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Five Overlooked Areas When Designing Office Space

Office Space Design

When designing a new office space, it can be exciting and frustrating at the same time. There are plans, budgets, and purchases to make, and it seems there’s always one thing that’s forgotten.

Office design is important to the health of any business, as you’re creating a space where employees will spend a majority of their time. Douron can help you with all your office design needs. Contact us for an appointment with a design consultant.

There are things one would normally consider when buying office furniture, such as costs and budget. However, there are other things to consider when making such vital purchases, including:

Functionality and Flexibility

See if the desks you’re buying have drawers for file storage. The more versatile your furniture, the more you’re getting out of your investment. Also, check that your employees will be comfortable at their new desks.

Size

New furniture may look nice, but if it’s too big for the space, it’s useless. Work spaces should allow for fluid traffic and movement.

Aesthetic Value and Your Brand’s Identity

Smart office design can lighten the mood, ease stress, and increase productivity. Color psychology can help produce the right atmosphere, which may depend on your industry and what atmosphere you want to create for your clients. Find inspiration from logo colors or business cards to create continuity in your brand identity.

Wish list

There are some pieces of furniture that would be nice but often don’t make the budget. Regardless, consider the wish list as you create the place where employees will spend the majority of their time. Eating areas, brainstorming centers, research libraries, or recreation rooms for clients may help create a productive office atmosphere.

Cleanliness

Furniture must be thoroughly sanitized before bringing it into the office. Whether it came from a second-hand store or was purchased new, it must be clean before going into the work space. Clean furniture helps maintain a cleaner, healthier working environment, which leads to fewer employee absences from sickness.

The experts at Douron are ready to help you create your ultimate work atmosphere. Contact us to schedule an appointment.

Understanding Carpal Tunnel in Order to Avoid It

Carpal tunnel syndrome causes tingling, weakness, numbness, and other problems in the hands. This condition is exacerbated by repetitive hand motions and can be debilitating, as some workers can’t return to work for long periods of time due to carpal tunnel syndrome. Prevention steps that can be taken by business owners include consideration of ergonomics, and you can contact Douron for an ergonomic assessment.

Preventative Ergonomic Steps

The workstation must be set up in a way to reduce wrist strain and prevent carpal tunnel. Such steps include the following considerations:

  • The top of the monitor should be at eye level.
  • Using headsets to avoid the ear-to-shoulder position when talking on phones.
  • Wrist pads to keep wrists in a neutral position.
  • Adjusting armrests so elbows are close to the body and bent at a 90-degree angle.
  • Chairs that adjust so the height allows feet to rest on the floor.
  • Taking little breaks every 10-15 minutes.
  • Stretching every 20-60 minutes.

Identifying Carpal Tunnel

Many times, carpal tunnel will first be felt in the thumbs. It then progresses to the first three fingers. It is important to discuss this with your doctor to ensure it is not another illness. If it is carpal tunnel, talk with your doctor to identify if it’s stemming from an underlying illness, such as hypothyroidism, rheumatoid arthritis, or diabetes.

Managing Carpal Tunnel

Once carpal tunnel has been identified, there are a number of ways to manage the pain. When typing, wrists should be held a little higher than the hands. A wrist pad can be used to help keep the wrists in a neutral position. Switch hands whenever possible while performing repetitive hand motions, as this may also help manage the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. Stop performing any activities that cause pain if possible.

Douron is here to help with all of your ergonomic needs. Schedule a consultation today, and do everything you can to help employees avoid carpal tunnel syndrome. Even initial symptoms may trigger a workers’ comp claim. Contact us to schedule an appointment with an office design specialist who can assess your ergonomic design needs.

When Choosing Office Furniture, How Important Is a Showroom?

The Importance of a Showroom

If browsing and purchasing office furniture from the comfort of your desk seems too good to be true, there’s a reason for that: it can lead to costly mistakes and create more problems than it solves. Online retailers may offer many attractive purchasing options, but the truth is that buying office furniture sight-unseen is risky and ultimately not worth the apparent convenience.

Buying Online: What Can Go Wrong?

Despite the best efforts of many consumers, it’s hard to get the best fit for your office when you’re buying furniture without seeing it in person. Some factors may leave you with furniture that doesn’t match your needs. For example:

  • Online pictures and dimensions don’t fully demonstrate how an item will work or look in your space.
  • Online retailers don’t offer the benefit of real-time interaction with an expert, and you often only have the listed product details for reference.

And what happens if you get your items out of the box and discover they aren’t what you expected? Even if an online retailer accepts returns, the buyer is often responsible for the shipping costs. They also lose time waiting for replacements.

Why Bother With a Showroom?

Many commercial furniture vendors have showrooms to present their options. Showrooms offer consumers benefits that justify taking the trip. What can you do in a showroom?

  • Examine potential purchases up close and personal
  • See functional demonstrations of products that can’t be conveyed by pictures
  • Talk to representatives about the products and features that best suit your needs
  • Learn about high-end and state-of-the-art special order products

Purchasing office furniture online doesn’t give consumers the option to learn from experts and refine their search based on hands-on experience. After visiting a showroom, many people have a different and more accurate idea of what they need in their office space. Contact Douron to arrange a showroom visit, and see the benefits for yourself.

How Do I Find a Vendor with a Showroom?

Find a reputable local commercial furniture dealership, and make an appointment to view its showroom. Contact Douron today for a personal look at what we can offer.

Why Douron’s Design Solutions Work for Education Centers

Education Center Design Solutions

Douron’s design solutions work for educational centers because we are forward thinking, inclusive and organized in our designs. Whether you are looking for a newly designed K-12 facility or a higher education learning center, we are able to hone in on your plan and execute your vision flawlessly. With over 45 years of experience, we are able to design the perfect, modern layout for your learning environment.

Northeast High School

A great example of a design solution for an educational center is Northeast High School in Pasadena, Maryland. Northeast High School has a little over 1,300 students and we designed every classroom, the media center/library, cafeteria, administrative offices, and computer labs. Classrooms are open with double seated modern tables. The cafeteria is made up of both style seating to promote an inclusive environment. Administrative offices are well organized with lots of storage and new furniture for a comfortable workflow. If you are in need of a design similar to Northeast High School please feel free to reach out to us.

Goucher College

Another example of our design solutions at work in educational centers is Goucher College in Towson, Maryland. We designed four floors of a library, including study areas and administrative offices. The study areas were designed for optimal comfort with modern and colorful furniture. We also added pops of color throughout the library storage areas to add some creativity and interest to some otherwise boring furniture. The design inspires learning, creativity, and organization.

If you are in the education industry and looking for new, fresh ideas for your school’s facilities you have come to the right place. Douron has over 45 years of experience and we are confident in our abilities to get the job done. From planning to installment, we handle it all for you. Contact us today to improve your educational facility.

Design Solutions for Healthcare Offices

Is your healthcare office comfortable? Honestly? At Douron we offer comfortable design solutions that are functional for your waiting room, administration work areas, and private offices. If you’re in need of some updated, comfy furniture contact us today.

Waiting Rooms & Chairs

One of the most important design features of your healthcare office is your waiting room and the most important feature of your waiting room are your chairs. At Douron we only offer top of the quality, comfortable chairs. We understand how anxious and nerve wracking it can be for patients who are waiting to be seen by the doctor. We know that you will want them to be as comfortable as possible. Take a look at some of the chair designs we offer here.

Administration

Don’t forget about the administration areas and private offices of your healthcare facility. The design of the administration area is extremely important for workflow efficiency. You need your patients to see the reception as soon as they walk in. You also need easy access for your staff to clearly call patients back without too much maneuvering or furniture being in the way. Our design solutions can easily fix any problems your administration may be facing.

Private Offices

We also offer design solutions for private doctor offices. Doctors are constantly moving from one patient to the next, so when they sit down to do some research or paperwork they deserve the best chairs. Investing in the most comfortable chairs available can go a long way in improving the day to day duties of doctors.

If you’re looking for comfort and functionality for your healthcare facility, look no further. Douron knows every detail that needs to be addressed and we are happy to guide you from decision making to installation of furniture. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns you have regarding your healthcare office design solutions.

Moving Walls: A Better Choice for Office Flexibility

Benefits of Movable Walls

There are many benefits to being able to move walls within your work space. Here are a few examples:

  • Simple installation
  • Relocation flexibility
  • Cost-effective
  • Versatile
  • Sustainable

All of these perks are things business owners need to make a company more efficient. Rearranging walls to create a new space is something that was unheard of a few years ago. Now you have to ability to set up a new work space in just a few days.

You can use movable walls to create conference rooms, offices, and work spaces. They’re versatile and easy to install. Movable walls give you privacy but can be moved, changed, or taken away quickly and easily if necessary. If these are things you want for your business, contact us to discuss your options.

Relocating your business can be expensive. Movable walls are a cost-effective alternative, which makes them very appealing to companies looking to grow their enterprises without relocating or renovating. Many companies renovate their office space and have traditional walls put in to create rooms and spaces. But adding traditional walls to an office space can cut into a company’s bottom line since it takes so long to install them. Traditional walls are also labor intensive, which costs more.

Lastly, traditional walls limit your options, since they’re fixed in one position. You can’t move them to create a new space without hiring someone to tear down one wall and install another. You want your office space to work for your business, not against it. Moveable walls give your business the flexibility it needs to grow faster without worrying about moving.

Creating a space that can be easily redesigned when needed is invaluable to a growing company. Let Douron help you with your office space needs. Contact us today for more information on movable walls and how they can help your business.

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