Make people feel at home. ABW offices sometimes feel like furniture showrooms with clean desks and designer furniture. To make ABW offices less sterile and more welcoming, consider the use of soft fabrics and rugs, a diversity of furniture solutions, plants, and cabinets or wall space where teams can place photos and other paraphernalia. Provide IT perfectionThe whole ABW concept is built on the idea that technology makes people footloose. So make sure that it does. Invest in lightweight but powerful laptops, plentiful power sockets, seamless networks, workstations with double screens, standardized docking stations, intuitive collaboration tools and an excellent helpdesk. Avoid design gimmicksABW office interiors often incorporate playful design features intended to convey the notion that the new office is more casual and cooler than the old one. There is a certain relevance in that, but dont overdo it. Design gimmicks such as slides and beanbags quickly lose their gloss and become unused obstructions.Keep it cleanThe Covid-19 outbreak has pushed hygiene to the forefront of employee concerns. In terms of design, this means that you should avoid closely-packed open-plan work areas. Furthermore, workplace design should allow for easy cleaning. Think of easy-to-clean finishes and furniture, and ready access to cleaning/disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizers.Q&APrimo Orpilla, Principal, Studio O+AMies van Rohe said God is in the details. Does that alsoNoise and a lack of privacy are frequently heard apply to workplace design? complaints. How do you deal with that? Design intent is more effective when done well. So yes,This issue seems to vary between companies and it is in the detail. Have a good concept, execute it well,generations. Younger workers have a different sense and peoples experience will be more compelling. Youof what is appropriate than older workers, also in terms dont want this experience to be influenced negativelyof visual noise (movement in ones peripheral vision). by arbitrary design features or poor detailing. Workplace design can help here, providing different places for individuals with different work habits, so that ABW offices feature a lot of social spaces. How do youeverybody can find a suitable workspace.design a successful social space?Social spaces should be carefully considered in theirDo desks still matter in contemporary office design? placement in relation to the flow of people. The numberYes, but we should probably redefine the desk. Work can of these spaces is important as well, as you want tobe done in many postures or places in the office. So the maintain a degree of specialness. And then theredesk can take many different forms It can be a place for are practicalities such as devices for charging andsitting or for standing; a classic workstation, but also a whiteboards to make sure that spaces are useful.coffee table or a tablet arm on a lounge chair.86