We know that summer is unreliable in the UK but the hottest days always seem to coincide when people are at work. It’s easy for employees to get distracted from the task in hand if they’re feeling the heat – it makes us restless and our minds wander to where else we’d like to be.
While daydreaming of a deckchair on the beach sounds innocuous, research has actually found that 29% of workers spend between 10 and 30 minutes each day not working due to an uncomfortable temperature – that’s a huge productivity loss when multiplied by each worker over the summer months.
Here are MPL’s hot tips for creating a cool office environment this summer:
1. Install air conditioning - despite air conditioning being around for years, many offices have resisted installing this cooling system as they assume it’s a disruptive job. At MPL Interiors, we can install office air conditioning with the minimum of fuss – as a stand-alone project or as part of a wider commercial interior office design and refurbishment project.
2. Screen the sun using blinds - blinds are an essential tool in keeping out the sun’s glare, which can also make looking at a screen more difficult as well as increasing the inside temperature. The beauty of windows blinds for offices is their ability to be lowered incrementally as the sun’s position changes and raised again when conditions improve.
3. Make hydration a priority – water coolers not only provide a place to catch up with colleagues, but they are also essential when it comes to encouraging staff to keep drinking. A drinks station on every floor will also help people stay hydrated and MPL can install a glass-fronted drinks fridge so you can make an inviting display of cans, bottles, and cartons.
4. Change your office layout – sometimes where an office desk is positioned can make all the difference. The temperature will be higher if desks are too close to a window that doesn’t open, are in the direct line of the sun or are situated next to electrical items, such as photocopiers. We have commercial office space design ideas so office desks are in the optimum position for more comfortable working environments.
5. Buy a round of ice lollies – it’s the smallest of gestures that can have the biggest impact. Something as simple as buying an ice lolly for every worker is enough to break a sultry stupor and pep up lethargic workers.
Ask MPL Interiors for advice about staying cool in your office this summer.
