Search Results for: workplace

July 23, 2013

RIBA announces formal link with US-based community

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with RIBA-USA, an international community of the RIBA operation in the USA. Speaking about the agreement, RIBA President Angela Brady said: “The RIBA welcomes and encourages members in communities that enhance and develop the RIBA’s presence and help achieve its strategic aims in an international territory. Our agreement with RIBA-USA formalises a long and successful relationship. This is an exciting opportunity to further develop RIBA membership in the USA and advance the RIBA’s purpose of championing better buildings, communities and the environment through architecture and our members.”

July 23, 2013

Government report highlights failings in UK public sector procurement

by Mark Eltringham • Furniture, Knowledge, News, Public Sector

In the wake of a number of recent procurement failures including the G4S and Serco overcharging fiasco, the UK Government has published a highly critical report of the way it buys some £227 billion of goods and services annually. The report from the Public Administration Committee (PASC) says that in spite of steps to improve procurement which include using better data, aggregating demand across departments and renegotiating with major suppliers, the number of failures remains conspicuously high. The G4S and Serco contracts with the Ministry of Justice, under which payments were made regardless of the service being delivered, are the most high profile examples but the report indicates that problems are widespread.

July 22, 2013

Green shoots detected for UK regional office rental markets

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Property

There is evidence of improving fortunes for the UK’s regional office markets, latest figures suggest. CBRE has revealed national rental value grew by 1.7 per cent over the second quarter of this year with offices across all UK regions performing well, and none recording a drop in rents. The highest rate of rental growth over the last twelve months, as we reported earlier this month remains that of Central London at 5 per cent (and 1.7 per cent for the last quarter), but a number of the regions outside London and the South East have started to record rental growth for prime offices, whereas until recently the general trend has been down.

July 22, 2013

Active Building Design initiatives announced by New York Mayor

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Property, Workplace

The Mayor of New York Michael Bloomburg has announced a series of initiatives to promote physical activity through the design of buildings and public spaces to encourage architects, planners and urban designers help combat obesity in the City. The Center for Active Design, a non-profit organization that promotes changes to the built environment to improve wellness is being created, and the Mayor has issued an Executive Order requiring City agencies use active design strategies when performing new construction and major renovation projects. Two pieces of legislation will promote stairway access in all buildings, with measures such as making stairways more visible to encourage use. More →

July 19, 2013

Keep up! new “megatrends” could have dramatic impacts on the world of work

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Workplace

We are all aware to some extent or other of the ways in which work has changed significantly over the past few decades, but are employers sufficiently aware of, or prepared for, the future trends that will shape the way we work and the performance of our organisations and economies into the future? This is the question posed by HR body the CIPD in a major new discussion document Megatrends: The trends shaping work and working lives” as it launches a debate on the “megatrends” that are likely to shape the world of work, the workforce and the culture and organisation of workplaces over the next decade.

July 19, 2013

FMs must overcome engagement barriers to sustainability implementation

by Sara Bean • Environment, Facilities management, News

There is overwhelming support for sustainability to be embedded into business operations, but still some challenges in its successful delivery, according to the 7th annual Sustainability in Facilities Management survey from the British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM). Of the top five barriers to implementation success, three related to engagement; engagement overall, amongst senior management and middle management. The report also found that many FMs are not targeting the areas of highest priority relating to behaviours or processes which have the highest impact, but tend to focus on technologies. More →

July 19, 2013

Dual source lighting schemes illuminate the way ahead for office design

by Shane Cohen • Comment, Facilities management, Lighting, Workplace design

Too bright, too dull, too much glare – lighting (alongside air conditioning) is often one of the most contentious factors in a workplace. Office workers need illumination to read, write, type and interact. Yet many workplaces get it wrong and fail to consider the downsides of poor lighting, and as such staff will suffer from eye strain, headaches and postural problems, leading to sick days, not to mention lost productivity and mistakes. Eighty per cent of office workers experience at least one negative effect from poor quality lighting, according to researchers Bruskin Goldring, and 68 per cent of employees complain about the light in their offices, according to a study by the American Society of Interior Designers.

July 18, 2013

Baltimore residents offered a “guns for laptops” exchange

by Sara Bean • Comment, News, Technology

Growing concerns regarding the incursion of connectivity devices into our everyday lives ignores the fact that many people have little or no access to these tools. Access to the Internet may have been ruled as a UN human right, but that doesn’t really help those who can’t afford devices that connect them to the web in the first place. So, while for most Europeans the recent story in the Baltimore Brew that locals could turn in their guns in exchange for a refurbished Dell laptop is pretty jaw-dropping, it’s a good example of the difficulty residents in a deprived area have in, as the organisers describe it, “bridging the digital divide.”

July 17, 2013

Plans to redevelop London’s Smithfield Market are given the green light

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Furniture, News, Property, Workplace design

The much talked about plans to redevelop Smithfield market have been given the green light by City of London planners. As we reported earlier this year, the development in the heart of a London district renowned for its creative industries, including many of the UK’s leading workplace design studios, has been the subject of a great deal of scrutiny and controversy. Now the City of London’s planning and transport committee has voted to approve the scheme designed by John McAslan + Partners. Most of the objections were made by campaigners based on the heritage of the historic site.

July 17, 2013

Smartphone presenteeism gives a whole new meaning to BYOD

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, Knowledge, News, Technology

While we may have grown accustomed in many ways to the world’s addiction to connectivity, and even expressed our own frustration that people are more interested in the contents of their phones than us, things are clearly going way too far if you believe the news that nearly 1 in 10 Americans have confessed to using their smartphones while having sex. While that may be extreme, the manifestation of this addiction is now routine with nearly three in four smartphone users surveyed by Harris Interactive for the Jumio 2013 Mobile Consumer Habits survey admitting that they are rarely more than five feet away from their devices.

July 16, 2013

Corporate Real Estate executives predict strong global economic outlook

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Property

The global economic outlook is strong for the second half of 2013, while the prospects for corporate growth and expansion are also increasing, according to the views of corporate executives surveyed in June for the new CoreNet Global Confidence Index. Nearly two-thirds (62.5%) rated their outlook on the global economy for the coming six months as optimistic to very optimistic, compared to a year ago. Most (72.4%) reported the likelihood that flexible, open workplace strategies will increase, while space per work setting and/or work settings per supported worker will be reduced.