How office furniture affects work productivity

An office is a second home to many workers. This is because they spend most of their time – on weekdays – at the work place than at home. It is important for employers to ensure that the work environment is good and of comfort to the employees.

Each of office furniture plays a vital role in increasing work productivity and boosting employees’ morale. The staff members care a lot about their work settings as people are naturally influenced by what they see around them. Employers, therefore, should take into account the benefits and increase in work productivity associated with great office furniture.

Chairs- Comfort is the Key

Chairs are the furniture that are in constant use hence should be comfortable for the worker to avoid frequent sick leaves as a result of back pain, neck or arm strains. Ergonomic office chairs are recommendable due to their design to support the back, neck and arms.

“In their model the ergonomic chair minimize discomfort and physical effort of moving around in the office hence maximizing efficiency,” notes Ms Serah Mungai of Victoria Furnitures Limited in Nairobi.

She adds that the adjustability, backrest, stability and seat depth makes it comfortable enough to sit for longer thus increase in work productivity. “They are a bit costly than the normal standard office chairs but they are durable for a longer period of time plus cut off on medical issues,” says Ms Mungai, a sales executive.

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Office desk- Spacious

Like the chairs, the office desk is where most of the work takes place. The desk should be large enough to handle the amount of paper work or computers used by the employees. Further, some people prefer to have personal items like photos of their family, gifts or trophies that motivate them. The desk should have room for that.

“A proper desk should be about 750mm in height. This is to provide enough space for the legs to stretch occasionally,” says Ms Mungai.

According to her, spacious desks give people a sense of status symbol and to some extent drawing authority and boosting the workers confidence. A confident worker is set to generate more and become more productive at work.

Clean, modern furniture

Workers spend approximately 40 hours or more in the office each week. They should then be able to look forward to come to their work place. This can be achieved by providing hygienic environment that looks up-to-date.

“Each type of material used in making the furniture can be cleaned using different agents. It is necessary to ensure that the cleaning agent does not corrode the  surface of the desks or the chair material,” says Ms Mungai.

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Modern furniture not only look great and boost the look of the work environment, they are also easy to clean without fading the colour of the furniture. To check out good deals on furniture click here.

Cleanliness and use of modern furniture boost employees morale since they are eager and happier to work and do well.

Colour sets the ambiance

The work place should reflect the tone of the company. Having dull colours on the walls, ceiling and on the furniture sets a depressed mood for the employees.

“Colours are very important because they affect the mood of the employees, which will affect the general look of the company. It is very necessary to ensure that the office ambiance has the right blend of colours as it will enhance mood and productivity,” notes Ms Mungai.

She adds that too much colour, however, will conflict on the productivity as it may bring a feeling of favourism and confusion.

Placement of the furniture

“Before purchasing for a furniture, we inquire from the client about the size of their work space. This is important as it will give us an idea on the right kind of desk and chairs the company needs,” says Ms Mungai.

She says that fitting furniture in a tight space may lead to discomfort to the employee and even the clientele.  Having space to move around comfortably makes a lot of difference in saving time during breaks and meditating time.

During decoration of the office, pay attention who works well seated next to who, account of safety and health and practicality.

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