Six Office Furniture Solutions for Limited Spaces

#1 – Compact Standing & Movable Desks


Standing Height Adjustable Desks:
Anyone with a cramped office space with barely enough room to stand in might just think about standing while they work as an option.

 

Veridesk makes a Standing Height Adjustable Desk that is a freestanding all-in-one replacement for the standard old bulky office desk.

 

Its modern design not only looks great in any home or office, but also has a wide working area for the smallest working spaces.

 

The companies standing desks easily adjust from sitting to standing in seconds, without having to deal with tedious cranks, or hazardous electric standing desks with inconvenient cords to have to deal with in a cramped office.
standing desk

Movable Desks

 

For a more standard desk with modern innovation, versatility and convenience, Comfort Products Small Computer Desk come with big perks, such as double Storage Drawers, Printer
Stand, Pullout Keyboard Tray, and even Book Shelves, all on convenient wheels.

movable desk

 

#2 – Portable Accordion Room Dividers

 

Portable Accordion Room dividers come in all shapes, sizes, colors, designs, and prices. They are a great way to give a one room office with two workers sharing a small room some privacy and boundaries.
These products are innovative and accommodating to any small office’s needs. They are portable and can be used for private conferencing/meetings.
Portable Accordion Room Dividers allows the user to control what the person on the other side of the video teleconferencing line sees – Adding professionalism and privacy.
They can be made of cloth, plastic, wood, and fit any decor and price range. They are a great way to add versatility and portability while giving employees their own designated working areas, without the old fashioned set cubicle.

room dividers

#3 – Floor to Ceiling Shelving


Even the most cramped office space has to have at least one free wall to utilize. By installing Floor to Ceiling Shelving, solves all the clutter of a small office by consolidated it into one area.

 

Just think about it – One stop shopping for all the usual scattered assorted office tools, manuals, catalogs, work samples, etc. Organized and exactly where you know to find it.

 

Floor to ceiling shelves are not just for the library, or millionaire’s closets. They are an efficient way to open up vitally needed space in a cramped work or home office.
Costs vary depending on materials used, layout plans, and square footage. Whether picked up at IKEA, or installed professionally, the cost is well worth the extra space it opens up in a cramped working area, not to mention the peace of mind it delivers in repelling clutter.
shelving

 

#4 – Ceiling Storage Hangers
Some people may not be familiar with Ceiling Storage Hangers, it sounds like stashing your clutter away in your false ceiling, which I’m sure has been contemplated by some in desperation.
Ceiling Storage Hangers, hang from the ceiling of course, and look like an upside down table that someone affixed there, but they are an efficient and cost effective way to utilize unused space.
They cost anywhere from approx. $45.00 from Walmart for a 45 inch by 45 inch unit, to a $129.00 for a 4 foot by 8 foot unit from Sears, so the price is within everyone’s budgets and needs.
People are more familiar with these Ceiling Storage Hangers in their garage, but there are certainly no laws about utilizing their convenience and low cost solutions to storage in a small office environment.
storage

 

#5 – Mounted Computer Monitors

 

Mounting your computer monitor with an adjustable swinging bracket instantly solves numerous working area space problems on your office desk.

 

Just think how much extra room you would have to work with if that computer monitor was out of your way and hanging conveniently still in full view.
An added plus is that it then becomes adjustable and can be brought in closer, or set away when not in use, giving you plenty of room to spread work out across your desk.

 

They are cheap, easy to find online and any modern flat screen TV has the capability to be both mounted with universal swinging brackets, and computer compatible.

 

Hello modern office world – Goodbye old clunky in the way bulky computer monitor taking up half the space on your desk.
mounted monitor

 

 

 

#6 – Recessed Stackable Filling Cabinets.

Does your cramped office space have an equally small closet or alcove, waiting to be put to better use? Why not consider turning it into a Recessed Filling Cabinet.

 

By taking closet doors off the hinges of an underused closet, one can purchase
economical, stackable, and smaller filling cabinets in order to open up more room by removing those in the way old giant metal filing cabinet monstrosities.
The best part about Stackable Filling Cabinets is that they come in all shapes, sizes, colors, elegant or just plain cheap plastic that does the trick.
This allows a great amount of flexibility both design wise, and financially. They are easy to transport and install, and a great way to get bulky office furniture out of your way.
Recessing your filling situation is a great way to open up a small office area and give a great stylish and professional look to it, at an economical price.
storage2

 

There are plenty of imaginative and innovative ways to turn that small office area into a clutter free, stylish and modern efficient working space.
It is also not as expensive as one thinks. Whether it is appeasing your cramped office employees at the workplace, or pleasing yourself in a small home office in order to make your workspace more workable. The costs and efforts are well worth it in the
long run, for both you and your workers.

New Office Design Trends Are Taking the Workplace by Storm

2016 trend

When it comes to trends, the office is just like the home.

Designers the world over pitch in their ideas and innovations with vigor. And when the New Year rolls around as it has in 2016, the calendar is practically bursting with predictions about office design trends.

We’ve done some research and come up with some of the trendiest nuances in the 2016 workplace.

Trend #1: Tuck Away Those Unsightly Wires

You may or may not have noticed how many wires are crawling around your office. Think about what it takes to power one workstation: a cord for your computer, a cord for a lamp, a cord for a monitor, a cord for a desk phone, a cord for a printer and cords for whichever other devices need juice during the day.

What results is a jungle of wiring that, visually speaking, is an annoyance. This past January, Fast Company included hiding wires as one of the top trends for 2016.

We think this is a great idea, particularly because many offices are switching to an open floor plan. Partitions used to hide the tangle of cables and cords, but those walls are coming down and office managers are looking for ways to hide the wires now out in the open.

Trend #2: Big Offices Go to Employees Who Spend Big Chunks of Time in the Workplace

This interesting trend comes to us by way of the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) Institute. Believe it or not, there are offices around the country who are taking a radically different approach to the allocation of office space.

CCIM gives the example of one business that ran out of office space. Top executives at the firm decided to take smaller offices because they were only in the building about 10% of their day. The big spaces went to engineers who were doing crucial work and needed to utilize larger spaces to accommodate their constant in-office tasks.

Trend #3: Multiuse Workspaces with Customizable Desks

As you’ve probably read, new companies are saying goodbye to traditional office designs and opting for a more fluid space. Not every business has jumped onto this trend, but there are enough out there to make this movement a concrete movement in 2016.

The concept here is simple. Tech companies, in particular are cloud oriented, which means it’s not necessarily a rule that they have to be tethered to one computer. With that in mind, an Officing Today article pointed out, many early-adopting offices are choosing adjustable-height workstations that can adapt to nearly any user. Workers bounce in and out of different workstations.

“Offices will feel more like college campuses with an open, sharing mentality,” the article notes. Like we said, this type of office plan isn’t for everyone.

Trend #4: The Community Table

Think about the last time you sat down for dinner with a group of friends or family. Assuming the meal went well, that communal atmosphere probably made for a fond memory.

Fast Company says this sense of community is at the forefront of new office culture. Therefore, employees are keen on the idea of sitting at a large table with their colleagues rather than spending the day in their cubicle.

For some of us, the idea of a cubicle isn’t so bad. We can decorate the space however we’d like; it becomes an expression of who we are. But for others, that sense of expression is best portrayed at a communal work table where they feel a sense of connection with the people around them.

Trend #5: The Great Outdoors Are Coming Inside

The possibilities here are literally endless. Offices are incorporating outdoor elements into their workspaces. Chartboost, a San Francisco-based company, uses picnic tables in their work area. In one photo we saw, there was a mini putting green rolled out on the floor right next to what looks like a pine picnic table. This setup definitely brings new meaning to “a walk in the park.”

But this trend is more than just fun and games. Other companies have taken a more refined approach, implementing exposed, finished concrete floors in their office or installing peaceful, patio-style fireplaces in their workspace.

What All This Means for Your Office

Like we mentioned earlier, trends aren’t rules; what works for one office may not work for another.

Some employees prefer working in a cubicle, while others want an open workplace. Both of these philosophies are valid, yet the each require a different style of planning and, in many cases, completely different types of furniture.

Because we keep tabs on what trends are popping up, we’re equipped to provide your office with just about any needs it has in planning and executing an office-design strategy. Our suppliers manufacture a variety of styles and price ranges, which means we have a lot of flexibility to adapt our planning process to your office’s requirements.

Contact us to learn more about how we can help you plan the office that best fits your workplace’s personality and needs.

Remanufactured Vs. Used Cubicles: What’s the Difference?

reman cubes

Remanufactured Vs. Used Cubicles: What’s the Difference?

Are you thinking of buying some new office cubicles, but the cost is enough to make you change your mind? Consider buying remanufactured or used office cubicles instead. Remanufactured office cubicles were originally used, but they have been stripped of their old looking surfaces, and refurbished with custom new ones.

Remanufactured Office Cubicles are more expensive than used cubicles, but they provide much more customization and flexibility. Companies that specialize in refurbishing used furniture usually build the cubicles on an as needed basis, customized by the purchaser.By companies piecing out old used cubicles in order to make “like new” ones, the customer is able to personally build the cubicle in the way that they want – Not just stuck choosing from what is left in stock.

This is why remanufactured cubicles have caught on over purchasing used, discount “as is” office cubicles from a clearance house. Choosing remanufactured, used office cubicles, allow the consumer much more choices and financial leeway in the design process, especially when one is redecorating an old office space.

Remanufactured cubicles offer fully customized configurations that used cubicles cannot, such as fabric colors, and laminate choices, making it hard to tell the difference between an expensive new cubicle and a cost effective refurbished one.

Green furniture is still the #1 office trend of 2016, with the nation’s environmental concerns trending into mainstream, and awareness over deforestation and the impacts of climate change leading to consumers demanding more “Green” office furniture. Remanufacturing companies rightfully point out that re-using and refurbishing old office cubicles is not only better for the environment by reducing landfill waste, but it creates jobs,  and is easier on the consumer’s pocketbook as well.

Remanufactured office cubicles are made using an environmentally friendly process, in which they take all the used pieces and then strips them down; recycling any reusable materials, repairing, reupholstering, and repainting the core components, thus reducing the nation’s carbon office imprint on the planet. Volatile organic compounds (VOC) are byproducts of the manufacturing process in the making of new office cubicles. These VOC’s go straight up into the atmosphere endangering all of us.

Remanufacturing used office cubicles reduces the amount of toxic VOC’s that are released into the Earth’s atmosphere: Helping to fight global warming, acid rain, and other devastating effects of air pollution. A major plus to going remanufactured, is that it can help your company achieve LEED certification from the United States Green Building Council. This certification is a great marketing tool in today’s green friendly environment.

Used Office Cubicles are just that, pre-owned and sold in an as-is condition. They may be cheaper than both new and refurbished office cubicles, but can defeat the purpose of redecorating, and/or, can just make a new office space look old. Used cubicles are normally made available due to company moves, bankruptcies, or office building remodels. Furniture liquidation companies will usually buy these in lots, clean them up, and then re-sell them.

One of the benefits of buying used office cubicles is that with over a decade of office closures due to the past great recession, it is still a buyers’ market for used office furniture, some even barely used. This can be a much cheaper route to take than buying new or remanufactured. Companies often buy used office cubicles for value and quality at bargain prices.

Due to the fact that new cubicles lose value daily in depreciation and normal wear and tear, this is why so many companies prefer to explore the used option first. Sometimes discount stores sell new furniture at very low prices, but the quality of their merchandise is dubious at best. These types of places are usually fly-by-night and shouldn’t be trusted.

Just like when buying a used car, with used “certified pre-owned” cubicles, the consumer should always use a cautious buyer beware mentality when considering used office cubicles. When buying used from a reputable dealer, one can scoop up some great deals on used upper-end cubicles made by companies such as Genesis, HON, Mirage, Maxon, and Packard, rather than cheap knockoffs.

What are the price differences between used and remanufactured office cubicles?  

Most companies that sell used office cubicles claim that they can save you 70 to 80 percent on buying used instead of new at retail.

Remanufactured cubicle prices can vary due to the customized dimensions of the cubicle, the types of finishes and fabrics used, and whether the cubicle comes with extra features such as cabinets, bookshelves, and task lights.

Used office cubicles are normally sold as sets, due to them rarely being sold individually rather than in big auctioned lots. This fact gives the crafty consumer the advantage of haggling when ordering large amounts of used cubicles by demanding generous volume discounts as a “deal maker.”

Used or remanufactured cubicles offer a considerable savings over new cubicles. According to CostOwl.com, one can expect to spend $300 to $800 per cubicle for used or remanufactured ones, rather than from $1,000 to $3,000 if they purchased them new.

Remanufactured cubicles will cost a little more than used cubicles sold “as is,” depending on the materials that were used in refurbishing them, but unlike most used cubicles, they will look like they are brand new.

One thing that has been clarified about Remanufactured vs. Used Cubicles is that the benefits of buying either of the above stated cubicles far outweigh the benefits of simply buying new and costly ones.

Before even getting into the economic reasons why one should buy used or refurbished, instead of new, let us list the environmental benefits of used and remanufactured first.

Deforestation, air pollution, overcapacity landfills, global warming, these are all unavoidable bi-products of manufacturing or buying new office cubicles rather than recycling them.

It just makes good green business sense to consider easing these burdens on the Earth caused by over manufacturing, by simply responsibly choosing the remanufacturing of readily available used office materials instead. Saving more than two thirds off by purchasing used or remanufactured office cubicles, is an obvious added business plus, along with good public relations, and good old fashioned cost effective purchasing.

In an overly competitive 2016 business world where “Cash is King” – Going office “Green” by going Used or Remanufactured, adds another jewel to the company crown.