Promoting Health and Comfort through Office Design!

Today, many organizations are struggling to cope with problems that include employee absence, increase of healthcare costs, decrease in productivity, and employee retention. Businesses are trying different approaches to address these problems, one of them being the focus on office interior design.

According to numerous studies, interior design has proved to be a critical factor that facilitates employee retention, employee satisfaction and employee productivity. Hence, organizations have been increasingly teaming up with professional to offer employees an office environment that is pleasing, functional and comfortable.

Whilst interior design enhances the overall look and feel of the office space, it should also facilitate employees comfort, health and productivity. Here are few elements that need to be considered before designing a comfortable and healthy working environment.

1. Lighting:

Lighting is one of the most important elements responsible for creating a comfortable and productive work environment. Workspaces should be equipped with the right balance of natural and artificial lighting. Whilst there should be adequate sources of natural lighting including windows, skylights, and ceilings, there should be arrangements made to control glares, shadows and excess sunlight through the use of louvered blinds. Poor lighting causes several discomforts to employees such as eyestrain, headache, fatigue and blurred vision, etc. consequently affecting performance. Hence, the workplace should be equipped with proper lighting that eases visibility and boosts productivity.

2. Thermal Comfort:

Human comfort or thermal comfort is defined as the employee’s satisfaction with the working conditions. Employee’s dissatisfaction often results when the temperature within the workplace is either too low or too high. It is essential to have proper thermal comfort which includes a good humidity level and air quality for a healthy and relaxing working environment. Additionally, if employees are given a personal comfort control to adjust their environmental conditions, they have a higher sense of satisfaction.

3. Ergonomic Furniture:

As employees spend long working hours seated in their chairs, it is essential to have ergonomic chairs with good back and spinal support. Select ergonomic furniture that has flexibility to adjust to different body positions, support good posture and also has a good lumbar support. Ergonomic furniture helps employees adapt to changing task requirements, thus enhancing their concentration and productivity.

4. Biophilic Design:

Interior design that allows employees to connect with the outside world from within the office environment makes employees both happy and healthy. Elements of nature can be easily incorporated into the office through a variety of means. It includes using office color, texture and fabric that resemble nature, adorning office walls with photographs, artwork or paintings of nature and using glass walls that expose employees to the scenic beauty of the outside world.

Sachin Boradia is the Managing Director at Transcend Design Consultants, a leading interior design consultancy providing Interior Design Services to customers in India.