Staff frequently have a cup or bottle on their desk. In addition, the majority of staff tend to eat lunch at their desks. All of this means that there is a risk of spillages that could damage the floor.

For carpet tiles it is important to do regular cleaning with an upright vacuum cleaner that has a powered brush. A spot and stain removal regime is also essential, not allowing stains to dry, which will make them harder to remove.

Full periodic maintenance is also recommended. This can be achieved through a rotary shampoo or a hot water extraction process. See our carpet tile cleaning and maintenance guide for more information, (available on all our carpet tile product pages as a download).

For Vinyl Tiles, a daily dusting and mopping is recommended, it is important to use a neutral pH cleaner. Again our cleaning and maintenance guides give sound advice on what to use. We recommend avoiding prolonged exposure to direct sunlight to protect the floor.

3. Protection from walked in dirt

Your entrance is a high traffic area and when it’s cold or wet, the chances of water entering your office building increase, as people walk in with wet shoes. There’s also the risk of stones stuck in the tread of people’s shoes scratching flooring surfaces.

The most practical solution is to install entrance matting system at your entrance. This is where staff can rub their shoes and clean off any water and dislodge stones. Moving from a ‘simple to install entrance matting system’ to barrier tiles gives additional protection and can look particularly attractive, as well as being highly functional.

Keep your flooring protected

Keeping your office flooring protected from damage is important. Numerous activities can damage your flooring but there are ways to reduce the need to repair or replace it. The three simple tips above will help keep your vinyl or carpet tile flooring in top condition for a beautiful office environment. Choosing a quality product is another part of the added value mix, carpet tiles that have built-in stain protection and vinyl tiles that come with a ‘high-tech protective film’, all contribute to life-time cost, and appearance retention, as well as any health and safety concerns.

5 office design trends for 2019

Office trend - Momenta Argento in an open plan activity based work environment

In 2019, new office design trends will focus on providing a more flexible, natural look that will enhance the well-being of employees to make them more productive and happier in the workplace.

Office design trends are changing constantly. In the past, there was a heavy emphasis on the functionality of the office. In 2019, we can expect to see a major shift towards employee well-being. From office flooring to technology helping employees, businesses will be looking to make employees happy in order to lower stress and improve productivity.

Happier employees aren’t just more productive, they’re less likely to leave the organisation and will deliver better quality work. This, in turn, means profit margins will be higher.

So, here are five of the top office design trends that will be big in 2019 and serve to keep employees content in the workplace.

1. Flexible office space

Employees sometimes need a change of scenery to get important work done. A quiet space might be needed for certain complex tasks that the normal office bustle can distract them from. Flexible office spaces are the solution to this.

This style of office allows for furniture to be moved around as required and incorporates adjustable desks and accessible small rooms for quiet work or small meetings. These features help employees stay healthy and motivate them to work harder. But office furnishings being frequently moved around can also put a lot of stress on the carpet or vinyl of any office, so appropriate hard-wearing flooring is necessary.

2. Biophilic design

Biophilic design incorporates the natural world into the office space. Natural décor is linked to less stress, greater focus and an improvement in energy levels.

There are many ways that you can incorporate biophilic designs into your office space. Vinyl flooring is a light reflector, so it brightens up office spaces with natural lighting. You can also use neutral, organic colours and patterns in your office to support your biophilic design.

3. Relaxing spaces

By 2020, it is predicted that millennials will consist of half the workforce. Millennials have different priorities when it comes to work. They are often less focused on money and instead more motivated by a sense of well-being. To prepare for this, many businesses are incorporating relaxation spaces for employees.

These areas can include numerous features such as bean bags, mini fridges, coffee machines, game consoles and table tennis equipment. Such areas can be hard to maintain, however, which is why many relaxation spaces are using smooth surfaces, such as vinyl, which are easy to clean and more durable.

4. Fewer divides

There is an increasing trend for less division between working spaces than in the past. This helps to grow a sense of community amongst workers and helps build a culture that can be more beneficial to the organisation than leaving dividers up. There are also benefits for employees as their emotional and social well-being improves.

Where dividers are still being used, the materials they are made from are becoming more natural, such as bamboo walls or planted areas, which are less imposing and create a more inviting atmosphere than traditional dividers.

5. Resilient flooring

Strong flooring is a trend that started in 2018 and will continue into 2019. Many businesses are looking at the sustainability and ease of maintenance of certain types of flooring such as vinyl. There are many benefits of this including the range of colour, design options and the durability of the surface.

Vinyl is becoming the main commercial flooring for those who are incorporating some of the trends above, as heavy foot traffic and regularly moving bulky office furniture risks damage to less durable flooring options.

Are you keeping pace?

When it comes to ensuring your latest office environment is practical, productive and welcoming, you need to ask yourself if it is keeping up with the current trends.

Choosing between LVT or VCT

LVT vs VCT in office environment

In this article, we’ll take a look at the differences between LVT and VCT flooring, and how to make the right choice based on the requirements of your refurbishment.

If you’re a designer or a contractor, you’ll already understand the importance of choosing the right commercial flooring for your project. However, you may not be aware of the differences between luxury vinyl tile flooring (LVT) and vinyl composite tiles (VCT). Both offer different benefits, particularly when durability and budget are huge considerations.

While there are similarities between LVT and VCT flooring, before we compare the two it’s important to understand that while they are often used interchangeably, in truth they differ greatly in terms of design, materials and performance.

LVT vs VCT: aesthetics

Photo technology has advanced hugely in recent years, which means that LVT manufacturers are now capable of realistically producing the natural look of stone, wood or practically any other finish you can think of. On the other hand, VCT is typically considered as a “common” commercial flooring solution. To this end, it’s confined as far as design possibilities go. There are limited pattern and colour options, which means it’s harder to get a bespoke finish unique to your premises.

Which choice is more durable?

When considering the stability and durability of LVT and VCT, it’s worthwhile to consider the composition of each solution – but you should also assess the amount of foot traffic you expect the floor space to receive.

Of the two, VCT is more susceptible to moisture penetration. If you’re opting for VCT, it’s therefore important to apply a sealant before allowing clients and customers to walk on it. On a wet day, you can expect people to be bringing plenty of moisture into the room on the soles of their shoes, which is why it’s vital to regularly maintain and polish VCT. Over time, VCT commercial flooring needs stripping and resealing, too.

LVT is completely made from vinyl, which stands it in good stead as a durable and flexible commercial flooring choice. As a non-porous solution, LVT is ideal for areas which are susceptible to moisture, and it doesn’t require waxing. For high-traffic areas, it’s possible to use varying LVT thicknesses to tailor individual locations for high use, to avoid wear-and-tear (think retail environment as just one example – choose an appropriate wear rating).

The applications and costs of VCT and LVT

Before committing to a choice, it makes sense to research where VCT or LVT has been used in similar renovation projects. Both are low-cost commercial flooring solutions, although some industries favour one over the other.

For example, VCT is often used in the public, health and education sectors. It’s a low cost and a fairly low maintenance solution.

LVT is typically found in corporate offices and retail environments. It offers a wider scope for design and is versatile enough to be used in multi-use spaces.

If you’re uncertain of whether to opt for vinyl composite tiles or luxury vinyl tiles in your current project, it might be worthwhile explaining the differences to your client. Alternatively, why not contact us? We’ll be happy to discuss your requirements in further detail and help you make an informed decision.

The future of office design

Future of office design - Duraflor Aspect carpet tiles

The future of office design will be full of variety and quick progression, as organisations aim at creating accommodative environments. Therefore, offices and business establishments must implement innovative flooring designs to meet this ever changing design landscape.

What does this mean for your organisation?

As generation Z becomes absorbed into the workforce, most organisations will be composed of some of the greatest innovative minds and technology users. This means you need to consider how to make your workplace millennial-friendly in order to enhance productivity. Your company’s culture needs to adapt to the changing society.

From the work atmosphere and employee relationships to salaries and benefits, perception of the workplace is paramount to gen Zs and millennials rapidly being absorbed in the labour force.

Your employees are just as crucial to your business success as customers. So when looking at your office environment it critical that you ask yourself, “Does the atmosphere provoke a positive vibe for our employees?” Your office can help you retain the existing and incoming personnel through the following innovative office design trends.

Brighten things up

A vibrant office makes it easy to retain existing employees and recruit new talent. According to the psychology of colour, positive mental and emotional responses can be instigated using appropriate colours. As mentioned in our previous blog, utilising colour as a wayfinding tool in your office, it can also impact productivity by allowing new employees to quickly find and recognise key areas.

Activity-based workspace (ABW) designs

Most generation Z and millennial employees prefer collaborative, flexible and energetic corporate environments. Therefore, an office space that promotes exercise and comfort is directly aligned with the core values of these generations.

Activity-based office designs are your best option. Such an office is open and interactive, thus encouraging employees to move around and stretch with ease. This showcases your organisation’s commitment to employee aptitude and wellness.

For a modern activity-based office, stone effect tiles or vinyl wood-effect planks can be effectively used as seamless transitions between different activity zones, which enhances flexibility and comfort for various types of activities.

Variation of materials

Millennials and Gen Zs prefer working in environments that are diverse, personalised and inspiring. This can be achieved through material variation. If you want your employees to be in an environment that is continually encouraging hypervigilance, then you need to mix things up in your design.

Unique entrance matting will always maintain the right first impression. Heavy-duty carpet tiling with mixed colour shades is also ideal for creating unique designs for high traffic areas. Depending on your budget, you can also opt for Duraflor’s Hexxtile tiles to introduce unique shapes, texture, and colour in your office.

Go green or go home!

Incorporating green changes into your office design should be your primary concern. The young generation dominating the workforce is concerned explicitly with matters of health and environmental protection. Companies that are actively involved in sustainable changes get positive responses from both customers and employees.

According to the Health, Wellbeing & Productivity in Offices report by the UK Green Building Council, multiple elements can be changed in the average office to be greener, more efficient and overall promote better health.

Planning an activity based workplace layout

Activity based workplace

Ripping out your existing open plan office layout and creating a new activity based workplace may be surprisingly easier than you imagined. Our useful tips provide a few pointers to help you build a contemporary activity based workplace layout that will empower workers and increase employee happiness at work.

The days of open plan office layouts, with rows and rows of cubicles and desks where employees remain seated in the same location throughout the entire day are long gone. Activity based workplace designs are far more commonplace in the contemporary office sector now, and surprisingly easy to design yourself.

Benefits of an activity based layout

Two major benefits of activity based layouts for offices are that they increase employee feelings of well-being and empowerment. These both add to heightened productivity and happiness at work. What’s more, though, activity based layouts can actually cut the square footage required for offices. This is due to the fact that employees make decisions on when and where they work throughout the day, depending upon the type of tasks they need to do.

It’s easily possible to use the increased space created by your new activity based layout to add in relaxing yoga rooms or separate meeting/collaboration spaces.

So, what does this involve?

Basically, creating an activity based workplace design means initially taking a step back to carefully consider all the demands of a typical working day for employees in your open-plan office. This makes it easier to create zones that are the right size for all work activities. For example, if your employees need to spend more time working solo in quiet zones, you might consider setting up individual pods for tasks. Where employees need to work in a more collaborative fashion on a regular basis, laying out comfortable seating and traditional work desk/table layouts could encourage more collaboration.

The main considerations for activity based workplace layouts are building discrete zones for the following activities:

– solo work
– collaborative work
– learning tasks
– socialising and revitalisation

However, your own office may have additional daily work routine needs that also need fitting into any design layout.

Typical activity based working layout

One of the most common layouts for activity based working entails the creation of a central hub for socialising and revitalisation. This is used for eating and relaxation, so may well also include coffee shop or drinks dispensing facilities. Easy access to this area means employees can be encouraged to drop the bad habit of eating at desks and encouraged to socialise with colleagues.

The zones surrounding a central relaxation area can be set out any way you choose. If your workers need to engage in outbound or incoming calls for a large portion of the day, you may want to install phone booths for efficiency. Where team working is required on a regular basis, zones for collaboration and meeting spaces can easily be combined into the layout.

Appropriate use of colour and texture for flooring is one simple solution for marking out different zones. The new Antron Play range  features a funky and bright selection of durable commercial carpeting that’s absolutely ideal for enhancing mood and productivity in the workplace. Using different colours for all your separate zones helps create a colourful, playful office that can really lift mood and increase feelings of well-being, in workers and visitors. A little research into colour psychology and the effects of colour in the office can help you make decisions on the most appropriate colours for different zones in the workplace.

Check out the entire range of contemporary and hard wearing commercial flooring available at Duraflor for more ideas on ways to zone your new activity based workplace.

5 reasons you should schedule maintenance for your commercial flooring

Commercial flooring maintenance

Even the best commercial flooring solutions won’t get you the best results if you don’t maintain them properly. Consider developing a scheduled maintenance programme to get the best out of your commercial flooring.

When considering your options for new commercial flooring for your place of work, a scheduled maintenance programme might not be your first thought. But it is a very important consideration that you should factor in for a number of reasons. Fundamentally, well-maintained commercial flooring facilitates a healthy, productive working environment. It also presents a positive image to your customers and saves you a considerable amount of money in the long term.

But these are just the basic, obvious thoughts; there are numerous benefits to having a well-defined scheduled maintenance programme for your commercial flooring. Here are the top five reasons you should take the time to develop one:

1. It helps secure your investment

Your company is investing a significant amount of money, time and resources into a new flooring solution. It is therefore essential that you do all you can to protect your investment and give it long-term viability. The longer the lifespan of your facility’s commercial flooring solution, the more money you save that can be used for other things. Installing new flooring too frequently can take up a lot of time and money for businesses who neglect the maintenance of their flooring.

2. Fewer flooring installations frees up valuable time

In the majority of situations, many operations in your facility will need to be put on hold while flooring installation takes place. With the removal of furniture, the old flooring, and the airing out process to consider, the space will be rendered unusable. Good maintenance of your flooring will prevent you having to undergo unnecessary replacements over time.

3. Minimise the risk of injuries

When flooring isn’t properly maintained, problems develop like uneven surfaces and even buckling sections. These issues may escape your notice, but a commercial flooring maintenance specialist certainly would. Slip/trip hazards can be minimised through good maintenance of your flooring, and you can’t put a price on safety.

4. It may help comply with health regulations

When commercial flooring is poorly maintained, you may be in violation of building maintenance and/or health codes. Through the implementation of scheduled maintenance, you will avoid missing incidents of floor buckling, mould, and other unwanted health code violations.

5. It preserves a positive image

Areas with high foot traffic will inevitably have problems like wear and tear. But by scheduling regular maintenance, you can ensure any scuffs, rips, stains and scratches are repaired or otherwise rectified. Leaving wear and tear unattended can result in an uninspiring ‘run down’ appearance that no company wants to present. Image means everything for business, and the way you present your facility speaks of your brand and aptitude in your industry.

 

We have a number of Flooring Cleaning and Maintenance Guides which include periodic maintenance regimes – they are available on each of our product pages, it is worth downloading the additional guidance when purchasing Duraflor Products it will ensure your Duraflor floor covering keeps its great look for years to come.

The outlook for the vinyl flooring industry

Momenta herringbone Ebony Oak vinyl flooring

An analysis of the recent Future Market Insights forecast for the commercial flooring industry, focusing on the predicted growth and technological advancement of vinyl flooring.

The global market for vinyl flooring is estimated to reach a global value of $21,900 million by the end of 2018, and that figure is expected to increase to $41,500 million by 2028. This is according to a market report by Future Market Insights, examining the vinyl flooring market and offering many crucial market insights for the future.

The report highlights that the plank segment is set to remain a strong market leader, recording the highest rate of growth in the forecast period. It is predicted that the plank segment will make up approximately 40% of the overall flooring market value between now and 2028.

Key dynamics

An expanding number of infrastructure activities are propelling the growth of the vinyl flooring market. With the aim of delivering waterproof, stain-resistant flooring solutions with the versatility for a range of indoor environments, prominent manufacturers focus on digital and 3D printing techniques for the development of vinyl planks and products. These technologies enable the duplication of any other material, including wood, gravel, even metal, and enabling the accommodation of any colour trends for the coming year.

As the number of SMEs continues to grow, demand for quality infrastructure is persistent. Additionally, constructors are focused on developing new healthcare infrastructures in residential areas. Keeping pace with this growth in construction projects, the vinyl flooring market is likely to increase in momentum as time progresses.

To offer convenience to end users in the commercial flooring industry, top manufacturers are developing a diverse range of vinyl flooring solutions that are water-resistant and easy to maintain. And with the recent upgrades in technology, vinyl flooring has taken on new decorative properties, even resembling ceramic and other contemporary looks. Furthermore, high foot traffic areas favour vinyl flooring for its durability and trendy appearance.

Looking forward to the market

Based on vinyl flooring application, the commercial sector is forecast to experience substantial growth in volume during the period the Future Market Insights report covers. Commercial flooring is estimated to make up 56.5% of the overall market value by 2028, largely due to the innovative constructions that are set to apply vinyl flooring in their projects.

The UK, along with the rest of Western Europe, is expected to dominate the global vinyl flooring market. Leading players in the industry are placing the focus upon the incorporation of advanced technologies to achieve optimal performance. To this end, vinyl flooring manufacturers are making strategic acquisitions that show the potential to broaden their growth prospects as the market becomes increasingly competitive. These are the factors that look set to reflect positively on the growth of the vinyl flooring market for the foreseeable future.

Beyond ABW: Neighbourhood Based Choice Environments (NCE)

Office space solutions - neighbourhood choice environments

Many businesses have switched from traditional office design solutions to ‘Activity Based Workplaces’ (ABW). In recent years, this idea has morphed into ‘Neighbourhood Based Choice Environments’ (NCEs), touted to boost productivity and creativity. What do these trends mean for you and your business?

The days of segregated cubicles, tired shared kitchens and endless, depressing rows of desks are gone. In recent years, businesses across multiple industries have started adopting Agile methodologies, and have been rethinking their workplace environments accordingly. One standout workplace design movement is the disruptive industry trend of ‘Activity Based Workplaces’ (ABWs) – these are now widely accepted and employed all over the world.

A few trailblazing companies have taken this concept even further with Neighbourhood Based Choice Environments (NCEs) – a movement towards team-based ‘homes’, rather than centralised, activity-based spaces. What could this trend mean for you and your business?

1. So what exactly is an NCE Solution?

The core concept behind developing an NCE office space is the idea of creating neighbourhoods, or ‘homes’, for individual teams to work from. This means employees have the benefits of their own space, but aren’t hemmed in or restricted to individual floors, spaces or rooms. Having a central base where employees are able to catch up, share ideas and connect with each other gives them a unique sense of identity and camaraderie which is missing in many hot-desking or ABW environments. Many businesses separate these ‘homes’ with different flooring, which helps to create a certain differentiating visual aesthetic between areas that teams get to know and begin to associate with positive feelings.

2. Are they worth the hassle to implement?

Many business strategy and psychology experts speak about the difference between ‘fixed mindsets’ and ‘growth mindsets’. There is absolutely an enormous differentiating factor between offices where everyone troops into their assigned desk, seeing exactly the same sights and walking the same routes, every single day. It quickly becomes dull, and the workforce can lose their energy. The sense of movement and energy that NCE solution brings have been proven to show links to boosted creativity, innovative ideas and positive associations with work. The key benefit is that unlike hot-desking or co-working, you don’t lose the sense of comfort or familiarity. You have a ‘home’ to return to – you’re just not stuck in the same part of it.

So it may seem the answer is: yes, NCEs could be an out of the box solution to your office design needs. Vinyl flooring or carpeting is a relatively hassle-free way to divide your office into functional clusters, without blocking off or disrupting areas with a complete office redesign. Depending on the space you have available, you could use a feature wall as a focal point or meeting place too.

3. Practical tips to transform your office

– Open up your environment.

– Think about where it makes sense to place your ‘homes’.

– Which teams work well together?

– Does it make sense for an engineering neighbourhood to be located next to marketing?

– You can place handy communal hubs around commonly accessed areas, such as the printers.

– Consider separating different hubs with distinct flooring. This is an easy way to give homes bespoke visual identities, leveraging our evolutionary bias towards familiarity and the importance of your work ‘family’.

– Flexibility is key.

– Be prepared to consider new ideas, let your workplace adapt organically – and watch it thrive.