Acoustics in an open office space
A trend that is emerging in the past years: an open office space with a sleek appearance, surrounded by plenty of windows and/or glass walls. The design is appealing to many people and can be considered an advert for the company. Yet, these office spaces also involve a negative aspect. Because of the hard materials in these contemporary offices, the noise is reflected and barely absorbed. This may lead to annoying reverberation and an increase of the noise level in the space. Research shows that office workers lose 86 minutes of effective time per day due to annoying distractions such as conversations of colleagues, the noise of the printer or the ringing of telephones. It is therefore important to create an environment in which every employee is able to work productively and satisfactory. Below a few possibilities that contribute to such an environment:
Aimée
1. Create a quiet area
A quiet area is very suitable to perform complex tasks that require a high level of concentration. The employee is able to retreat here (temporarily) and work on an important task or project, undisturbed and focused. This will reduce the annoyance due to distractions and the satisfaction of the employees shall increase.
2. Create a meeting room
By having meetings and consultations between colleagues take place in the thereto intended meeting rooms, the noise level on the work floor is reduced. Moreover, this room can be used for telephone calls or Skype-sessions without these distracting other colleagues.
3. Place noise-absorbing products
In the event of a serious noise problem, for example in an open call centre or an office in which the desks are placed closely together, it is a good option to place noise-absorbing products. There are several acoustic wall and ceiling solutions that can be placed in the space discretely or actually with a striking design in order to promote the aesthetics in a space. A suitable noise-absorbing product is available for every interior to reduce the noise level in the space.
4. Place an acoustic telephone chair
Another possibility is placing an acoustic telephone chair in the space. This chair can be used to have telephone conversations in all tranquillity and comfort. Moreover, the environment is not bothered by the telephone conversation as the noise is considerably muted in the chair. A great example is the FirstCall telephone chair. This design chair is a perfect fit for an open office space with a sleek appearance.