Tips for Designing a Productive & Attractive Office

If your new business is taking off and you are in need of a larger office, there is much to consider and an office relocation or refit is going to cost you money. In order to help you make all the right decisions, here are a few office design tips from the professional office fitout contractors.

• Create a Floor Plan – This is how the interior designers do it, with a to-scale floor plan that allows you to see the layout and design prior to doing anything. You can add workstations, filing cabinets and tables and chairs, moving them around on the plan until you find the best location. There are software packages that you can use to create a 3D plan of your new office and some of them are free to download on the Internet. Failing that, talk to an office fitout contractor, who has an in-house design team who can create the perfect layout.
• Employee Participation – It makes total sense to involve your staff in the new office design, as they are the people who will be using it. When you involve employees in the office refit, you are telling them that you value their opinion and who knows, they might come up with a few great ideas? Organise a special staff meeting and invite all employees to confer and see what they come up with and ask them to fill in suggestion forms that you can review later.
• Online Shopping – There is a wide range of office desks and other essential office furnishings from the online supplier and they offer the best names at trade prices, which will save you at least 15% on recommended retail prices, maybe more. Most suppliers will offer a free delivery service, providing it is within the area they cover, while some also offer low-interest loans or 30 days credit. If you are looking for new IT equipment, there are industry specialists that can acquire computer and IT hardware at a lower price than you, and we all want to save money wherever possible.
• Functionality – While you want your new office space to be visually appealing, it must also be functional and if you take a look at what various staff do during the day, this will help you to plan the layout in such a way that people who need to communicate and close together. A functional office is a productive one, so do bear this in mind when planning the layout. Consider digitalising all your data and set up a cloud network, which will enable employees to bring up the document they need on their workstation screen. Another big plus with going digital is the fact that you no longer need those bulky filing cabinets and that floor space could be put to good use. Here are a few tips to ensure that a business start-up does not fail, which might prove useful with your next project.
• Think Ahead – If, for example, you are planning to relocate your office, make sure you take into account any extra requirements you might need in a couple of years. Relocation is expensive and by leasing a larger space than you currently need, you can avoid another move in the near future. If you have enough space for an extra 6 workstations, then you are in a good position to expand when you need to, without having to incur too much of a cost. If you come across a venue that has great future potential, it might be worth taking that and using the additional space for storage until you need it.
• Wall Prints – If you choose a selection of classic or contemporary wall prints to fill in those large expanses of bare wall, this will create a warm and inviting ambience. Choose a few uplifting business quotes, which will help keep your employees in a positive frame of mind, while also adding some colour to the space.
• LED Lighting – Using LED might be more costly in terms of buying the units, but your running costs will more than compensate, plus LED lighting offers you more choice regarding colour and intensity. A Google search will bring up a list of electrical lighting websites and you can see what is available and compare various suppliers on price.

If you have the budget, you are advised to contact a leading office fitout contractor and once they know your budget, they can make some design suggestions that fall within your allotted budget for the project. A good office fitout team can work around the client’s business, which means you don’t have to stop work and the transition will be smooth and uneventful and when everything is in place, you can get back to doing what you do best, which is managing your business.

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