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Quality of Work Life

The Evolution of the Workplace

As we approach two years of a radically changed work environment due to the pandemic, much uncertainty remains. Plans to return to the physical workspace have been derailed or delayed by the Omicron variant and organizations are grappling with how best to move forward. What has changed in the workplace, and what needs to continue changing? Take a look at the evolution of the workplace.

Some businesses have decided that they can get along just fine with a remote workforce, at least in the shorter term. They’re in the minority, but many were already operating virtually pre-pandemic, so the transition has been easier. At the other end of the spectrum are those for whom remote work is not a viable option: service industries, manufacturers and so forth.

In the middle are the vast majority of businesses, trying to roll with the continued punches of COVID and figure out the best combination of in-person, remote and hybrid work for their own teams and circumstances. And if there’s one word to describe handling all this uncertainty, it’s this: adaptability.

That can mean a lot of things, but in terms of office design it’s really the continuation of a trend of several years: Many organizations had already seen the value of flexible workspaces in both the more efficient use of space and the ways in which they promote collaboration. That physical adaptability will now become even more important.

Remote and hybrid work means fewer opportunities for teams to collaborate in person, which is indisputably more effective. So when a team is in the same physical space, every effort needs to be made to maximize that opportunity with an environment that can adjust on the fly to changing needs.

Adaptability is required far beyond the physical workspace, of course. We still don’t fully understand how this prolonged stretch of diminished interaction will affect all of us as workers and as human beings, and business leaders will need to be even more flexible than their workspaces to accommodate the changing needs of their teams.

Check out this adaptable workspace at Frederick Innovative Technology Center (FITC).

COVID-19 Update

Douron’s COVID-19 Update

Douron is fully operational to provide service to our employees, clients, partners and community. We have received required status for distribution to essential companies per state and federal guidelines.

We are continually monitoring the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) for daily COVID-19 updates to provide our employees a safe and healthy working environment. Click here to learn more about how you can protect yourself and others from the virus.

We have established a continuity plan that relies on email, virtual meetings and remote connectivity as our primary contact and response method. With our software phone application, our employees can be reached at their normal extensions. Messages left on team members’ work phones are monitored and answered as quickly as possible.

Our showrooms in Baltimore, Rockville and Delaware are open. All of our facilities are being cleaned and disinfected regularly to ensure a safe work environment.

MANUFACTURING PARTNERS

Douron is monitoring the operational status of our manufacturing partners and we will provide updates, as we receive them, via email.

SALES

Account Executives will continue to be available by their standard email addresses, phone extensions and mobile phone numbers. All responses to projects from our Account Executives will be via email or phone.

CUSTOMER SERVICE SUPPORT

Douron headquartered team members are in office and fully operational. Our continuity plan has been tested to make an easy transition as not to delay our ability to serve you.

WAREHOUSE, DELIVERY AND INSTALLATION (WD&I)

Currently, Douron is accepting all shipments and making deliveries, while safely completing projects. There is restricted entry for delivery drivers to our warehouse and paperwork is being delivered to the door. Our warehouse team has been provided rubber gloves, masks and disinfecting spray to utilize upon receipt of product and to use as necessary. All WD&I employees have proper documentation of the nature of their delivery being essential to the operations of our clients.

After installation, all furniture surfaces and cabinet are sprayed and disinfected. We want to ensure a safe installation process. Our employees are aware and following (CDC) guidelines of daily cleaning of tools and building materials; washing hands as often as possible; covering coughs and sneezes with tissues and avoiding touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.

WARRANTY AND CLAIMS

Our Corrective Actions Department is reviewing all claims made by clients and reporting information to the appropriate manufacturer.

If you are experiencing any warranty or service related issues, please fill out a warranty request form or email correctiveactions@douron.com.

We are working together with you to provide safe and healthy environments.

Women’s Equality Day: Helping Up Mission Project

August 26th marks Women’s Equality Day, commemorating the 1920 adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which prohibited both the states and federal government from denying the right to vote based on gender. Observed since 1973, Women’s Equality Day reminds us that as far as we’ve come, there’s still work to be done on the women’s rights front.

You’re probably familiar with Helping Up Mission (HUM), which since 1885 has helped countless individuals – men and women alike – to overcome poverty, homelessness and addiction. Providing services around the clock 365 days a year, HUM does vital work in Baltimore.

That’s why we’re so honored to be involved in the latest project at HUM, and just in time to honor the  women of Baltimore and surrounding areas: A new Women’s and Children’s Center is taking shape at 1216 East Baltimore Street and is expected to be complete by year’s end (take a virtual tour here).

Offering complete services for 250 women and accompanying children, the Women’s and Children’s Center is a seven-story, 145,000-square-foot facility. Services will include spiritual and pastoral counseling, mental health and substance abuse treatment, medical and dental care, educational and workforce development services and much more. It’s a beautiful facility, designed with comfort and care in mind.

We’re thrilled to be involved in the design and furnishing of this amazing project as it enters the final stages of construction, and we encourage you to support the important work of HUM and their new Women’s and Children’s Center. To donate to their Inspiring Hope campaign, click here.

Check out more photos from the Helping Up Mission Women’s and Children’s Center here.

Aviation Week: The GrandView Aviation Project

The week of August 19 is National Aviation Week, a time to commemorate the soaring achievements that have taken us into the skies since the first flight of the Wright Brothers near Kitty Hawk, NC in 1903. National Aviation Week was proclaimed as National Aviation Day in 1939 by President Franklin Roosevelt and has since been turned into a week long celebration.

Featuring conferences, exhibitions and webinars worldwide, National Aviation Week celebrates the history and achievements that have taken humankind into the sky (fun fact: the Wright Brothers’ initial flight, lasting 12 seconds, was just about equivalent to the wingspan of a 747, at 120 feet). Although the Wright Brothers were not the first to build and fly experimental aircrafts, they are recognized as the first to invent aircraft controls that made fixed wing flight possible.

GrandView Aviation InteriorCloser to home, and closer to the ground, we’re celebrating our involvement in a project for GrandView Aviation, a private jet charter company located at Martin State Airport in Middle River, MD (one of their eight locations nationwide). Working with Levin/Brown Architects, we provided design services, fixtures and furniture for this 20,000-square-foot space, using products from HON and JSI for the offices, lounge areas and conference room.

For more photos from GrandView Aviation click here.

Safety Month: Better Ergonomics in the Workplace

National Safety Month continues throughout June, and while the idea of safety in the workplace often conjures up images of sudden accidents and injuries, employers and workers alike also need to guard against conditions that develop over time.

Any work environment, whether a factory, jobsite or office, can be the source of repetitive strain injuries (RSI) ranging from general soreness and stiffness to more serious conditions including carpal tunnel syndrome. There’s no sure way to prevent RSI completely – for example, some people are simply more prone to developing carpal tunnel syndrome than others – but the best way to reduce their frequency and severity is with proper workplace ergonomics.

A proper workplace ergonomics process reduces or removes the risk factors that lead to musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) and creates an environment conducive to better performance and productivity.  The way to achieve improved ergonomics will vary greatly depending upon the workplace, but for our purposes we’ll look at general best practices for an office environment.

Training: An important first step in preventing stress injuries is to make employees aware of good ergonomic practices, and of the potential consequences of poor ergonomics. Risk factors here include force (moving or lifting), posture and repetition. Even with a desk job, the latter two especially can present issues. Get employees thinking preventatively to head off issues before they occur.

Height Adjustable Workstation

Design: Proper workplace design is critical to good ergonomics. In an office setting one effective way to address the issue of repetition is with adjustable workstations, allowing employees to work sitting down or standing so they’re not in the same position for prolonged periods of time. The avoidance of excessive stretching and reaching to complete tasks is important also. Standing employees should be able to access what they need between waist and shoulder height, and should be provided with anti-fatigue mats.

Pay careful attention to seating as well. Chairs or stools should be adjustable, should swivel to accommodate motion and should offer substantial lumbar support. You may need to make individual arrangements for employees who are especially short or tall, as best practices include a seating position with feet flat on the floor or on an appropriate footrest, and knees no higher than the hips. The height of computer monitors is also critical to prevention of neck issues.

Communicate. One of the best ways to identify shortfalls in your ergonomic design is to ask detailed questions of your team members. How do they feel at the end of a workday? Are there recurring issues with soreness in certain parts of their bodies, or certain tasks where they notice discomfort? The answers will offer a road map to areas for improvement.

Questions about designing your workplace with proper ergonomics? Contact Douron.

Safety Month: Safety on the Jobsite

June is National Safety Month, the perfect time for a little refresher on best practices for a safe jobsite. In 2019, the most recent year for which statistics are available, more than 5,000 workers suffered fatal accidents on the job, or nearly 15 per day. Of those, one in five were related to the construction industry. So while jobsites in general have made safety improvements over the years, there’s clearly still a great deal of room for improvement.

Let’s take a look at the top ways to keep work sites safer:

Plan ahead: Jobsite safety begins with a plan for what will happen that day and making sure the appropriate tools, equipment and safety gear are ready to go. Many workplace accidents result from using inappropriate equipment for a particular task, or from the absence of proper safety apparatus.

Train: The right tools and safety equipment are just the start. Workers must be trained on safe operation of any equipment, and on the proper use of safety gear. Safety training is not a one-and-done event either … plan for regular refresher sessions so all team members are always up to date. From the importance of using the appropriate tool for the job at hand to proper techniques for lifting to avoid injury, there’s no shortage of safety training topics.

Project Planning

Communicate: Employees will tend to take safety about as seriously as management does. Company leadership needs to make it clear that jobsite safety is a high priority, and to communicate that message consistently. From regular meetings to jobsite signage, keeping the safety message from and center is vital.

Inspect: “Inspect what you expect,” goes the saying. For jobsite safety this means regular checks of tools and equipment for signs of wear or breakage, as well as ensuring that equipment like scaffolding or fall protection gear is properly set up. And the work site itself should be inspected daily to make sure proper “housekeeping” related to safety is maintained. Regular inspection will identify safety issues before they have tragic results.

Review: The final step in a solid safety plan is a regular review of results. Were there accidents or injuries? How could they have been prevented, and what policy changes need to be put in place to keep them from happening again? This process should involve all levels of management, especially those who are actually on the jobsite.

While we highlight workplace safety in June, jobsite safety is vital every day of the year. Begin with proper planning, and finish with a regular review of results to keep jobsites safer.

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