The office environment and the furniture in that office play a vital function in the productivity of that office. It also has a colossal influence on the well-being of the office workers which will also have a big effect on productivity.
People have to be given the correct tools if they are to be expected to do a job properly and in an office environment, the various pieces of furniture are some of the tools.
So, you, the boss, might think that you are saving money by purchasing cheap or second-hand tables and chairs, but that decision could cost you in lost productivity for the next ten or fifteen years. However, it is not only productivity that you could be losing, your furniture choices could also be affecting the health of your employees causing them to suffer aches and pains and even take sick leave. In the worst cases, you may even be taken to court.
Yet all you did was try to save a few dollars on a couple of chairs.
If you work for yourself, say, at home, this is equally if not more important, because if you are the only one in your firm and if you get sick, your firm ceases trading, which could have an effect on your kids’ schooling, your mortgage, your car payments and your future credit worthiness, if you do not have sufficient insurance.
Yet all you did was try to save a few dollars on a couple of chairs.
It is crucial to establish the right working environment correct from the beginning. If you were a carpenter, you would not buy a rusty, secondhand saw and you would not buy yourself an old 386 computer to work at, so why not apply the same principles to the office furniture? Office furniture costs less than a new computer and will last at least three times longer.
So, which items of furniture will you require to equip an efficient office? Well, it is best to begin with the chairs and work up, assuming that the floor is even and not slippery or wet. For the sake of ease we will just talk about you as the one employee using the office.
Whilst you sit on the seat, you should be able to put your feet flat on the floor and there should be a back support. You can go more deeply into it, but they are the minimum requirements. This is why many office chairs are adaptable, because they have to be able to suit a assortment of individuals.
Then the table: it ought to clear your knees by at least six inches, but not be so high that you can not rest your elbows on it without slouching. This will encourage good posture, which will minimize the danger of backache or wrist pain. The desk or table should be big enough to hold all the things that you require to work on or with.
Therefore, you should consider the footprints of your desktop’s keyboard and monitor. Perhaps add space for a laptop for file-sharing, a paper notebook, a reference book, pen holder, mobile or other telephone, a coffee mug and whatever else you use to do your job. The desk should not look permanently cluttered up, even if you are a disorganized person.
It is a good idea to have a desk with draws to hold things that you use regularly. Some desks come with a small filing cabinet at one end and a set of drawers at the other. This is handy and can save space in a small, home office. Even if you get one of these desks, you might want a full-sized filing cabinet anyway. That depends on how much paperwork your business generates. A full height cabinet means less bending and you can put the coffee percolator on it.
Then you will require shelving. make certain that the shelving is installed at a height that is comfortable for the person who will use it most often and that there is enough of for predicted future use. Once you have your lovely new office set up and full of nice new equipment, you do not want to have to start drilling holes in the brickwork.
Which brings me to power points. Make sure that you have plenty of them. Have them all around the room. I like to have a double socket just to the left and just to the right of my desk just above desktop height as well – very useful for plugging the laptop into or the phone, or a lamp or a camera, if you require one.
Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on a range of subjects, but is now involved with round glass dining tables. If you would like to know more, please go to our website at Solid Oak Dining Tables.