Employees are one of the biggest investment of a company, as we faced the Pandemic, the usual environment and routine of the workforce were disrupted and some were shifted towards hybrid type of workplace.
As the time progress more of the countries get vaccinated, strategies on encouraging employees to go back to office are being mapped out. A poorly designed workplace leads to absenteeism and lower productivity, because of the pandemic health and wellness became one of the main concerns for designing a workplace aside from Safety.
Good workplace hygiene had become more crucial because of the pandemic. Ideally Mechanical Engineers are in charge of moderating the air quality and suppressing indoor air contaminants, however basic precautions are better than none. Some examples are entry walk-off systems from the lobby to the reception entry, a walk off matt which has to be the same size of the entry clearance and the addition of disinfection areas.
Having entry air-way seal, shut-doors that separates one room to the other, this slows down the movement of the indoor air. Foot pedestals set-up visibly in high traffic areas and advance technologies as smart solutions for attendance and workplace management to control contact.
Adding way-finders for seamless flow around the office, this provides a visual and behavioural cue towards physical distancing, special familiarity and subtle encouragement towards fitness through walking. Workplace should put the values, culture and principles of the company and put the users as the centre of the innovation and incorporate them in the heart of the planning
Promote occupant comfort and special familiarity by providing spacious, familiar and aesthetically pleasing spaces. A meaningful space in which design aesthetics are visibly considered can have a positive impact on occupant moral and mood. Integrating artwork to the space to add complexity to the visual feel.
The indoor environment should be a place of comfort, a well designed space significantly reduces the sources of psychological stressors. Things to considers such as acoustic enhancements, ergonomics, and thermal comfort etc.
Maximize and personalize thermal comfort of occupants through free address, strategize a workplace set-up according to their task and their work requirement. Allow at least 50% free address to select a workplace with desired temperature. An occupation environment that requires repetitive task, reduce physical strain by providing a visual ergonomics desk height, comfortable seats and incorporate smart technologies.
Holistic design is a non linear progress, it goes beyond problem solving rather it incorporates design intervention in all the aspects of ecosystem . To encourage employees go back to office, we should be able to provide ways to motivate them to go back to the physical space such as flexibility, safety, health and wellness
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