Office Interiors

1. Office Interiors

2. OFFICE DESIGNING : Office interior design is as vital whether the office is at your home or in a commercial building. In either of the cases, a proper planning is necessary to get the best results . An ideal office is one which has all the comfort, safety and functionality along with eye catching environment . Interior design is an important consideration, whether you are decorating your home or company's offices. The right décor choices and the proper accents set the tone of quiet elegance that is so vital in an office. When you step into a professional workspace, you immediately notice not just the employees but their surroundings. Choosing the right office décor doesn't just make things "look nice"---it can positively affect visitors' opinions of a company . It can also affect employee productivity and even employee health . CONCEPT OF DESIGNING : According to a survey “ the finest and the best performing companies provide workspaces that support the four working forms that of learning, focusing, collaborating and socializing”. So when you are planning to do  corporate office interiors,  plan for all four modes for a better design.

3. OFFICE LAYOUT : Research shows that space design has a crucial effect on the co-relation of behavior and performance. So a “ feel good ”  office space would have been designed to optimize the space utilization. It would be a clutter free design . Most importantly it would have clear and clean spaces. Closed-plan offices provide each employee with there own office---either a room or an area with floor-to-ceiling walls. Open-plan offices erase these boundaries and place employees in cubicles or partitioned areas. Many offices have a mix of both types, with higher-ranking employees placed in offices while lower-ranking employees sit in cubicles or at tables Open-planned offices promote communication but can be noisy and crowded. Closed-plan offices may reduce productivity but employees enjoy privacy.

4. DESIGNING AN INTERIOR OFFICE LOBBY : The lobby in your office is the first place that your customers or clients will see . The design of the lobby will create a lasting impression on these visitors that can set the tone for how your business is viewed. A well-appointed lobby can encourage your customers to feel comfortable and confident in your business . Create an office lobby offering personality, comfortable seating and that is interesting to the eye. To design an interior office lobby, there are a few things that should be taken into consider: 1. Measure the Space - The interior office lobby design is limited by the amount of space that is available for seating and front office furniture. When there is a large space to work with, the amount of seating should be determined by the amount of traffic that is typically waiting in the lobby . A very busy office can have several people waiting for their appointment time and this will require chairs for everyone. Purchase enough seating for the maximum number of visitors that are expected. LARGE PUBLIC RECEPTION SMALL PUBLIC RECEPTION

5. 2. Proper Placement of Reception Desk - The reception desk should be placed in view of the front door . This should be the first thing that clients see when they walk through the door. A straight line from the front door to the reception desk is ideal so that traffic can enter the door, check in with the receptionist and then find a seat in the lobby. The desk should not be placed too close to seating if it can be helped. A small lobby might make it difficult to move the reception desk out of earshot of the clients in the lobby, but if it is possible it is preferred. Select magazines for the tables to give clients something to read while waiting for their appointment. A wide variety of magazines ensures that there will be something of interest for every client in the lobby. Also, add some trade magazines in the same industry as the business.

6. 3. Colors - People are very enthusiastic about the colour their office would have. But you should remember that there are aspects beyond a colour that need to be considered like the average age group of the people, the kind of work, shades of a particular colour , the overall theme, bright, neutrals, vibrant or a basic white . The final out come is the reflection of some of these considerations. Painting it a color that both calms and energizes, as well as being more attractive than the standard industrial gray or boring white, should be an easy project. AN OFFICE IN A CORPORATE SETTING If you're in a corporate setting you may be limited to neutral colors . Gray and beige covers a very wide range of colors and hues, and some darker beiges and light browns can be distinctive, even dramatic , but should still be conservative and versatile enough for a corporate setting. Select a color that is neutral or opens up a small office space area. Dark colors tend to close in areas and make them appear smaller. The color scheme used in a corporate office can set the mood and even give subtle hints about the status of the person in the office . Deep, rich colors like hunter green and royal blue can convey a sense of status, while lighter colors like pale blues and greens can provide a soothing and calming atmosphere.

7. HOME OFFICE Your home office should be a distinct space within your house . Paint it a complementary color to the adjoining spaces to make it feel like a separate space . If the color scheme in the rest of your home centers around warm light brown and earth tones, consider an energizing pale orange or terracotta, or a tranquil seafoam green or dusky blue . Take your office furniture and decor into consideration. Cool colors make cherry office furniture pop, while blond wood looks elegant with gray walls . Paint a single focal wall in a dramatic color to highlight prints, photographs or framed certifications .

8. MATCH THE COLOR TO THE BUSINESS Add character befitting your business to the walls with faux or specialty paints. Faux leather-look walls in deep red or rich brown add gravitas to a legal or financial office. If your business centers around the creative arts, echo that energy on your walls with a mural, stenciling or lettering. Remember that your office reflects both your personality and your professionalism, and color can affect the way you feel in your office, as well as make an impression on clients and visitors. ARTISTIC OFFICE INTERIORS Greens and blues are calming and may help you focus, while spicy reds and golds are energizing and uplifting .

9. 4. Green Plants For Office Interiors - Plants can make your office feel more welcoming. Green plants in your office improve air quality, provide screens and brighten the décor . A study on particle accumulation in offices, conducted by the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture at Washington State University, concluded that the presence of plants reduces the amount of dust settling on surfaces and increases humidity levels, benefiting even computer rooms, where excess dust damages computer hard drives . Artificial plants can be a good choice if your office has no natural light, and today's artificial plants look very real.

10. 5. Flooring - Concrete and vinyl are popular and affordable flooring alternatives for offices and certain types of environmentally safe floorings are growing in popularity as well. Concrete Flooring Concrete is a durable and easy-to-maintain flooring alternative. This versatile surface may be decorated or enhanced in many ways . Concrete is easy to paint or stain and you can create a variety of patterns and textures . Rugs can always be added in certain areas to create warmth and complement a design scheme. Once you have installed your concrete flooring, it is easy to lay other types of flooring on top if you decide that you want to try something new . Concrete is probably not an ideal choice for your office if some employees must stand or walk in the office for extended periods as prolonged exposure may cause joint pain or soreness. Sometimes, laying ergonomic padding over areas that may require long-term standing or walking helps. Hard concrete FLOORING Rugs

11. Vinyl Flooring Vinyl is a fairly durable and economical variety of flooring. Vinyl floors are designed to handle heavy traffic and significant wear and tear . This flooring is easy to install and maintain and is lightweight and comfortable to walk on . The designs and colors for laminate flooring are endless , so you should not have a problem finding vinyl flooring that matches your design scheme . Vinyl is not necessarily an ideal alternative if your goal is to eliminate toxins and chemicals . Like carpet, vinyl flooring typically contains a fairly large number of additives that may be released into the air when the floor is washed or dust is stirred and released from the floor. Vinyl is also difficult to recycle and attempts to dispose of it usually result in the release of environmentally hazardous chemicals.

12. Environmental-friendly Flooring Bamboo and cor k are ideal forms of office flooring in that they are both biodegradable and contain no harsh chemicals or additives. Bamboo is stain-resistant and more durable than most varieties of hardwood flooring. Cork is a great alternative as it is naturally microbial and provides excellent cushioning and insulation. These types of flooring may be more expensive depending upon the amount of square footage you are covering, but their harmless materials and recycling potential make them well worth considering .

13. 6. Office Lighting -  This is one of the most imperative factors of a good  interior design . In an office the lighting design should be more functional than any where else. The best locations of lights should be designed so as to have maximum output with the minimum of energy intakes . The natural lights should be optimised . It is a strong recommendation to be utilising the natural day lights and incorporating it in the  office interiors.  This will not only reduce   the energy consumption but would help you to create a “ green ”  office. Office with ample day light Dramatic OFFICE LIGHTING to create visual effect Task lighting in office

14. GOOD OFFICE LIGHTING STANDARDS Productivity in an office setting depends on the proper lighting . Establishing a good lighting system in the office setting makes for a comfortable and safe workplace. A variety of factors affect the quality of light in the workplace . Brightness, quantity and contrast all have an impact on work productivity . Contrast The contrast ratio between the worker, the visual target and the background is an important factor . The working area illumination needs to be three times brighter than the closely surrounding area and 10 times brighter than the background . Brightness and Quantity A computer-oriented workspace requires a combination of lighting fixtures . Overhead lights, indirect lighting, task lighting and direct light through a window all have a bearing on eye strain. The combination of all of these factors together provides the proper work station illumination . Glare Glare is another factor that contributes to eye strain in the workplace . Eliminating glare can be as simple as painting the walls and ceiling a neutral color. Installing blinds on the windows will also help reduce glare as well as indirect lighting.

15. 7. Furniture - The office furniture is one of the indispensable objects in the offices. This shall be most functional and sturdy to be used handled easily over the period of time . The use of the recyclable and reusable materials and to avoid plastics is suggested . The chair is the next most expensive investment in an office. The quality and the stuff should speak of its quality and should take the test of time. Modular furniture “ 35% of the project time is saved by using the  modular furniture  for an office ”.  The  modular furniture  can be used as it is time and cost efficient. Also the various patterns and shapes can be moulded of the modular furniture.

16. The advantages of Altitude Design  modular Office Furniture : Customised . Saves time. Cost effective. Can be developed in any shape, size or shades. Challenges creativity. Unending options. Variety with ease. Adjustable. Easy handling. Premium finishes. Finest workmanship. Finest service. Durable and sturdy. Water proof. Termite proof. Quality control. Helps in clutter free clean space. Trendy. In vogue As per higher standards. Correct work station height Ease of bulk quantities. One year on site warranty. General layouts

17. Desks and Chairs Select office desks and chairs that match for the entire work area and are Ergonomically correct. The small office space can look smaller and cluttered with mismatched  business furniture . Match the furniture and desk styles with other furniture that is present, if you're sharing the small office space with others. Choose desks that provide storage space and maximum floor space . Tall desks with shelves , cubbies and space to hold equipment are ideal. Corner desks are extremely functional for small office space designs . The desk provides the utility of traditional business desks, while minimizing the amount of floor spaced used . Equipment can be stored on the top part of the desk and under the desk to get the most from this type of unit. Pull out keyboards take up even less space, but are easily accessible to use for work activities . Executive Chair Office Chair

18. Built-in Bookcases Bookcases and display cases built flush into the wall often are seen in corporate offices , especially at the higher levels of the company. These built-in bookcases provide a suitable spot for annual reports, corporate data and other information critical to decision-making along with a safe and secure way to display and highlight corporate awards, certificates of accomplishment and letters of commendation . Hidden Wire Guides One of the biggest challenges of designing corporate offices is dealing with the cords and cables that are necessary for workers to perform their daily tasks.  That is why designers need to build cable channels and wire guides into their designs to hide these items from view . Installing wire guides and cable channels on the side of each desk or cubicle keeps those cables neat and tidy, while reducing the risk that a worker will inadvertently knock a network cable or telephone cord loose. Brass fittings can make even ordinary furniture look elegant, and those high-quality fittings are a frequent part of corporate office design and make the entire office more elegant and upscale.