“Innovation is the ability to see change as an opportunity” These words by Steve Jobs continue to inspire designers across the globe in the journey of exploration. While health and wealth experts are still trying to comprehend a definitive timeline for situation arising due to Covid-19, one thing which is affirmative is that a proactive approach is going to help in coming out of the crises. The imbalance or demand vacuum as economists call it, may lead to bigger challenges in near future. The immediate priority for businesses is to bring back people to work in a staggered, safe & secure environment. This is where the innovation makes all the difference. Design thinking for new age workspaces is witnessing a paradigm shift where wellness, safety and collaboration take the highest order of priority.
World’s first response to curb the spread of pandemic was to stay at home. This manifested into the idea of Work from home (WFH) as a very natural transition. The arrangement gained popularity initially since it minimized the disruptions caused by pandemic. After six months, what we are beginning to experience is the flipside of Work from Home. Most surveys indicate that employees want to go back to workplaces at least 2-3 days a week post pandemic. Primary reasons are lack of employee connect and collaboration while working from home. It also blurs the boundary between personal space & work space, leading to reduced levels of productivity and increased stress levels & fatigues. It’s a matter of time when organizations would start retrofitting their workplaces with innovative ideas integrating the health guidelines to fill at least 50% of seats available.
The last few months have taught us the fragility of permanence and reinforced our belief that change is the only constant. About four months back, we at Colliers published our initial workspace recommendations in response to the pandemic, as The Transitional Workspace Strategies and devised a SIMPLE approach which is easy to adopt and implement in most commercial establishments. Today, we are in a position to state that workplaces will undergo elementary changes as people return back. We shall discuss some tangible ideas which will play a vital role in how we work in future.
Reconfigure to Reconnect – One of the big overhauls we see happening is the reconfiguration of work desk. It’s been long debated that what the perfect size of workstation is. With ever increasing headcount needs, the work desk shrunk from all sides. In recent years, 1500mm X 750mm (linear work desk) has been hailed as the most efficient workstation configuration. This is now set to change. Having experienced the volatility of 2020, most organizations are likely to adopt a work desk, which is at least 20% larger in size. An 1800mm X 900mm desk provides a 360 degree social distancing naturally. A staggered arrangement of desks further enhances the safe distance aspect. This can bring back the confidence among the workforce and they can start working, without having to worry about catching infection from immediate neighbours. Most organizations are contemplating a 4 or 3 day work week with option to WFH for remaining days. This means that there is no need for additional space to fit the same number of people, since certain percentage of workforce would always work from home on rotational basis. Lesser number of seats in any space directly benefits the organization in terms of CAPEX and OPEX. Another tangible benefit of this exercise is De densification, which eventually is a step towards sustainable future.
Collaborate to Co-create - By the time, world starts to receive first dose of Covid-19 vaccine, we are going to witness a renewed approach in workplace design with focus on health, wellbeing and safety. Good news is that open offices are here to stay, with Collaboration taking the center stage. Most of us have learnt that individual tasks can be easily completed at home and primary reason for people to go back to workplace would be to collaborate with colleagues and clients. In most surveys related to future Workspace strategies, a common finding is that employees are missing out on knowledge sharing through physical collaborative interactions. It is also a vital component for innovation and co creation. The reduction in desk density is going to provide ample opportunity to create new modules of collaborative spaces. Instead of fitting collaboration pockets within workstation areas, we are likely to witness a role reversal, where workstations will support different modules of collaborative spaces, interspersed throughout the floor. Technology is all set to enhance the integrated, seamless, touch-free collaborative experience.
Reducing Touchpoints to Increase Footprints – The future of workspace is going to see a whole new way to navigate through the workplace. Future is touch less & contactless. Voice enabled technology will drive the workplace systems. Offices are likely to introduce AI integrated thermal scanners at the entrances, further connected with elevators and automated sliding doors on respective floor entry points. We envisage disappearance of internal doors, with more meeting rooms becoming open. Few spaces which need privacy would be equipped with automated open-able doors. Most lighting systems have already migrated to sensor based platforms, eliminating the need for switches. IOT integrated Building Management Systems are a great success story in achieving sustainable designs. Likewise, washrooms are already sensor based, equipped with self-cleansing systems, which goes long way in saving water and leading the path towards sustainable future.
Improved Indoor Air Quality as Assurance for Safe Workplaces – As the pandemic started to spread rapidly, health experts all over the world advised people to stay away from large closed air-conditioned spaces. HVAC experts swung into action to work on solutions which provide clean & safe indoor air. Indian Society of Heating, Refrigerating & Air Conditioning Engineers (ISHRAE) has made certain recommendations to eliminate any possibility of spread of Covid-19 in enclosed environments. Some of the suggestions include providing a MERV 13 or higher filter fitted on the Air Handling Unit, adding a TFA (treated fresh air) unit & installing UVGI (Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation) for AHUs to keep coils continuously clean and disinfected.
There are Air purifiers available which use technologies like Ionization, Bi-polar ionization etc and nature inspired Air purifiers, which use plants of certain categories to improve the indoor Air Quality Index (AQI), using natural process. These combinations enhance the Biophilic design experience, while making the workplaces clean and fresh.
The future buildings shall embrace more spaces being dedicated for balconies and terraces on each floor, which will house open meetings and collaboration in semi outdoor spaces, a welcome step towards healthy work practice.
