When it comes to looking at office tables and various other facets which make up your new office refurbishment, there are many different factors to think about. This can be a huge project to undertake, but it is one which will bring many benefits, if you manage to get the whole deal right.
The way an office looks is not just from an aesthetic point of view, although of course it is much nicer to work in a space which looks the part, over one which looks like it could do with a fresh lick of paint. An office which brings together employees into one huge, productive team should be light, spacious, airy, and it should have separate sections to allow certain types of tasks to be carried out, e.g. quiet tasks, collaborative tasks, etc. Within this whole refurbishment deal, you don’t only need to think about luxury office desks, and which type of office storage to go for, but you also need to think about the material from which your new office furniture is going to be made too.
You might think that metal is metal, plastic is plastic, and wood is wood, right? No! If you get the material right, incorporating thought into the types of tasks that are going to be done, and how long you want it all to last for, you could be looking at a very durable, cost effective piece of furniture, which may have more benefits to your staff and your business than you might think!
Yes, really!
Wood office furniture is one of the biggest trends in office decor this year, but it goes far beyond the fact it looks the part, and actually heads into productivity and health territory.
Let’s explore this in a bit more detail.
Wooden Furniture Boosts Health
Nature is all around us, and we are constantly being urged by health professionals to get out into Mother Nature’s environment and breathe in that fresh, unpolluted (hopefully) air. Whilst we’re working, that’s not always possible, but you can easily incorporate features from nature into your office space, and get relatively the same types of benefits.
We know that having plants in the office space has been shown to increase oxygen levels, keeping everyone more alert as the working day goes on, as well as reducing stress overall, but wooden office furniture can do the same thing. Wood is part of nature, it is part of a tree, and as a result, many studies have shown that incorporating wooden office furniture and plants into an office space can be hugely beneficial to health and well-being.
This is all based around the Biophilia Hypothesis by Edward Wilson. Basically this states that humans actively seek out connections with nature whenever they can, without even thinking about it. This makes sense, and when you add in the fact that wood is a natural material, there is some food for thought there. Studies have also shown that employees who work in an office with wooden office furniture have higher levels of concentration, well-being in general, and happiness.
You don’t need to be a genius to know that a happy and healthy employee is much better than constantly sick employee.
To summarise, wooden office furniture has been shown to bring about the following health benefits within an office environment:
• Faster recovery from illness or injury
• Less days off sick in general
• Less pain felt by employees
• Less reports of illness and sickness overall
• A boost in focus and concentration
• A major boost in creative thinking and problem solving endeavors
• A calmer sense to the environment, with less anger and aggression or irritability
• Better working relationships formed within that particular space
• A major reduction in stress
These are all benefits which are shown to come to the fore when nature is not too far away. If you can combine wooden office furniture with plants, then you will get all of these benefits two-fold.
Wooden Furniture Boosts Productivity
The buzzword over the last few years has certainly been ‘productivity’, and it show no signs of slowing down. The reason is because productivity is vital to a successful business, so employers are actively looking for ways to create environments which naturally boost the productivity levels of their employees.
A happy, healthy, and satisfied employee is going to work harder and more diligently than an employee who does not feel valued, doesn’t feel like they want to be there, etc. Studies have shown that productivity rises (by around 15%) when wooden furniture is incorporated into an office space, because it increases mood, reduces stress levels, and basically boosts the quality and speed at which employees within that space work.
Give major thanks to Mother Nature for that one!
For that reason, looking for wooden designed conference furniture could boost collaboration in a meeting room, and teaming modern executive office chairs with wooden desks gives that professional look, with the benefits of wood thrown in.
Ways to Bring Wooden Design Into Your Workplace
Now we know that wooden furniture is a great addition to your office, how can you incorporate it successfully? If you’re looking for office furniture in London, you’ll find countless different wooden designed choices to bring these major health and productivity boosts to your office.
Just one or two pieces of wooden furniture can be enough to bring the benefits, and it doesn’t have to be the case that you refurbish your entire space in wooden designs. Simply having a view of a wooden desk, or having office storage items made of wood, has been shown to be enough to boost productivity for staff within an office space.
Of course, you could look towards less obvious choices, such as:
• Wooden doors
• Wooden chairs
• Window frames made of wood
• Decorative items, such as plaques and frames
• Blinds
• Floorboards/wooden-esque laminate flooring
Unless you are ready to totally change your office space, e.g. rip up the flooring and change the entire space, then you will need to look towards the less obvious choices. Aside from the three, we have mentioned above, there are three options which could really enhance your space, give you those benefits, but not cause you a major headache whilst trying to install them.
Office Storage
There isn’t an office in the land which doesn’t have some kind of storage within it, and most of these opt for metal filing cabinets or lockers. Why not go for timber cupboards for storage? You can easily add in filing options for these cabinets, such as dividers etc, and you’ll get the same benefit, with a very contemporary and attractive appearance at the same time.
Wooden Frames and General Artwork
This is without a doubt the easiest way to bring some wooden design into your office space, because all you need to do is attach them to the wall in the right spot! Think about natural artwork, and try and look towards pictures of nature, e.g. trees, plants, flowers etc, with a wooden frame around the edge. Think about wooden frames in darker wood colours, rather than white, to give that true wooden feel to your new artwork.
Wooden Partitions
Office partitions and screens are very popular additions to office spaces these days, because they give the option of privacy when needed. Many offices go for plastic or coloured designs, but you can also go for wooden partitions too. If you’re worried it will create too much of a dark effect, you can go for glass partitions with wooden edges, to give relatively the same kind of effect.
Wooden Desks
Of course, you could simply invest in wooden desks instead, and give your staff a truly natural feel to their workstation. You can find relatively inexpensive wooden desks, and these are available in various different shades. You don’t necessarily have to go for a dark mahogany, as lighter beech colours also look fantastic in a modern and light office space.
Ready To Go For Wood?
What do you think about wooden furniture options? Is this something you would look to bring into your office space? Have you worked in an wooden-designed office in the past, and if so, how did it make you feel? Did you notice a boost in productivity at all?
Research and studies certainly back all of this up, and when it comes to an effective and successful business, productivity really is key. By incorporating office design in wooden tones, you’re making the entire space look the part, but you’re grabbing the benefits too.