When it comes to designing an office space, there is no one-size-fits all design and décor that will suit the needs of every company. Factors such as colour, branding, office size, and personal taste will all play a part in what an office refurbishment will look like.
You might not think it, but the office furniture that we sit in, and use can have a massive impact on our performance at work throughout the day. Whether it’s having a comfortable, supportive desk chair or ample storage space around you, the type of office furniture you choose to accessorise your office with can dictate how productive your staff are whilst in the office.
However, if you are choosing low quality, inadequate furniture that doesn’t suit the needs of your employees, both them and your company could end up suffering in the future. This makes it incredibly important to furnish your company office space with the right furniture.
In this blog we are going to give you a checklist on the top 6 things you should look at when buying your office furniture to ensure your staff comfort and bring ultimate functionality to your office.
Purchasing office furniture that compliments your overall office design and looks aesthetically pleasing is great to create a cohesive look in your office. However, if it is not functional then it is ultimately useless to your staff.
Your furniture needs to be purposeful so it can support your staff in completing their daily duties. Purchasing a desk with ample storage space will help to stop desks from becoming cluttered and promote staff productivity throughout the day; they do say a tidy desk equals a tidy mind.
When deciding on your office furniture, think about the nature of your business and how your storage space can support it. If your
business is primarily laptop-based, having a desk with storage space may not be a necessity. However, if your office requires a lot of physical paperwork, client documents, or handouts, having an adequate amount of draw space or shelving would be useful.
If the look of your furniture is still an important feature for you, many furniture suppliers can now provide you with the best-of-both worlds, supplying you with furniture that is both functional and design-led to seamlessly fit in with the rest of your office interior.
If your staff spends most of their working week sat at a desk, a key consideration you should be making when buying your desk chairs is your employee’s comfort.
The last thing you want is for your staff to be hunched over at their desk and sat on an unsupportive chair on a daily basis. Inevitably, this will only lead them to experience serious discomfort, and potential health issues in the future, resultantly impacting their mental and physical wellbeing, and their ability to work.
When looking to purchase your new office chairs, look for those with an ergonomic design that will provide your staff with ample
comfort and support. Ergonomic chairs allow both the height of the chair and the depth of the back support to be adjusted to suit the needs of the individual using it and will resultantly provide sufficient lumbar support.
Additional storage space isn’t just beneficial for your desk area but around your office space too. Discussed previously, if your company stores a lot of additional paperwork, extra storage space like shelving and cupboards can be beneficial to keep this out of sight, and have your office remain organised.
However, also consider whether you actually need more storage space too. Purchasing more shelving and draw space than necessary can often make your office appear more cluttered than before, and they can often just become a dumping ground for old files and equipment.
Prior to purchasing any more storage furniture, look at your office
layout and office space plan to conclude whether it is feasible for you to house any additional furniture, and where it could be situated in your office to avoid any unnecessary extra costs.
As well as being functional, you also should want your office furniture to be timeless. Your office design will most likely change over the years as your personal tastes, and office trends evolve, however, this can add up to be costly.
As a result, it would be ideal to purchase furniture that is complimentary to your current office design and colour scheme, as well as ones you might have in the future.
To achieve this, consider choosing minimalistic furniture designs with monochromatic shades, such as black and white. This type of furniture design is likely to fit with any office design choices
you make in the future and be extremely cost-effective in the longer term.
Measuring your office, and your potential office furniture before purchasing it is a vital step when finding the perfect office accessories.
It will be helpful so that you can better understand the size of the office space you are working with, which can dictate the shape and size of the furniture you ultimately purchase. This will ensure that you create a natural flow in your office where all desks and storage spaces are easily accessible, and your employees have freedom of movement too.
Finally, ensuring that your new office furniture is of a high-quality is also important prior to purchasing.
Although your new furniture may look great in your office and be functional for your staff, it is ultimately useless if it doesn’t last a long period of time. Consistently having to repurchase your office furniture due to breakages or general wear and tear can become a costly process and can cause a lot of disruption to your employee’s usual working.
To avoid this, shop around reputable office furniture suppliers first, and research customer reviews of these brands. This will provide you with first-hand accounts on the quality of the
products and their customer service so you can be assured that what you are buying fits your needs completely.
Here at BI, we can provide you with all of the office furniture you need ranging from desks, chairs, meeting booths to associated accessories. We are also here to help you with your space planning solutions too, making sure your brand-new office furniture fits perfectly into your existing design.
Whether it’s for hybrid working or full-time office working, we’re here to supply you with quality office furniture and planning solutions to suit whatever your working style may be.
If you’d like to speak to us about our furniture or would like some more information about our office planning consulting, come and talk to us here or phone us on 01133886522.