Feature
How Facilities Managers Can Leverage Workplace Interiors Beyond Aesthetics To Drive Performance, Sustainability, And Wellbeing
By Angela Tedder, Technical Designer at Kerr Office Group
For a long time, workplace interiors have been viewed primarily through the lens of aesthetics: colour palettes, furniture styles, statement walls. While visual identity matters, the role of interiors in driving organisational performance, sustainability and employee wellbeing extends far deeper. Facilities Managers (FMs), often the custodians of buildings long after the designers have
left, are uniquely placed to ensure interiors deliver value beyond the surface.
In today’s climate of squeezed budgets, hybrid working models and rising sustainability expectations, the choices made around materials, layouts and systems are no longer “nice-to-haves” but business-critical levers. Facilities Managers often inherit the space once the dust has settled, but their perspective is vital much earlier in the process to ensure design decisions stand the test of time.
In this feature, Senior Technical Designer for Kerr Office Group, Angela Tedder explores how FMs can leverage workplace interiors to not only reduce maintenance burdens but also to enhance productivity, future-proof operations and support measurable business outcomes.
Reducing Maintenance And Extending Usability With Material Choices
One of the most practical, yet often overlooked contributions that interiors can make lies in material selection. Finishes that look sleek in a showroom can quickly become operational headaches if they lack durability, are difficult to maintain, or wear poorly under high-traffic conditions.
For FMs managing multi-year lifecycles, maintenance costs often eclipse the initial capital expenditure. Hard-wearing, responsibly sourced finishes may command a slightly higher upfront cost, but they minimise the need for disruptive replacements, unplanned downtime and excess spend over time.
Take flooring as an example. A low-cost carpet tile may fray within two years under heavy use, while a more resilient recycled fibre alternative could deliver double the lifespan, with lower environmental impact. The same principle applies across worktops, wall finishes and joinery.
Early FM input helps flag issues that designers may not prioritise, “We’ve seen projects where beautiful materials were specified but didn’t
align with operational realities. FMs know where
maintenance pressure points lie. That knowledge should inform the design conversation upfront.”
22 fmuk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48
