May 11, 2021
As 2020 came to a close, there was a palpable sense of hope that 2021 would bring with it a fresh slate with the horrors of COVID behind us. Alas, that has not happened and it seems we have more of the same, certainly for the next few months and with that the speculation about the ‘future of the office’ will no doubt continue. More →
May 5, 2021
IDL TIFF file
New research conducted by Locatee claims that employee wellbeing is the top priority for CRE managers over the next five years. The research details the opinions of corporate real estate managers (CREMs) from across Europe, outlining the changes they have seen during the pandemic, and how their businesses will adapt for the future. More →
April 20, 2021
FUTURE Designs, a UK based designer and manufacturer of luminaires and lighting solutions, obtains the first IMMUNE Building Standard certification in the world for an Industrial Building, awarded by Healthy by Design Building Institute (HDBI). The factory and headquarters achieved the label ‘IMMUNE – Strong’ following the company’s successful implementation of the health and safety set of measures for its employees. More →
April 16, 2021
New office developments and major refurbishments in the UK will be able to formally register under the Design for Performance framework. The framework claims to help developers ensure that projects deliver against their design intent and overcome the well-evidenced performance gap between design and operation. This is achieved by requiring project teams to target an operational NABERS Energy rating during the project design and verify it once the building is occupied. More →
March 24, 2021
The Covid-19 pandemic had a serious impact on the home office furniture market in 2020, according to a new report, by AMA Research. Despite a move to homeworking, demand for home office furniture is expected to have declined by 8 percent in 2020; however this can be contrasted with the 17 percent fall in the total office furniture market. More →
March 2, 2021
The Collective cements its commitment to the UK creative industry with the opening of new offices and showroom in iconic Folkestone building ‘The Glassworks Building’, and support emerging talent by appointing newly founded Studio Morelli for their debut interior project. More →
February 26, 2021
One of the most interesting developments in the way we talk about the design of buildings in recent years is how the issue of wellbeing has found an overlap with environmental concerns. We know instinctively that these are natural partners. What is good for the environment almost always has a direct beneficial effect on people’s physical and mental health, as well as their productivity. More →
February 19, 2021
December 10, 2020
From the archive. First published in October 
2015. It is perhaps the most common misconception of evolutionary theory that all animals are somehow evolving towards some end point – meaning us. This notion is perhaps best summed up when a sceptic asks: “If we have evolved from monkeys, why are there still monkeys?” The lesser of the two problems with this is its solipsistic assumption that humans are the pinnacles of life and that, if evolution were true, all species would eventually evolve into people. More →
December 8, 2020
The Commercial Park Group, a partnership between Sir Robert McAlpine and the John Baker Group, has announced it will invest £200 million to kick-start developments of two million sq ft of new offices across locations in the south east of England. More →
December 4, 2020
When Donald Trump was pictured recently sitting uncomfortably at a table that looked like it had been retrieved from a skip, it provoked the sort of sneering commentary about furniture choices last seen when Dominic Cummings popped in to the Downing Street garden to deliver some self-serving blather from behind a rickety trestle table. More →
New data from real estate consultancy
May 20, 2021
Is the time right for office furniture as a service?
by Joanna Knight • Comment, JK, Workplace design