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personal storage


Respecting personal space


Forget what you think you know about office storage solutions because things are changing to meet the new needs of workers, writes Helen Owen, director of new business workplace furniture designers, Bisley.


I


t is no longer possible to consider office furniture solely in terms of the traditional discrete elements of desk, seating and storage.


A combination of the post-banking crisis economic squeeze,


liberating advances in communication technology and a heterogeneous staff mix of Baby Boomers, Gen-X’ers and New Millennials has altered the office landscape forever. Individual and team-working can just as easily be undertaken at occasional furniture in a break-out or catering area as it can be at a traditional workstation or in a meeting room. What the next generation office requires is a mix of furniture


types that can be flexed to suit changing needs, however, even in the digital age we all still have stuff that needs to be stored! The nature of office storage has changed beyond all


recognition. This shift has been driven by two key factors, firstly the shift in emphasis of what needs to be stored and secondly the evolution of working practices to increased flexibility and mobility. While the completely paperless office


www.architectsdatafile.co.uk


has eluded us, there is no doubt that there is less paper filing, matched by the corresponding growth in demand for personal storage provision, often of higher value items – laptops, iPads and cycling helmets.


Culture & technology


Beyond the physicality of the space there are also cultural issues to consider. If we can all work from home – why are organisations still spending huge amounts of money on their real estate? The truth is actually reassuring; in our increasingly digital


world that enables remote access to everything, human contact is becoming more valuable, and the necessity for companies to maintain a sense of belonging for nomadic workers is more critical and challenging. Design is a major component in achieving this; it has the


ability to support and uphold the culture of a business, brand and values, ensuring that the environment is somewhere that


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