Herman Miller, one of the industry leaders in office furniture innovation, has developed a concept called the ‘Living Office’ which is being lauded as the cutting edge in office layout and design. Launched in 2014, the ground-breaking concept in layout and furniture installation has been spreading across office design like wildfire.
The concept is quite similar to some of the other concepts discussed in this blog: It involves flexible work areas, such as collaborative areas, breakout areas, and multimedia conference rooms. There are, however, a few key differences:
Perhaps the most immediately noticeable concept is that each area type has its own look and feel, which corresponds to the nature of the space.
For example, collaborative areas may be informal and comfortable, using vibrant coloured couches and low coffee tables.While the next section over might be a conference room with executive chairs and very flat, clean, non-intrusive white furniture.Perhaps, beyond that section there will be a quiet focus area with bright lighting, sound-proof cubicle walls, ergonomic desk chairs, and a calming nature-themed motif for long work sessions.
While management and key employees may have designated offices, and employees may have small desks of their own which they can personalize and use to store physical items such as files or pens, there is otherwise no assigned ownership of space in a living office.Employees work wherever it suits their current task or mood. For this reason, a Living Office will rely on portable workstations, wireless access, and cloud file storage.
The key to the success of the living office is that the furniture you install has a wide enough variety to cater to a number of ‘modes of work’. These can be extremely varied, and may differ from case to case, but may include layouts that are specifically designed for conversation, creativity, collaboration, presentation, and even deep thought.
The key to the visual design of a living office is that each area has a distinct feel, making it more likely that not only does an area match an employee’s work preferences, but their tastes as well.
If you’d like to set up a ‘Living Office’-style workspace or convert your current space to a living office, our experienced furniture installation experts have the flexibility and expertise required to make sure all elements of your new layout are assembled and installed to your specifications. Contact us to book an appointment today.