Search Results for: climate

Despite rise of hybrid working, people spend majority of time on pointless work and meetings

Despite rise of hybrid working, people spend majority of time on pointless work and meetings

Businesses and workers are still grappling with barriers to productivity despite the advent of more widespread flexible and hybrid working, claims a new reportBusinesses and workers are still grappling with barriers to productivity despite the advent of more widespread flexible and hybrid working, claims a new report from Asana. According to the fourth Anatomy of Work Global Index, “work about work” – time spent on work coordination rather than the skilled, strategic jobs they want to do – remains how workers spend the bulk of their day. Conducted by GlobalWebIndex (GWI) on behalf of Asana, the 2023 Anatomy of Work Global Index surveyed the behaviours and attitudes of more than 9,615 knowledge workers across the United States, U.K., Australia, France, Germany, and Japan to understand the impact of cross-functional collaboration. More →

What to expect at next week’s Workspace Design Show

What to expect at next week’s Workspace Design Show

With only a few days until The Workspace Design Show returns to London’s Business Design Centre, on 27-28 February 2023, here is a taste of what to expec With only a few days until The Workspace Design Show returns to London’s Business Design Centre, on 27-28 February 2023, here is a taste of what to expect. The show brings together striking features, a thought-provoking programme of talks featuring a whole host of speakers, from developers to architects and their blue-chip clients, along with accomplished exhibitors showcasing the latest workplace interiors innovations. All of this incredible content aligns perfectly with the show’s theme, Destination Workplace: Places Where People Want To Be. More →

BCO specification guide updated to reflect demand for flexible, green, healthier offices

BCO specification guide updated to reflect demand for flexible, green, healthier offices

he BCO has released an update to its specification guide, to offer advice on how to create healthier, greener offices that support changing working patternsResponding to what it claims are challenges emerging from the pandemic and the accelerating need for the built environment to respond to climate change, the British Council for Offices (BCO) has released an early update to its Guide to Specification, which provides expert advice on how designers can create healthier offices that support changing working patterns, while reducing carbon emissions.

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Workspace Design Show returns (and so do we)

Workspace Design Show returns (and so do we)

A few of you may already know this story. It was some 15 months ago and three old friends met up for the first time in quite a while (well, we had been through lockdowns etc). Having caught up with each other’s news, the subject turned to industry journals, what the three friends felt the market was missing and the possibility of collaborating in the not too distant future. That conversation occurred at the inaugural Workspace Design Show – which the three amigos were all hugely impressed by. The result of that conversation (and a few more chats and meets, of course) is Works. So, here we are, all those months later, pulling together a preview of the 2023 edition of WDS, which – we’re delighted to say – we’re very much a part of. And we don’t just partner with any one, you know. More →

Herman Miller launches height-adjustable tables for home and office use

Herman Miller launches height-adjustable tables for home and office use

Height-adjustable tables have become a staple in the home and office environment, offering users variety and comfort regardless of the tasks at hand.Height-adjustable tables have become a staple in the home and office environment, offering users variety and comfort regardless of the tasks at hand. These pieces offer immense flexibility, but what if that flexibility could be pushed even further? What if a table could naturally provide more mobility, agility and range, broadening its multi-use capabilities—creating an instant workspace? Herman Miller’s Passport Work Table, the brand’s newest table offering, is designed to do all of that—all while keeping space prioritization top of mind. More →

Sector leaders implore EU to be ambitious when setting carbon targets for buildings

Sector leaders implore EU to be ambitious when setting carbon targets for buildings

With a crucial vote fast approaching on the EU’s key piece of building legislation, a coalition representing 35 organisations is calling on politicians to seize a once-in-a-generation opportunity to eliminate carbon emissions from Europe’s building stockWith a crucial vote fast approaching on the EU’s key piece of building legislation, a coalition representing 35 organisations is calling on politicians to seize a once-in-a-generation opportunity to eliminate carbon emissions from Europe’s building stock. Europe’s buildings account for around 40 percent of energy consumption and 36 percent of CO2 emissions. Currently, EU policy only addresses the operational emissions of buildings but to support total decarbonisation of the EU building stock, policy must evolve to cover both operational and embodied emissions, known as Whole Life Carbon. Without addressing both sources of emissions it is inconceivable that the EU will be able to achieve its climate targets. More →

New book aims to build connections in the building briefing process

New book aims to build connections in the building briefing process

To help solve this conundrum in a new era, Juriaan van Meel and Kjersti Bjørkeng Størdal have updated their book Construction briefing: a practical guideMies van der Rohe once said: “An architect of ability should be able to tell a client what he wants. Most of the time a client never knows what he wants.” Not many clients will agree with these patronising words—nor, for that matter, will many architects. Yet, there is some truth in Mies’s statement in the sense that construction clients often have difficulty expressing what they want. To help solve this conundrum in a new era, Juriaan van Meel and Kjersti Bjørkeng Størdal have published their new book Construction briefing: a practical guide. More →

Government Environmental Improvement Plan is ambitious but needs a clear plan

Government Environmental Improvement Plan is ambitious but needs a clear plan

The UKGBC has welcomed the ambition and vision of the Government’s Environmental Improvement Plan, particularly the water efficiency roadmap which broadly aligns with UKGBC recommendations. Yet the lobbying group also claims that the Plan falls short of providing the practical targets and policiesThe UKGBC has welcomed the ambition and vision of the Government’s Environmental Improvement Plan, particularly the water efficiency roadmap which broadly aligns with UKGBC recommendations. Yet the lobbying group also claims that the Plan falls short of providing the practical targets and policies for the built environment to play its part in halting nature’s decline. Many critical areas of interest to our sector – including planning system reform, policies for environmental net gain, and tangible targets – are insufficiently explained or missing entirely from the Plan. More →

The business case for the retrofit of existing buildings keeps getting stronger

The business case for the retrofit of existing buildings keeps getting stronger

The news last year that the M&S flagship Orchard House store on Oxford Street in London was to be demolished to make way for a new mixed-use development of shops, offices, restaurants and a gym sparked a very British sort of debate about the pros and cons of retrofit and refurbishmentThe news last year that the M&S flagship Orchard House store on Oxford Street in London was to be demolished to make way for a new mixed-use development of shops, offices, restaurants and a gym sparked a very British sort of debate about the pros and cons of retrofit and refurbishment. This is M&S after all. It may not be the cultural touchstone it once was but it remains an institution. But the debate was also about some things you might expect right now, including the ongoing deterioration of Oxford Street, the loss of a landmark building (and an art deco one at that) and the suitability of the ten-storey, mixed-use development that was to replace it. More →

Firms failing to embed net zero into operations

Firms failing to embed net zero into operations

While 85 percent of companies now have net-zero strategies, the majority are failing to incorporate them into daily business operations.A survey [registration] of 300 managers at organisations in industrial sectors across the U.K., U.S. and Germany by ESG consulting firm Sphera, claims that while 85 percent of companies now have net zero strategies, the majority are failing to incorporate them into daily business operations. Only 41 percent of operations managers have seen sustainability strategies produce significant changes in daily practices, and 32 percent say their firms do not align with science-based emissions targets.   More →

Vast majority of IT managers prioritise commercial success over sustainability

Vast majority of IT managers prioritise commercial success over sustainability

A new poll claims that the vast majority of tech managers prioritise commercial success over sustainability, despite the fact that nearly all agree with the idea that sustainability is good for businessA new poll claims that the vast majority of tech managers prioritise commercial success over sustainability, despite the fact that nearly all agree with the idea that sustainability is good for business. The report from Software AG is based on a survey of 2,000 senior IT decision-makers from the US, Canada, UK, Germany and France. It suggests that most organisations prioritise commercial objectives over sustainability in the face of economic challenges. This is despite the fact that almost all (95 percent) leaders agree sustainability is either a top or high priority and a similar number (97 percent) agree that other firms’ sustainability credentials are either essential or important in their own buying decisions. The annual Reality Check reports seeks to investigate how technology initiatives can benefit both sustainability and commercial objectives. More →

Wellbeing and organisational agility will dominate workplace conversations in 2023

Wellbeing and organisational agility will dominate workplace conversations in 2023

Mental health and wellbeing will dominate conversations about the role of work in people's lives this yearMental health and wellbeing will dominate conversations about the role of work in people’s lives this year, due in part to the effects of the global pandemic, as well as social and economic instability around the world, according to the latest megatrends report from UKG. The report claims that many people are feeling overwhelmed in the face of negative news cycles headlining economic uncertainty, climate change, violence, and political unrest have contributed to a spike in mental wellbeing issues. More →