Setting up a meeting space can be quite a challenge. Not only must you work within the constraints of the actual space, but it is also important to ensure that everyone attending the meeting has a good view of presenters and is able to easily communicate.

The first step in setting up meeting room furniture for a successful meeting is to choose a layout. There are actually several different meeting space plans that can be used, allowing you to select a plan that will comfortably accommodate the number of people attending the space as well as work well with the space available.

The classroom floor plan is one of the most well known and traditional plans for a meeting. This layout involves places rows of tables and chairs. The number of people that can be accommodated with this layout will depend upon the size of the tables. A six foot table can easily accommodate two people while an eight foot table can accommodate three people. The only problem with this layout is that it can be difficult for everyone to interact.

Another option is the theater floor plan. This layout features rows of chairs with space for aisles. This plan may be used in an auditorium, which is a good idea when the meeting is formal in nature.

A banquet floor plan typically involves the use of round 6′ round tables that can accommodate up to ten people each. The benefit of this type of layout is that is more easily allows for interaction among members at each table, but may make it more difficult for the entire group to interact. The banquet floor plan is more commonly used for dining events.

A boardroom floor plan is a common layout which features participants sitting around a single table environment. This layout ensures that everyone attending the meeting can have close interaction with one another.

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Another common floor plan is the U-shape. The table and chairs are arranged so that a U is formed at the front of the room, where a speaker will lead the meeting. The benefit of this layout is that it also allows audio-visual equipment to be placed in the center of the U shape. This is an excellent plan to use when you need an interactive presentation or when speakers need to frequently exchange ideas with meeting participants. The U-shaped floor plan is also an excellent layout to use with rectangle shaped rooms.

Finally, you might consider using the hollow square layout. This plan is much like the U-shape with the exception that the fourth side is closed off so that a rectangle or square is formed. In addition, this plan features an open space in the midst of the table. This plan is best utilized for mid-sized rooms and when you need to accommodate a fair number of people who need to be able to interact with one another. It is an excellent option to use for brainstorming sessions as well as when everyone needs to contribute to the discussion at hand.

When designing an office, many people get so caught up in the logistics of their business that they fail to remember how important it is to take into account all the details that are necessary in order to make the office as comfortable and efficient as possible. While picking out office furniture may seem like a vain exercise to some, it is crucially important if you want your office to be a center for productivity.

Office Chairs are the most important element of any office, as it is important to keep your staff comfortable. This is not the area to skimp monetarily, as an uncomfortable staff is also an unproductive staff. Try taking the route of ergonomically correct office chairs.

Next, every office needs a conference table. Your conference room is where you will hold your morning production meetings ever day, as well as client meetings, so your table must convey a sense of professionalism and class. These days, many offices are going with modern look of a plate-glass conference table. These tables become the centerpiece of whatever room they sit in.

Obviously, each member of your staff will need a desk, and it is important that they feel comfortable at their workstation. That said, this is an area that you can try to save on costs, as many of the modern office desks on the market today can be purchased for lower prices than you might think.

When most people think of going green at the office, they usually think of recycling paper and using organic cleaners for disinfecting surface areas and cleaning windows. But, the office furniture you use, including the chair you sit in each day, may contain carcinogenic chemicals which can pollute our soil when the furniture is discarded.

Recycling Old Office Furniture

If you’re in the market for some new, sustainable office furniture, but your old furniture still has some use left in it, you should recycle the old furniture rather than taking it to a land fill. How do you recycle your old furniture? By allowing someone else to have it, either by selling it to them or giving it away. This empties your office of old furniture, keeps it out of the land fill, and allows someone else to get a deal on the office furniture they need.

What To Look For In Sustainable Office Furniture

When you begin shopping for your new furniture, you may feel that the price is your first concern. While you must consider your budget, it should not be your only determining factor and in fact, it should be low on your list of priorities.

The first thing you should look for in sustainable office furniture is functionality. You want furniture that will serve you well for many years. If yours is a small operation, consider that your business will grow. You need furniture that will grow with you. This may mean purchasing a desk or file cabinet with some extra drawers to allow for expansion.

You should also look at the features of the furniture which allow it to be functional or non-functional for your particular purpose. Is there a place on the desk for a computer keyboard? Are there shelves for books and other materials?

After functionality and features, your next consideration should be comfort. This especially applies to your chair. You will spend many hours in that chair at that desk, so you want to be sure that you will have ample back support. Also, your desk should not be too low. You should be able to fit your legs under it comfortably and stretch them out.

Finally, you will want to check the certification of the furniture and the materials used in the manufacturing process. Make sure the manufacturer stands behind their products and offers a guarantee on quality and materials used.

Whether you’re moving into a new office space or trying to re-organize the space you’re in, optimising your office space is important to your productivity as well as that of your employees. It isn’t how much or how little space you’ve got, it is how you use it that counts.

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Here are some steps you can take to optimise your office space and get the most from your work day.

1- Replace The Bulky Furniture From Decades Past With The Sleek Designs Of Today

If the words “office furniture” make you think of large, bulky desks and big, gray metal filing cabinets, think again. Today’s designs offer functionality while using a minimum of space. Desks are smaller and more compact, while offering ample storage and work space. Chairs are sleek and comfortable. And filing cabinets come in a variety of sizes to fit your work and space needs. Replacing your old office furniture with the modern designs available today will make even the smallest office more spacious.

2- If You Don’t Absolutely Need It Get Rid Of It

Does your office really need that sofa or that over-stuffed chair? How about that extra filing cabinet? If you have extra pieces of furniture or other things, such as an aquarium, in your office that are not being used, removing them will add space you can use for more important things – including breathing room!

3- Use An Open Floor Plan Instead Of Partitions

Partitions and cubicles tend to minimize space by breaking it up. Instead, use an open floor plan. This not only adds space, but will allow employees to share some furniture or accessories such as computers and file cabinets when appropriate.

4- Re-arrange Your Office Furniture

Try arranging your office furniture differently. Instead of having your desk at an angle or in the middle of your office, move it into a corner against one wall with just enough room for your chair. Move your file cabinet to the other corner, or if possible, out of your office altogether.

5- Make Use Of Your Wall Space

Wall space can be used for storage by adding cabinets and shelves. These should not be to clustered together so as to make it pleasing to the eye. Also, when the cabinets and shelves are spaced properly, artwork can be hung on the wall to complete the look and give ambiance to the space.

Office furniture can be composed out of many materials, but hardwoods make the best desks because of their durability and range of colors and textures. These five hardwoods are often used in desk construction and are the perfect complement to any home office or commercial space.

1- Cherry

Cherry furniture has a very distinctive look and is often found in the offices of executives and high-level managers. The color of cherry wood can range from light brown to a dark brown with a reddish tint. Some of the advantages of cherry are that is very durable and offers a very polished look for any office. One disadvantage of working with cherry wood for desk construction is that it can be difficult to work with, making furniture construction difficult.

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2- Oak

Oak is one of the most popular hardwoods for office furniture such as desks. Oak is known for being sturdy and it also has a very attractive and distinctive grain. Both white oak and red oak have prominent streaks in the wood grain. The biggest advantage of using oak for desks and office furniture is that it is very durable and will last for many years with proper care. One disadvantage of oak is that it can be expensive.

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3- Walnut

Walnut is another durable hardwood that is used for desk and other office furniture pieces. Walnut is chocolate brown in color and can sometimes have purple or brown streaks in the grain. This hardwood is used to craft fine, durable furniture and is very valued. One advantage of using walnut for desks is that it is durable and will last for a long time. The major disadvantage to using oak is that it is very expensive and may not fit your budget.

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4- Ash

Office desks made from ash can range in color from white to gray and often have light brown or reddish brown tints. One advantage to using ash for office furniture is that it is very bendable and easier to work with when using hand tools. One disadvantage is the price of ash; it is moderately expensive and may increase the cost of your office project.

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5- Elm

Elm is a hardwood that ranges in color from light brown to dark brown and can contain streaks of red. It is very durable, but also bendable, so it is easier to work with than other hardwoods. The disadvantages of elm are the price and the difficulty in finding this type of wood.

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All office chairs are not created equal. When you are shopping for office chairs for your business there are many situations that require their own special type of chair and in some cases a special chair is required just to allow some employees to be able to do their jobs. Choosing an office chair should not be a standard affair but rather an important part of the office furniture planning process.

For a certain segment of your working population a standard office chair will do the job. Most people are of average size and have no physical challenges that would make any special kind of chair necessary. When choosing a standard office chair you should always go with quality over price. Many people will come and go at your company but you do not need to constantly be investing in office furniture to accommodate any new people. A well built office chair that costs a little more than the economy model will pay for itself through years of service to the revenue generating people that will be using it. Constantly purchasing inexpensive office chairs is not good business.

An employer should always be in touch with the needs of their employees and that includes needs for a special office chair. If you hire an employee with a physical challenge then you should make the effort to purchase a chair for them that will allow them to be productive and do their job without any physical discomfort. If you hire a person that may require a larger office chair then investing in that chair can allow the employee to be productive without having to constantly go through several standard office chairs. Paying attention to the needs of your employees by investing in special office chairs when needed helps to improve company morale and that has a positive effect on your bottom line.

Conference rooms can sometimes require a different kind of office chair than the chairs your employees are using. Your employees require comfort in an office chair that allows them to perform their jobs and remain productive. In a conference room setting you may want to invest in more formal office chairs to give a more professional look and feel to your conference rooms because your conference rooms is where you will be having meetings with customers and partners and a more professional look in those situations is much preferred over the casual look of an office chair that is designed for day long comfort.

When deciding on a design for a new office, a lot of thought should go into the layout. The layout of an office will affect many factors, including productivity, interpersonal relationships, workflow, and the impression given to clients and prospects. Especially if you are moving your office to a new location, give some thought to how the layout of your existing office could have been improved. Proper planning on the layout of the new office will make the work experience and employee productivity much better. Here are several tips when thinking about the layout of the new office.
Managers & Executives

First, is the location of the managers and executives. You need to think about the layout of their space in relation to each other, and to their employees. Think about keeping managers with similar jobs and that need to interact close to each other. Also keep managers with a line of site to their employees. You will also want to consider the furniture selection and layout. Managers on the same level in the organizational chart should be given similar furniture and accessories.
Furnishings & Employees

Second, think about the layout of the furnishings for the employees. This should be done in such a fashion as to increase productivity. Again, employees with similar tasks or that need to interact should be kept close to each other, and have similar furnishings. The layout should be done in such a way as to minimize movement through the office and maximize productivity.
Office Flow

Third, think of the general flow through the office. You want to maximize workflow and the ability to quickly get things done. At the same time, keep the flow open and spaces wide enough between furnishings. This will not only help in terms of safety considerations, but you may need to implement barrier free access for those in wheelchairs.
Expansion

Fourth, you will want to plan the layout with an eye toward expansion. Don’t lock yourself into the current number of employees. There needs to be room and furnishings to accommodate growth, both in the employee side and the management side of the house. If you fill every available private office in the beginning, what happens when you need to hire more managers? A little extra planning and expense now can save you another move or construction in the future.

Impression

Finally, think of the layout in terms of how your clients and prospects will see it. You want to create a good first impression when they walk in the door. Spend some extra money on the layout and furnishings in the lobby area and the conference room. You can’t put a price on a great first impression, so don’t try to cut corners in these areas.

Office furniture can be quite an expense and it can make a difference as to whether you purchase your office furniture or lease it. Leasing may seem like an attractive and seemingly less expensive alternative to buying but there are many reasons why you should consider purchasing office furniture as opposed to leasing it.
Long Term Savings

In the long run purchasing office furniture can save you money. Your initial costs on leasing furniture may seem to be less but long after the new furniture is paid for you are still paying every month to lease that rented furniture. Leasing office furniture just adds one ongoing expense.
No Previous Wear & Tear

With new furniture you are getting newly built equipment, whereas leased furniture has been used prior to it arriving to your site. With leased furniture you could spend months finding wear and tear on the furniture which may even prevent it from working correctly, whereas new furniture comes with a virtually no defects.

No Additional Contracts to Fulfil

If you purchase furniture and your business needs to liquidate assets due to a closing you can sell the office furniture and recover some of what you paid for it. If you signed a lease you may owe for the term of that lease whether your company is in business or not.

No Damage Fees

When you lease office furniture you need to be very careful not to damage the furniture- if you do you may need to not only for damages but also continue to pay on the lease. When you own the office furniture, wear and tear along with damage is all part of using the furniture and you can choose to repair or replace office furniture at your discretion.
When you own your office furniture you can derive value from it in a couple of ways. Your office furniture allows your employees to be productive and generate revenue which allows a return on investment to be realized for the life of the furniture. When you feel you have received your return on investment you can then sell the furniture for additional profit. Leased furniture will never reach the point where there is a complete return on investment and you cannot sell it for additional revenue at any point in time.