for office spaces. Not only are they a durable, attractive solution, but they can also aid navigation, enhance comfort and improve hygiene and acoustics.
Hygiene is one of the leading elements driving ‘healthy buildings’. Carpet can aid this by reducing the spread of dust by trapping any allergens in its fibres until vacuuming is possible. This thereby improves indoor air quality, creating a safer and more hygienic environment.
HEALTHY BUILDINGS
FOR HEALTHY OCCUPANTS
In this issue of TCF, Karen Burman, Product Manager at Gradus, discusses how to
specify flooring products to help create a healthier environment for office users.
An overwhelming amount of research has shown that office design can significantly impact the health, wellbeing and productivity of staff. Government figures show that more than 130m sick days are taken annually, costing UK businesses more
than £100 billion a year according to The Telegraph. It’s therefore imperative to have a well thought out interior design that has a positive effect on staff.
Natural lighting, acoustics, ventilation, hygiene and comfort are factors which all impact on a user’s experience of a building. Employers that invest in these areas can expect to see improvements in productivity and employee performance. What’s more, additional benefits include staff retention, improved employee engagement, cost control and reduced absenteeism.
Office design should be created with the user in mind, and flooring forms a key part of this. Specifying fit-for- purpose products during the design stage of a new build or refurb office can save time and money in the long-run. Here, we look at how carefully selected flooring products and accessories can enhance workplace satisfaction.
CARPET FOR COMFORT Carpet tiles offer a practical and cost-effective solution
20 | OFFICE & WORKPLACE
It’s also paramount to consider acoustics in offices as research has indicated that excess noise can have a negative effect on worker’s behaviour. Carpet tiles have the advantage of absorbing excess noise and specifying the right carpet tile can reduce sound and impact noise by up to 30dB.
From a design perspective, office space is fluid. By creating specific zones with different carpet tile designs, you can aid navigation and make environments less confusing to new users of the building, minimising stress. Streetwise Design and Lafite Connect are great solutions for office environments as both ranges offer coordinating designs ideal for using zonally.
When contemplating zoning, specific parts of the office building, such as corridors, reception areas and boardrooms can be emphasised using colour and design. Darker colours should be used in areas that will experience heavy traffic and lighter, highlighting tones should be kept to areas which won’t be so heavily worn.
This is where durability comes into play. Circulation areas that receive heavy traffic, such as receptions, need to have a durable carpet in place to withstand heavy footfall. This will also help to reduce repeat replacement costs. Loop pile carpet is ideal for these types of areas as its hard-wearing nature makes it resilient to tough wear and tear, along with rigorous cleaning regimes.
MINIMISE MESS WITH MATTING Barrier matting should form a key part of the specification process for all commercial office outlets. It’s the first part of a building users come into contact with and should provide a welcoming entrance. An effective matting system can help to reduce the amount of dirt and debris tracked into a building by up to 90% providing a clean, and safer environment for users. It also helps extend the lifecycle of other floorcoverings within the building, which helps to reduce repair and maintenance costs.
To minimise dirt and moisture ingress, it’s important to use versatile secondary barrier matting alongside primary barrier matting. Secondary matting resembles the appearance of carpet but offers the moisture retention properties and scrape-off cleaning function of matting. This creates a clean and comfortable environment by minimising mess throughout the office space.
‘Healthy buildings’ are becoming a must for any commercial office to improve workplace satisfaction so it’s important to consider this during the design stage. Making small changes to the design that encourage comfort, hygiene and safety will promote healthy staff and engage workers, thus reducing costs in the long run.
www.gradus.com www.tomorrowscontractfloors.com
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