Looking for some insight into today's office furniture offerings? Maybe this can help...
DEALERSHIPS - The office furniture industry is set up not unlike to the auto industry. Furniture manufacturers from around the world work through a dealership in a given market (some exclusively) as their local sales, design, project management and installation groups. All dealerships work through a number of different manufacturers, but most are typically built around one main (systems furniture) manufacturer as their "staple" product.
PRICING - All pricing in the office furniture industry is based off of a discounted percentage of list price. Typically, the larger the project or the more desperate the dealer, the deeper the discounting you can receive. Dealers are given a "standard" percentage off of list, that they typically mark up somewhere between 18% - 25%. If you have a larger project (think, more than $100K), the dealer will typically work with the manufacturer to secure deeper discounting for your project that will only be extended for the duration of the initial (large) project.
PROJECT SIZE - Whether you're buying one chair or 1,000...whether you're buying one desk or filling a three-storied building: you should receive the best possible service from your office furniture dealer. Some of the larger dealers do spend far more time and resources chasing the "bigger projects", but even after those projects are done, they typically wind up with a bevy of smaller projects from each of those clients. If you're not being serviced in a timely manner, find a dealer who will treat you like they would Microsoft.
COLLABORATION/CULTURE - The buzzwords in office layouts, lately. Does open, collaborative space work for you? Does it work for your culture? That depends on who you are and what you do. It also depends on what your associates do. People in sales or project management may like an open collaborative area. Your accounting department or even your customer service people might not. Our advice is to work with everyone to find out what they need, by department. Be careful to not bog yourself down with trying to appease every individual. You'll regret it. Break it all down by department then leave some flexible spaces that can be used by multiple departments and individuals seeking a change of scenery. Your culture should be based on who you're marketing yourself to, internally. Hiring people is expensive - you can limit turnover by providing a positive, comfortable and productive workspace.
PRODUCTS...
WORK/TASK SEATING - This is the most important investment you can make. You want your associates to be comfortable at their desks. Why? Because you typically want them sitting, focusing and being productive. Take the time to research your seating options and, if you're going to spend a little extra money - spend it here. Some very good options include (alphabetically): Haworth (Zody, Very), Herman Miller (Embody, Aeron), Humanscale (Freedom) Neutral Posture (High Performance Series, Icon) and Steelcase (Leap, Gesture). If you're planning to buy a large number of chairs, every dealership should be willing to "loan" you some options for a trial basis of typically about a week or two. If you're looking to buy only one to a few chairs, take the time to check the chair out at their showroom or ask them to bring you one for a quick trial.
WORKSTATIONS/CUBICLES - You'll find a wide range of options here and every dealership/manufacturer typically has all of the same options. Every manufacturer has a monolithic (solid panel, fabric-covered) panel, a tiled (metal frame that can be tiled with metal, wood, laminate, glass or fabric) panel and usually one overly-creative and eventually outdated and discontinued option. Stick with the monolithic or maybe the tiled options. Tiled panels give you options with regard to the tiling and style of the panels, but are also typically thicker and take up more real estate.
BENCHING - What is benching? Benching is using long rows of tables, connected by power and data wiring and often including desktop-affixed fabric or plexiglass dividers, as workstations. In an open/collaborative work area or if you're really limited on real estate - these can work wonders.
SIT-TO-STAND - If you're looking for a truly ergonomic experience for your associates, you'll want to include a sit-to-stand desk option in their work area. No matter how great a chair you purchase, sitting all day isn't good for you. There are crank-actuated, counterweighted and electric-motor bases that can raise and lower any desk top or worksurface. The best options are the electric bases and you can typically find them for somewhere between $500-$900 each. Desktop units that raise and lower your monitor and keyboard are not as ergonomically beneficial, but can be purchased for somewhere between $300-$500 each.
ACCESSORIES - Adjustable monitor arms are a great addition to any workstation. Keyboard trays typically aren't as popular as you would think they'd be and only a few associates wind up using them. With regard to sorting and organizational accessories - it's best to leave that up to the individual, as everyone uses their workstation differently.
STORAGE - Even if you've gone paperless - your associates will want, need and appreciate as much storage as you can afford them. Whether it's in the workstation or outside (filing and cabinets) storage space will almost always be utilized and can help your office from becoming cluttered.
Have any other questions or concerns? Feel free to contact us at darren.mellas@elev8office.com or 801-783-9655.