SUMMER 2018 • SPOTLIGHT• 19


With such technology available at your fingertips, some may ask whether there is even the requirement for an ‘office’ in the future.


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ome of that visionary technology may likely never be available, but much of it may not be as far- fetched as it once seemed. How does an office sound where you


turn up to work and your desktop is available as a projection onto the desk in front of you, without having to press a single button? Research is currently being conducted in


America into precisely this, where a projector is fitted to the light above your desk to display a touch screen desktop on your desk surface that is managed through touch technology, dubbed “desktopography”. Could the future be that we will never need any other hardware than the watch on our wrist, for both our business and personal lives? Tis is just a fraction of the thinking behind


‘smart’ offices, which could be the final nail in the coffin for the traditional office environment! We have seen exponential advances in the


technologies that are now available in the palm of our hands. Te latest smartphone offerings have touch screen functionality as standard, with fingerprint and facial recognition becoming more widespread, whilst all of your apps, files and information are available instantaneously whilst on the move. Some, however, are thinking about how


this technology can be used to create a more flexible and productive workplace, where overheads can be minimised whilst attracting (and retaining) the most talented individuals in the market to provide a highly cost effective and efficient workplace.


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Examples include: • Ability to heat and cool individual workspaces


• Self-adjusting window shades that open and close according to sunlight conditions


• Meeting room partitions that can, be switched from clear to opaque instantaneously


• Using apps to sign in to a meeting room and to reserve desk space


• Additional apps for visitors to check-in, where thereafter they have instant access to Wi-Fi etc., whilst you download their vCard


• Automatic link up to screens in meeting rooms and at desks, similar to Apple TV or Google Chromecast


• Using ‘heat mapping’ to track meeting room and desk usage


Much of this is already available, and ready to be implemented today in your existing office set up to set you ahead of the competition. In 2018, the world can no longer ignore the


fact that we are all individuals, we all work differently, and there isn’t one environment that will fit all. Te modern ‘smart’ office brings this into context by creating a workplace that brings out the best in you and your colleagues, by providing a cost-effective and efficient, happy and enthused workforce.


Is 2018 the year you get ‘smart’?


Nick Williams Project & Building Consultancy +44 117 917 2053, nick.williams@colliers.com


Colliers International


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