Columnists
May 30, 2013
UK public sector leading the way in procurement and sustainable building
by Paul Statham • Comment, Facilities management, Public Sector, Technology
Over the last few years, the UK Government has grown increasingly interested in finding ways of making its £30 billion property portfolio more efficient. Both the last Labour government and the current Coalition administration have been driven by the opportunities offered them with the advent of new technology, new ways of working and new procurement […]
May 29, 2013
Crowds brave the grey weather to enjoy Clerkenwell Design Week
by John Sacks • Comment, Flooring, Furniture, Products, Workplace design
In contrast to last year when the sun shone and temperatures were giddily high, Clerkenwell in late May was distinctly chilly, with a constant stiff breeze, on and off rain, and even a hailstorm. The weather may have been unseasonably cold but that didn’t stop the crowds flocking to the most popular venues and showrooms, and several of […]
May 28, 2013
Are these the world’s most spectacular corporate buildings?
by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Comment
Building data provider Emporis has issued a list of 16 of what it calls the World’s Most Spectacular Corporate Buildings. The list is intended to show how firms use architecture to convey their identity and to impress anybody viewing their supposedly imposing corporate edifices. The Germany based firm claims the list was compiled by a jury of […]
May 25, 2013
Why facilities managers deserve a seat at the design table
by Tony Cole • Comment, Facilities management, Furniture, Workplace design
For a long time there has been a distant relationship between facilities management (FM) and design, with FM treated as a post occupancy issue rather than a valuable consideration during the design process. The truth is that effective collaboration between facilities managers and designers can yield innovation and even better product design, be that in relation […]
May 24, 2013
Artists sing about office furniture. Part 3 – Arctic Monkeys
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Furniture
[embedplusvideo height=”230″ width=”210″ standard=”https://www.youtube.com/v/5zqTI6S-pMI?fs=1″ vars=”ytid=5zqTI6S-pMI&width=210&height=230&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=0&autoplay=0&react=1&chapters=¬es=” id=”ep1560″ /] Something for the weekend. Or at least something for those of you who might be moving office this weekend. The Arctic Monkeys sing not only about office furniture, but create the great rock anthem for the facilities manager – not to mention all those who on Monday will […]
May 23, 2013
Guidance on designing in accessibility for disabled workers
by Pam Loch • Comment, Facilities management, Knowledge, Legal news, Workplace design
The government launches a campaign today using TV celebrities and disabled groups to help promote positive role models for disabled people. It’s aimed at building on the latest stats that show 81 per cent of people thought the Paralympics had a positive impact on the way disabled people are perceived. Currently they’re not well represented […]
May 21, 2013
Flexible working boosts employee satisfaction and lowers business costs
by Tim Clapham • Comment, Knowledge, Technology, Workplace
May 2013 played host to Work Wise Week, an initiative from Work Wise UK that aimed to promote and encourage smarter working practices to the benefit of businesses and employees. Cultural, economic and social changes are affecting attitudes to how we balance work and personal lives, and increasingly, mobility and technology is shifting away the […]
May 21, 2013
Office hierarchy determines ergonomic quality of workplace
by Sara Bean • Comment, Facilities management, Furniture, Knowledge, News, Technology
When you consider health and safety dangers at work, there is really no contest between the risks blue collar workers face – falls from height, heavy lifting and breathing in asbestos dust – compared to the relatively minor mishaps of the average office worker. But it seems there is no such thing as an ‘average’ […]
May 21, 2013
Artists sing about office furniture. Part 2 – My Chemical Romance
by Roger Carr • Comment, Furniture, Workplace design
[embedplusvideo height=”230″ width=”210″ standard=”https://www.youtube.com/v/BS2InBvlIto?fs=1″ vars=”ytid=BS2InBvlIto&width=210&height=185&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=0&autoplay=0&react=1&chapters=¬es=” id=”ep8069″ /] Roger Carr writes: I always like “Furniture music” by Bill Nelson’s Red Noise – but upon listening to it again it could be domestic furniture too. But “Cubicles” by “My Chemical Romance” is surely about the lonely disassociated world of the (unrequited) love sick office cubicle dweller.It’s […]
May 19, 2013
Artists sing about office furniture. Part 1 – Harry Nilsson
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Furniture
[embedplusvideo height=”230″ width=”200″ standard=”https://www.youtube.com/v/yOmZeXIVqTk?fs=1″ vars=”ytid=yOmZeXIVqTk&width=200&height=230&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=0&autoplay=0&react=1&chapters=¬es=” id=”ep1699″ /] Given the complete and utter failure of the world’s artists to draw inspiration from office furniture, this is likely to be the shortest series we’ve ever run. It will start and end here. I’d love to be proved wrong but there cannot be many artists prepared to use […]
May 17, 2013
CBRE WorkShop concept is interesting, but is it workable?
by Simon Heath • Comment, Property, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design
I’d like to deal in this article with the arrival yesterday of the long-awaited white paper from CBRE’s thought leadership exercise, The CBRE Workshop. However, I should declare an interest for the sake of transparency. Until June 2012 I was employed by CBRE and reported directly to a couple of the people who are heavily […]
June 5, 2013
The future of retail – High Street Bladerunners and Apple in Wonderland
by Simon Heath • Comment, Facilities management, Technology, Workplace design
I was going to write this week on the manifesto from MANTOWNHUMAN – subtitled “TOWARDS A NEW HUMANISM IN ARCHITECTURE” but frankly the dystopian visions it conjured up drove such a bulldozer through any human sensibility as to prove thoroughly depressing. You can find it here if you’re that way inclined. I’d be interested in your […]