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2016 Blogs

Why Exhibiting is a Valuable Experience for ANYONE

Exhibiting Is Not Confined to Major Trade Shows

When we talk about trade shows, the obvious image which pops to mind are the corporate trade shows hosted in sprawling halls and crammed with companies both big and small. These types of events have generated a bit of a bad reputation in recent years for being a waste of money. Admittedly, this is the case for some. However, exhibiting is not just about throwing your budget at a stylish exhibition stand just to feel good and pat yourself on the back for a day. Exhibitions come in all shapes and sizes and some of the most valuable do not require an ego-boosting and overly expensive display stand.

Think Small:

For smaller businesses in particular, with stricter budgets and more tangible goals in sight, it is important to note that there are such things as exhibitions which are not your stereotypical trade show. Look locally for craft fayres, gatherings of local businesses and networking opportunities. While trade shows are prone to becoming a ‘who has got the biggest and best stand competition’, smaller events are geared towards making sales and creating partnerships which will last beyond the evening meal. In a smaller setting, you have more time to interact and ultimately, everyone has the same goal; they want their business to grow.

Larger events can become a bit of a frenzy without careful planning, which is another area where businesses are prone to leaking potential revenue. If you are just starting out with this whole networking and building relationships business, then starting small is always the way to go if you want to learn and actually make it a success. Plenty of new exhibitors make the mistake of reading a few guides, looking at a few photos and then deciding they’re ready to throw themselves in at the deep end. Is it any wonder then that some exhibitors walk away from these events disgruntled and complaining that they wasted their time?

Build on Success:

If trade shows and exhibitions are your ideal location, then you need to learn how to find value in the little things first. Fayres and conferences might not bring in that multi-million-pound deal, but they provide the opportunity to hone your sales patter and get genuine feedback from people who are not just going to palm you away. Perhaps the biggest benefit is that you do not need to invest thousands for a high-spec exhibition stand which you end up using once or twice a year. Display boards and banner stands are just as effective in smaller situations and at a fraction of the cost.

Often with large exhibitions, while they may be relevant to your industry, that does not guarantee that everyone will hold something in common. It is true that thousands of people may be in attendance, but if only a small percentage (and there is no way to get an exact number) who attend are interested in your products and services, then the opportunity to see a return on your investment is severely diminished. Smaller events are often much more focused and assuming you pick out the right one, that percentage of interest parties is likely to be significantly higher. While you may not find that big fish you were hoping for, there is far more potential to make smaller and more frequent gains. Combine this with a cheaper investment and this kind of exhibition experience is more likely to be worth your time and money.

Time is Equally as Valuable as your Budget:

As any small business owner can appreciate, while the budget is always a factor in decisions such as these, time is often more valuable. Large exhibition stands can take weeks or even months of preparation and that can consume valuable hours, days and weeks of your time preparing for an event which you may not even see a return on. As much as fayres and local events still require preparation, they allow you to maximise your efforts in other areas while still committing enough time and effort towards the event.

Afterwards, if your approach has been a success, then it can be picked up and implemented with a new event in the upcoming months. A few adaptations with what you have learned here and there and before you know it, exhibitions are not quite as time consuming as you had originally thought. As an added benefit, you will not even need a new display. Banner stands and display boards are designed to last and their compact design means they can be neatly tucked away in a storage cupboard until they are needed again.

Be Smart and Exhibitions Can Be an Extremely Worthwhile Venture

If you were to attend a large exhibition and ask what their key to success would be, chances are their response would be something along the lines of ‘try and try again’. Much of the disillusionment associated with exhibitions stems from new attendees with only a hint of what they are supposed to be doing seeing all their effort return very little in the ways of results. Top exhibitors have been doing this for years and will continue to do so for many more to come as they have been able to understand what is required to make the experience a success. Rather than throwing all of your eggs into one basket; start out small and learn how to schedule events such as these. The returns may not provide a huge boost for your income, but they can open up new opportunities and avenues for your business to grow.

At Rap Industries, we have been working with clients both big and small for over 40 years, so we have gathered invaluable experience in how clients make their exhibition a success. If you are looking at a more cost-effective display stand for your exhibit, then have a look at the Large Display Boards or visit our site for a wider collection. Alternatively, you can get in touch by calling 01733 394941 or send an e-mail to sales@rapind.com.

Exhibition Stand at Tradeshow

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2016 Blogs

How to Make the Most of Your Open Plan Office Space

Open Plan Office Screens

Whether we are at home or at work; architects, business owners and home owners alike are very attached to the idea of open plan office spaces. Many of us may have grown up in homes with multiple rooms, sealed away by doors in order to provide privacy from parents and siblings. Nowadays, the situation is quite the opposite. We seem to love the idea of these collaborative spaces, which allow rooms to mingle and creates this sense of a collective group, rather than a handful of individuals. Of course, this kind of design has its drawbacks, which is why many of the stunning designs have undergone meticulous planning in order to strike a balance between collaboration and privacy.

Why Do We Love a Open Plan Office?

Across Europe in particular, the trend for an open planned home is a mark of our changing lifestyles. No longer are we hosting fancy dinner parties, secluded from the rest of the home. Instead, we crave more social gatherings, families tend to sit and spend time together. Traditional designs restricted the home to the labyrinth style which became so synonymous with Victorian and Edwardian era homes. With open plan homes, the removal of walls creates this perception of more space and allows more natural light to flow through.

This is ideal especially in smaller living spaces where the amount of space available is already severely limited as is often the case with older homes. The same idea is increasingly applied to office design. Many businesses have now moved away from the idea that employees require complete peace and quiet in order to work efficiently. Instead, modern design now looks towards collaborative spaces which enable staff to work as a team rather than a group of individual cogs. To achieve this walls have been torn down and collaboration is on the up, but there a host of side-effects which need to be addressed before a design such as this can work.

Arrange Furniture Creatively

With so much space at your disposal, there is no need to go back to the rank and file furniture layout which makes the office resemble a classroom. One of the key factors which needs to be considered here is the amount of distractions possible with each design. There is no point clumping employees together as noise will become an issue. Meanwhile, seating everyone opposite each other or by main doors will provide visual distractions which will become a regular and persistent issue.

Open place offices create the freedom to develop a unique design in order to enhance the efficiency of your employees. It is possible to create hubs for different teams, allowing the space for collaboration while separating it from distractions across the rest of the office. If the space is available, then there is also the potential to create separate areas which are tailored to encourage group work as well as other zones which allow employees to concentrate without the hassle of persistent distractions.

Make The Space Adaptable

One of the major benefits of an open plan office is the freedom it provides to chop and change how it is setup. If you are still in the planning stage, then look into integrating flexible office screens which can be moved and setup as and when required. The major benefit to these is that they can help to reduce the audible and visual distractions which are often a common issue with open plan offices. As teams tend to expand and grow, the ability for the office to adapt is important to being able to make the most of the space which is available. Screens can be easily moved for more desks and more seating.

The Space Needs to Work for Introverts and Extroverts

If you are perplexed by what the title means, then this is a very important issue to factor into your office design. Generally, people are split into two categories; extroverts who thrive in team situations, are often more outspoken and are more likely to thrive in collaborative spaces. On the other end of the spectrum, introverts appreciate exactly the opposite, they work more efficiently when given privacy, often keep thoughts to themselves until absolutely necessary and generally would rather have their own office rather than a desk in a busy environment.

Your office design needs to take these into consideration. While your open collaborative space may be fantastic for some, it could be a nightmare for others. Introverts will value more private, quiet spaces, but this can lead to extroverts feeling agitated, further hindering their efficiency. The solution to this really boils down to how much space you have available. The ideal is to be able to create two separate types of areas, one which is more collaborative and helps teams the bond and grow. The other is a quiet space, which provides the privacy for employees to get on with their work without audible and visual distractions.

Striking the right balance between freedom and privacy can prove a masterstroke. If your environment can enable all of your employees to work comfortably and efficiently, then the overall productivity of your business will increase. Open plan offices are great in theory, but many have made common mistakes which result in disaster. This is often because open offices become too noisy and you find everyone just trying to talk to each other, or there is so much going on in the office that there is no space for everyone to concentrate.

Open Plan Office Screens

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2016 Blogs

8 Factors You Must Address When Re-designing Your Office

Open Plan Office Screens

What Makes the Design of the Office So Important?

Chances are, if you are looking into re-designing your office, then you have already begun to understand the impact that it can have on the efficiency of your business. From the colour of the walls to how big the windows are, there are a range of different factors which can influence how effectively employees can concentrate and the length of time in which you can expect them to remain focused. Some of the greatest office designs are simple in theory, but in the planning phase, the design must be tailored and adapted to the space in order to make it as effective as possible.

The key to creating an ideal office design, is being able to balance privacy with a collaborative work space. This means ensuring the means are available for staff to press on with work when required, while still having the means to communicate with others when their schedule permits. Such a setup is challenging to establish, but with the necessary due care and attention taken beforehand, an ideal design such as this is attainable and can provide significant benefits in areas which you may never have considered before.

Lighting

If employees are going to be sat at their desk for the majority of the day, then this first factor is important to consider. While it is necessary to have light of any type in the rooms to stop eyes from becoming strained, it is even more integral to allow natural light to flow through. Large windows, glazed screens or even skylights are all different tools which can be used to allow natural light in. Being exposed to this as opposed to synthetic light helps employees to sleep for longer, concentrate more, think more creatively, thereby helping to improve their mood and reduce stress. All in all, a lot of benefits to be had here.

Comfortable Furniture

If your office is still equipped with rickety old chairs, then they should definitely be the first thing which you throw out. Especially in situations where staff can be sat down for up to 8 hours a day, the prospect of doing so on a seat which is firm and squeaky is hardly going to get their mood up. Ergonomic desk chairs and comfortable seating in break spaces are hugely beneficial long term. Your employees are less likely to have issues with back or neck problems and it can also help to boost concentration as that perennial squeaking noise will finally be thrown out.

Keep The Space Clean and Tidy

It does not take an individual with OCD to become stressed out at the sight of a cluttered office space which makes it impossible to find things. With the advent of computers, there is no excuse for having paper lying around and for offices to be looking like a dump. Encouraging employees to keep their work space tidy can further benefit them as it helps to keep the mind tidy and focused on the task at hand.

Colour

As you are reading this, you probably have not been taking much notice of the colour of the environment around you. The walls, office partitions, and even your mug may appear minor, but colour can have a significant impact on the mood of your employees. Shades of red can help to bring out passion and aggression, while yellows are much better in creative spaces. It all boils down to what we associate colours with. So for example, when we think of green, one of our initial responses is grass and the countryside, which we immediately begin to associate with being calming and soothing. So while your company logo may be red, splattering that around the office whilst people are trying to be creative is less likely to result in the fantastic designs which you may have been hoping for.

Temperature

Temperature is quite obvious and there is no trickery of the mind involved. If the office space is poorly ventilated, then staff will begin to get too hot, stress levels will rise and before you know it you will regret having that fancy floral centrepiece over an air conditioning system. If the temperature is monitored and maintained throughout the day, then that is one thing less for employees to worry about.

Noise Levels

Noise levels are a factor which we feel very strongly about. There is nothing more frustrating than having to listen to the IT guy (or whoever else for that matter!) clicking a pen for 6 hours a day. This is particularly an issue in open office spaces where it is very easy for sound waves to bounce around and when there are over 10 people sat in an office, this just causes volume levels to rise and rise throughout the day. The unpredictable nature of sound waves also makes it one of the harder factors to address. While there are some more elaborate suggestions available, as a rule of thumb, introduce lots of soft surfaces like carpet and office screens for example, which can help to soak up the ambient office noise before it becomes too much of an issue.

Ensure The Space is Organised

If your business is growing, then this is great news for your company but bad news for your office design. More employees as a result leads to increasing noise levels, further distractions and it could potentially slow your growth levels down. So when re-designing, consider where desks are going to go, are one team going to be crammed into a corner when the space can be more effectively used by someone else? These are the types of issues which will only arise when the re-design is all said and done.

Brand The Space

Finally, you should treat your office like a showroom, even if you are only having visitors once a month. Having your branding visible creates the perception that you are established, trustworthy and that ultimately they are in the right place.

Office Screens

Categories
2016 Blogs

Why Privacy Should Be a Crucial Consideration in your Office Design

Office Design

When we think of modern office design, the first image that comes to mind is an expansive white space with light bouncing across the room. Picture perfect. The actual practicality of an environment like this is up for debate however. As we have moved away from cubicle style offices as well as series of individual offices, it is hard to escape the fact that the open plan office remains the most popular design available today. For one, it’s incredibly cost effective compared to other designs, all that is really required is a large open space which can be given a lick of paint. But while it seems an easy solution, there are a number of drawbacks which are hard to escape.

The whole idea behind having an open office is that they are supposed to ‘foster collaboration’ and make employees more productive. All your staff, working in close proximity, giving each other gentle encouragement with friendly pats on the back. Idyllic. So what happens when stress levels start to rise? Your account manager’s ‘unique’ laugh was a novelty when you first moved into the office, but now it is grinding you down every time you can hear it bounding across the office. You can’t escape the fact that colleagues flanked either side of you keep rearing their heads to see what you are doing. All of a sudden the idea of working as part of a team goes out of the window as you begin to suffocate from the restrictive nature which a poorly designed open plan office will deliver.

Why Do We Value Privacy So Much?

If you have ever worked in an open plan office… and if you are reading this I would wager that you have, you will probably be well versed in the pitfalls of the bullring style ‘collaborative work space’. If not and especially if you are re-designing your office, please listen in closer for the sake of your employees. Privacy is not something we are thankful for every day, but it is something we very much notice once it is taken away. In a wider context, imagine if your medical records were leaked, your issues at home spreading like wildfire at work or that *thing* you did when you were 18 years old and thought it would never the light of day again. How would that make you feel?

Having a colleague peering over your shoulder at work for 6 hours a day isn’t quite as drastic as these examples, but while it is manageable for a couple of days, the frustration of it all builds up. While you are trying to meet your deadline, all you can hear is the laughter booming from the other side of the office and phones ringing off the hook. When this happens, all you can hope to happen is to block out your surroundings in the hope of actually getting some work done. But simplistic open plan office designs do not facilitate this, they forget the intricacies of human relationships and they neglect the fact that everyone is different.

Office Design Needs Balance

By this point, you may be wondering how large companies such as Google which has set the benchmark in recent years for open office design, has been able to subvert some of these issues. Quite simply, they provide a variety of spaces for staff, some where they can sit with others and collaborate while they work. Then there are others which allow employees to sit in private, shut out the world around them and get on with the task at hand. Okay, so you don’t have a multi-acre estate to create a layout like this, but examples such as this highlights the importance of creating environments which allow staff privacy while still having the option to interact with others.

Headphone usage has been on the rise recently as bosses allow their usage so staff can focus, but this does not eliminate the issue of visual distractions. One solution for this can be to introduce Office Screens. These can add a splash of colour to the space especially if it has been whitewashed and more deluxe versions even integrate acoustic foam which can help to soak up some of that frustrating ambient noise which keeps bouncing over from the other side of the office.

What Should Be Considered…

Every work area is different, so this will require some thinking on your part. However, there is a fine line between giving someone privacy and simply just placing an employee in a box. Ask someone who worked in a cubicle what they thought of that. Open spaces are great when they are tempered with areas where staff can focus on one task at a time. Just because of all the space you have does not mean you need to fit in a desk wherever possible. Crowded offices become very noisy at peak times and can you seriously expect efficient work when teams are constantly trying to talk over each other?

Before you start, it would be beneficial to find out thoughts of those already working in the office, what is their pet peeve with the current design? To enable your employees to work at their optimum, it is important to integrate a design which allows them to get on with work at their pace. It is perhaps unrealistic to expect everyone to work 100% in every minute of the day, so the conditions need to be created so that when they are working, they are not constantly distracted by audible and visual distractions.

Office Design

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2016 Blogs

Privacy and Why It Is Crucial for Concentration – Next Day Screens

Office Design

If you are reading this at work, then take a minute to look around you. Chances are that if you are reading this, you are probably procrastinating. No worries, we have all been there, but consider why you are procrastinating? Is the work mind-numbingly dull? Are you looking forward to going on holiday next week? Or are you feeling a bit overwhelmed by the buzz of chatter emanating from across the office? Whatever it is, it’s safe to say procrastination is often the direct result of becoming distracted.

The best working environments are those where we can get on with work in peace and quiet, not having to listen to what your colleagues did on their weekends or the seemingly perpetual phone ringing. This is a very common issue with the most popular design of office space – the open plan office. When interior designers first conjured this idea over 40 years ago, the ability to combine semi-private spaces with collaborative work areas appeared like a stroke of genius. The reality has been quite the opposite, in fact, in the UK alone, approximately 1.5million of us work from home as a result.

What is Privacy?

Privacy is quite a broad term and it means to be able to seclude yourself and then express whatever information as you please. In the world of CCTV cameras and supposed tracking over the internet, the whole idea of privacy has come under threat. That’s a whole can of worms which we won’t be looking into, but the same premise which causes us to feel unease at the thought of being watched, is the same reason why privacy is so important for concentration. Unless you have a magic switch which can flick off the environment around you, chances are your productivity is being hindered by loud voices, slamming doors, phones ringing, children screaming, and a whole myriad of other factors.

While many people claim to be able to multi-task, the fact is that while it may be possible to do two things at once, it is incredibly difficult to concentrate on one without neglecting the other. Being able to focus is something which some are able to grasp better than others, and it is the others in particular who are most affected by audible or visual distractions. Whether you are studying, working or even just planning, the ideal environment would be a controlled space with nothing but you own thoughts.

So Why Do We Become Distracted?

Distractions and concentration are complexities in the brain which we are only just starting to get to grips with. Just like a machine, everything we do takes up resources so when we start to get hungry, those resource levels are low and we lack the necessary fuel to complete what we are trying to do. For example, if you slept less than usual last night, then as a result you are more likely to become distracted as your body has not had the chance to rejuvenate those resources and you are being hindered because of it.

Another major issue outlined by David Rock, explores this ever connected world which we live in. While workplace designs are gradually improving to help individual efficiency, things we may consider minor such as our mobile phones and the internet are soaking up a huge amount of our time. This all leads to a pretty vicious cycle; lack of resources means we struggle to focus, which then leads to becoming distracted, but by the time we get back to working, we have exhausted a lot of those resources on time wasting activities such as social media.

What Can I Do About It?

Just because you regularly become distracted easily does not mean there is no hope for you. As mentioned earlier, there is a growing number of people working from home who can control the environment around them, cutting down on the number of temptations and distractions. Therefore, providing an optimal environment for concentrating. Unfortunately, many of us do not have the luxury of completing our work whilst sat on the sofa wearing pyjamas. So, the trick is to plan ahead to attempt to stop the distractions before they begin.

If you can’t help but look up the instant there is movement in the office, then look into adding Office Screens to help keep your mind focused on your work. If the noise around you is simply becoming too much, then try out listening to music through some headphones (calming music with no lyrics, the latest hit single or your favourite 90s track are going make the distractions even worse). If your phone keeps vibrating all over your desk with all those group chats you regret joining, then now is the time to switch your phone off for an hour or two so your mind can focus on one thing at a time.

There are many tools out there to help you to stay focused. If you have ever found yourself searching for a blog online only to find yourself mindlessly logging into social media every day like you have done for the past 365 consecutive days, then there is help out there. For example, StayFocusd can be tuned with all the sites you visit and once you have spent long enough browsing through Twitter, the app will block you for the rest of the day. Pretty handy when you are used to watching hours slip by in a day!

So to put things simply, identify those factors which constantly leave you distracted and learn to ignore them or get rid of them altogether. Some are unavoidable, so look at your options to cover or mask them and with any luck, you should see your productivity soar!

If visual distractions are becoming a constant thorn in your side, then we can help. Here at Rap Industries, we manufacture Next Day Screens which can provide instant relief in the office so you no longer have to have your concentration broken by activity in the office. If you need any more information, you can give us a call on 01733 394941 or send an e-mail to sales@rapind.com.

Clear acrylic modular protection screens

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2016 Blogs

Top Techniques for Making the Most of Your Office Space

Delta acoustic office partitioning in office

Those who have worked in offices throughout their careers will be able to sympathise with what makes a great office and what can make one so bad it may well drive you to quit. If you have ever seen the offices of major technology companies, then it quickly becomes evident what a world away your office is and what makes those offices great is the design. Now, while installing a slide between floors does not seem wholly practical, it’s benefit for those workers is to help reduce stress and to help them to be in the optimum mental and physical condition when it comes to completing work. It’s unlikely that we will all be installing slides into our offices over the next few years, although it has set a premise which all of our office designs can be built around.

While some of these offices look complex in design, the concepts that they draw from are relatively simple. The ultimate goal is to create conditions which are comfortable and calming for staff and providing them with space which is free from distractions and allows them to completely concentrate on the task at hand. So even if your office space is fairly compact, there are a variety of techniques available to help keep noise levels down and keep your employee’s satisfaction up.

Nurture an Environment Which Helps Employees to Focus:

Open offices are great in theory as they act like melting pots for ideas, where staff can interact and collaborate throughout the working day. However, when deadlines approach and stress levels begin to rise, there is nothing worse than being surrounded by colleagues shouting down phones and drama taking place in every different direction. The solution for this is to create a space which provides privacy for employees and this means targeting both visual and audible distractions. This can be achieved through the arrangement of the space, opting to separate areas so everyone is not facing each other. An interesting alternative however is to add office screens between desks.

These are available in a variety of designs, such as with acoustic foam, glazed panels or a pinnable screen, which means they are able to adapt to a variety of different environments. At Rap Industries, we design and manufacture a variety of office screens, including our Delta Cloud Acoustic Screens as well as the more professional Morton Office Screens. Each feature different designs which can introduce more privacy where required.

Natural Light is Crucial:

Studies have revealed the medical benefits of being exposed to natural sunlight, not least because it is our main source of vitamin D. But when you consider that many employees work in offices for at least 7-8 hours every day, then it can do much more than have a physical impact. Being trapped inside an office all day can have a mental impact, especially when you are seeing exactly the same surroundings five days a week. It can also hinder staff when they get home too. A lack of natural sunlight can cause sleep disturbances and further difficulties when it is time to rest, which can lead to a whole array of further problems due to a lack of sleep. Quite simply, sleep and rest are crucial for keeping a workforce motivated.

Think Vertical:

If your office is looking quite cramped, and this is definitely a problem faced more often by small businesses, it can really begin to feel like the walls are closing in around you. Fortunately, thanks to advances in technology, most of your data can be stored in that fancy box called a computer, meaning that filing cabinets are finally leaving the office. However, if space is still restricted, there is a way to get around it. The trick is to think vertically – introduce shelving to house files and folders. Clutter is an issue not only on your desk but also in your mind, so endeavour to keep things neat, tidy and organised in order to keep your staff’s focus on the task at hand.

If you would like to learn more about how office screens can help to improve your office space, then please feel free to give our team of advisors a call on 01733 394941 or send an e-mail to sales@rapind.com.

delta straight

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2016 Blogs

Why Introducing Office Screens Can Enhance Productivity…

Motivating staff and keeping them motivated is just one of many challenges that a business faces. At the core of any organisation is the employees who operate like the cogs in a machine and should one of those cogs ever grind to a halt, it can bring every other function to a standstill. In the business world, exterior issues affecting individual staff or whole departments can certainly hinder or even prevent others from being able to complete their work. This is why industry experts keep talking about ‘company culture’ and neglecting it can at best stifle growth, but at worst it can sign the death knell for the organisation. Regardless of how talented employees may be, if they are not motivated to contribute towards the organisation, then those skills will ultimately go to waste.

The concept of workplace culture encompasses a variety of different factors which are intertwined with the ideology of the company itself. One element which can often be overlooked by business owners is the design of the workplace. Nobody likes staring at a blank white wall all day and clinical studies have revealed that furniture, paint colour and even how big your windows are can all have an impact on how your employees operate. For some context, be sure to have a look at the Steelcase study in collaboration with research firm Ipsos which revealed how approximately only 11% of people were highly satisfied with their office environment.

Open Offices Look Great But Are Highly Impractical:

Office design has come quite a long way from the cubicles that used to litter offices fifty years ago and now the most common designs are geared towards collaboration and teamwork, rather than restricting staff to small boxes. The reality is that office design needs to strike a balance between the two. This means treading the line between creating an environment which is open enough to allow staff to communicate both professionally and socially, but also have room for privacy so that they can focus when deadlines are encroaching.

The solution is the office screen. An evolution of the office cubicle, these are designed to divide and distinguish open offices, while maintaining the open office appeal. They are no longer made out of a thin piece of cardboard either, as modern designs increasingly feature acoustic foam, pinnable boards or a variety of other accessories to enable them to be more adaptable within the overall design of the office space. If the space is available, then an ideal arrangement incorporates professional and personal working areas, offering space for employees to focus when working and another to let off steam.

Natural Light is More Important Than You May Think:

Okay, many of us are not blessed with an office which is surrounded by large glass panes which allow natural light to immerse the room, but there are lots of reasons to make the most of the light sources that you do have. In the same way that sunshine tends to boost our mood while rain can bring it down, natural light influences many physical aspects of ourselves which you probably did not realise. While sunlight provides us with vitamin D, a lack of it can also lead to issues with sleep efficiency, sleep quality, daytime dysfunction and sleep disturbances. Summarised into one, that means a lack of natural sunlight can severely hamper that one period in the day which people take to rest. Interruptions to this can lead to high stress levels, exhaustion and an ever-growing list of mental conditions caused by poor sleep.

So how can this be achieved considering open offices are also bad for employees? Well, Glazed Office Screens can be designed with this in mind, by incorporating a Perspex panel, these can be located in crucial locations by light sources to ensure the environment can look towards the outside world throughout the day.

Even The Colour Counts…

So, you’re finally committing to upgrading the design of your office and it is time to get rid of the grey scale appearance that encapsulates the whole room. However, even if your logo is pink, that is not a reason to buy all pink furniture and paint the walls the same to boot. No really, please don’t! Colour is great for subtly influencing people’s mood, and while you will want to introduce your brand in there somewhere, there are a variety of ways of incorporating colour without making the office look like Van Gogh’s pallet. One idea we have loved to see being incorporated with office screens, is them being used with different colours to indicate different departments. Yellow helps the creative juices flow, so it goes well with marketing teams, while red evokes passion which has made it a great addition to sales teams. Whatever industry you work in, be sure to research which colour can benefit your staff the most.

If you’ve been thinking that office screens could be exactly what is required to upgrade the office, then we have a team of advisors on hand who can provide more information on the various ranges that we manufacture. To get in touch please call 01733 394941 or send an e-mail to sales@rapind.com.

Morton Vision Top Screens

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2016 Blogs

How to Create Professional Reception Areas

Reception areas are the first impression that potential clients and partners are going to have when entering your building. Even though they are likely to have prior experience with what your company does, this is often the very first time that they will experience what your organisation is all about, which is why creating a professional waiting area is important in making a positive initial impact. When people arrive, they will be expecting to find a clean space with a welcome desk clearly marked, but finding the balance between a white box with a desk in the middle and a genuinely inviting reception area can be a bit trickier.

Perfecting the design for a professional reception area will require an environment which is sustainable, comfortable and engaging. It is important to remember to allow the company’s identity to flow through into the reception area and this includes colour schemes, relevant magazines for browsing and even televisions if you have promotional content which you would like to show. Not only does this allow guests a detailed insight into your company, but it can also have a positive influence on their initial impressions.

Allow Natural Light to Flow Through:

Interior design can be quite tricky, but as any homeowner will know, there is no better light source than natural light. Now, I can appreciate that not every reception area is equipped with large glass panes or even a skylight, but that is no reason why natural light cannot be allowed in to brighten the mood. If you need to get the most from the small source of light that you have, then consider introducing Glazed Office Screens, which allow open spaces to be separated without compromising on natural light. Ultimately, at the minimum this will reduce the electricity bill as lights will not be required to be on 24/7.

Guests Like to Feel at Home:

While there is a fine line between a professional reception area and a lounge, there are lots of elements that can be taken to enhance the profile of your environment. For example, sofas can enhance not only the design of the area, but they may also come as a welcome relief for guests who have had to travel a long distance to visit you. Furthermore, plants are a simple yet effective way of adding detail to the environment without making it feel like the space is cluttered. They’ll also do their bit to help the environment outside of the office!

Take the Opportunity to Engage with Them:

Before you get the opportunity to sit down with guests, they will have already begun to formulate an opinion on your organisation before they even get into the meeting room. Even though they may only spend a few minutes in the waiting area, it is a great opportunity to occupy them with some of your promotional material or even demonstrate your knowledge of the industry that you work in. A great way of achieving this especially when you have promotional videos waiting to be used, is to introduce TV screens, providing a snapshot of the products and services that your organisation provides. Alternatively, laying out magazines (that are in date!) regarding industry news on a table gives off the signal that you understand the industry around you.

If you are looking into re-designing your reception area and think office screens could be the ideal way to make the most of your space, then please give us a call on 01733 394941 or send an e-mail to sales@rapind.com and our team of advisors will be able to advise on which will be the most effective in your space.

Morton Vision Top Screens

Categories
2016 Blogs

Which Industries Are Finding Out the Benefits of Dynamic Training Rooms?

The benefits of training courses are constantly being re-affirmed in the media and through studies. Whether your company chooses to keep sessions in house or outsource them to affiliated training courses, work is constantly being done to improve and enhance these so that attendees can take away as much information as possible. It is not just the content which is at the top of the list of priorities either as recent studies have shone a light on what were originally considered minor aspects, but have been found to have a profound effect on how students learn. Regardless of the age group or the industry, pushing training courses towards being more interactive has begun to demonstrate why it is not ‘what you learn’ but ‘how you learn it’.

For many industries, the traditional lecture style approach is mundane and does more to stifle learning than encourage it. Certainly, in most areas of work where the job is more hands on, it is far more appropriate to re-create a situation whereby attendees can learn on the job with the safety net being that it is not a live environment. Therefore, our clients have increasingly been proposing the question; is it possible to re-create these environments? With a bit of creativity, we are increasingly able to create dynamic training rooms for a variety of industries, whereby learners are placed into replicated environments in order to help them get a feel for the physical conditions, which in the past were impossible to get a sense of.

The ideal setting for this is environments which can be simply replicated through graphic design. One such way is in medical environments such as hospitals, clinics or even medical vehicles whereby portable screens can be adapted to replicate these surroundings. In the past, we have worked with clients to develop environments such as these in order to create a feel of the environment for trainees, allowing them to learn where certain things are and get a taste for how a life-like scenario would play out.

Similarly, the same concept can be applied to other emergency services. In the past, it had become a necessity to take vehicles out of commission in order for training to take place. However, by investing in dynamic training rooms, this no longer has to happen and ultimately helps to save a portion of the budget longer term. Services such as fire departments or the police are able to create immersive surroundings which can be utilised in more interactive scenarios which ultimately give trainees a more hands-on experience.

Portable dividers have far more potential to be used to create dynamic training environments. Their versatile nature means they can be customised in order to adapt to different spaces and a variety of courses. With the ability to include fabric display boards with high pressure laminate boards and printed boards, this opens up the opportunity for them to be utilised as portable classrooms, enabling training rooms to be set up in a matter of minutes. Regardless of the industry, this ability allows any company to create immersive training spaces almost instantly.

Printed_Flexi-Screen_mobile_partioning_003_with_model

Categories
2016 Blogs

Top 4 Ways of Enhancing Training Courses with Portable Dividers

As organisations look for more affordable and effectives ways of enhancing training courses, we are beginning to see a trend of more industries turning to portable room dividers to create dynamic and immersive courses. As manufacturers, it is possible to adapt and tailor portable dividers so they can achieve much more than just separating open space, but instead, are customised to enhance the training course itself. Regardless of your industry, training courses are increasingly geared towards interactive experiences which require the learner to engage with the content and portable dividers are offering a unique way of achieving this.

  1. Creating Training Spaces:

As opposed to being used as a divider, the portable screens can be combined together to establish portable rooms. Rather than the considerable expense of creating a permanent training area, it is far more cost-effective to establish a comprehensive setting which is geared towards helping learner’s development. These portable dividers can be tailored with a variety of materials to enhance the course itself, such as a pinnable fabric, high pressure laminate or even printed panels which open up the opportunity to re-create active environments using graphic design.

Designed to be portable, screens such as these can be deployed when required, allowing the organisation to make the most of communal open spaces without having to create dedicated areas for training. Not only is this a substantial economic benefit for the company, but it is also a far more viable option in the context that not all training courses run all year round. This means the space can then be utilised for other activities or courses when the training course is not taking place.

  1. Backdrops:

The variety of materials available with portable dividers makes them equally suitable for being established as a backdrop for training courses. In the same vein of portable training rooms, these backdrops can be rolled out when necessary and then neatly packed away when not in use. Whether they are used as a pinnable screen to display training content or incorporate whiteboards into the panel, each can be customised with additional information and details which move training courses towards a more interactive experience.

  1. Open Plan Environment Dividers:

The core concept behind the portable dividers is that they are designed to help organisations make the most of large open areas. Whether this is a gymnasium or a hall, portable dividers excel at creating privacy and building more conclusive environments to provide an area which helps learners to concentrate. These can be deployed in a matter of minutes, enabling the space to be used as a dynamic environment which is set up to incorporate multiple functions, saving both on space, but on revenue also.

  1. Mobile Classrooms:

Budget restrictions are a frequent issue for smaller organisations such as schools and portable dividers are proving to be an effective tool in creating mobile classrooms. Incorporating the high pressure laminate with the panels means they can quickly and easily be used to create effective and recognisable areas. They benefit significantly from being able to create private spaces, which reduce the number of visual and audible distractions, thereby creating an area which helps learners to focus.

Flexi Room Fire Safety


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