Establishing long-term and stable relationships with partners is key to success

Matevž Borovnik, Country Manager of Delight Slovenia, began his professional journey with Delight Office Solution when the company was first established in Slovenia. Over the years, he actively participated in the development of the company’s vision and witnessed its growth from a small team to a dynamic group of over 15 experts.

Before joining Delight, he gained invaluable experience in the construction and project business sectors. Carrying with him a wealth of knowledge and skills, he continued to develop them in tandem with the company’s growth. From the very beginning, a core of the current team of approximately 15 members has been part of Delight, demonstrating a remarkable continuity in our workforce.

The team in Slovenia is amazing! Longtime members of the Delight team, not only possess extensive experience and expertise in their respective fields but also understand the essence of working in the company and the business in general. Additionally, they have a keen sense of aesthetics and beauty, which greatly contributes to their work. All these qualities make them invaluable members of the team, fostering a productive and inspiring collaboration.

Although Delight Office Solution operates in five countries across the region, with expansion plans, each country operates in a unique way based on the market’s needs.
Moreover, Borovnik claims that the Slovenian market itself has tremendous potential.

The Slovenian market is unique in that it hosts many companies that combine both production and office spaces. These are not just business premises but entire companies. For decades, many of these companies have not invested in their office spaces but rather focused on industry, machinery, and innovation. They prioritized research and development to enhance their business, making Slovenia one of the leading countries in Europe in terms of successful and recognized manufacturing companies. Now is the time for the modernization of office spaces, presenting a significant market potential for Delight.

Another opportunity that Borovnik sees lies in establishing long-term and stable relationships with partners such as Steelcase, Interface, and Framery, which represent a winning combination for every successfully implemented project. In recent years on the Slovenian market, special focus has been placed on Framery’s product line, the world’s leading soundproof pods and booths. They have executed remarkable projects involving Framery in the past, and there are more projects lined up for the future, anticipate a successful collaboration with this excellent partner. Additionally, in the last two years, they have resumed business with their old partner, Interface, and believe that their collaboration will remain successful for a long time.

As the business has developed, so has the team, and with plans for future expansion, the logical next step is a change in the space where Delight operates in Slovenia. We have been in the same showroom for 10 years, which, while charming and meeting their needs, is becoming insufficient. We need a larger showroom and more extensive spaces to showcase their offerings comprehensively to clients. The goal is to make ourselves known to those who haven’t heard of us, emphasizing why we are leaders in the industry at first glance.

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The team is the key to success

Even during his studies, Daniel Told, the Country Manager of Croatia, began his career in sales, which has been thriving and developing for almost 10 years. His previous positions and the successes he achieved have led him to be at the helm of our company’s sales team in Croatia today. He started his sales career as an agent at a real estate agency and later continued his sales career in an international company where he received an award for the highest increase in sales. Additionally, for two consecutive years, he was named the top seller with the most new clients opened, both years, competing with over 100 other salespeople. His journey at Delight is very interesting because he built his career within the company gradually.

When I came to Delight, my position was a Workplace Consultant, and at that time, I already knew that my arrival at Delight was a significant investment in knowledge, career, and my future. Effort, hard work, and perseverance were the guidelines I followed and continue to follow today. After that, I was promoted to the position of Senior Workplace Consultant, and then to the position of Sales Manager. The next position is the one I hold now – Country Manager for Croatia. My journey at Delight has been long, and I took it step by step, familiarizing myself with all the processes and the entire sales business before taking the lead of the team, which I consider crucial for personal development, as well as for the development and progress of the team I now lead!

Communication is the key to sales

After completing my undergraduate studies in economics, I considered continuing my education with a postgraduate degree in the same field, but I ultimately decided to take a different direction and completed an additional two years of specialized studies in communication management. I was interested in communication because sales is precisely that – communicating with people. For successful sales, it’s essential to know how to talk to people, listen to them, and ask them the right questions. Working in sales provides endless opportunities and freedom, and it’s great if you know how to leverage it. In that case, sales work offers room for growth, and the sky’s the limit.

Around me, the team changed and was recreated, and now that we have slightly fewer than 20 members in the team, I believe that this team is using its full potential, and we are very strong. The Croatian market has developed significantly, and we expect the continuation of that growth and development in the future. In the coming years, there will be an expansion in Zagreb! At this moment, there is a shortage of business buildings in the capital of Croatia, and as they soon begin construction, we see an opportunity to expand our business even further. We are already working on numerous projects that will happen in the coming years, and we are confident that this sales segment will significantly contribute to our business growth.

Delight has top-notch products and incredible versatility, allowing us to respond to client’s needs and offer exactly what they require – I like to say that it’s impossible not to sell something, given that we have everything!

Although we have completed large and successful projects all over Croatia, in Split, Zadar, Osijek, and Istria, most of our business is based in Zagreb. Since our showroom is in the very heart of Zagreb’s business district, a significant number of our clients come from there. Croatia is a tourist destination, and there is enormous potential in the Adriatic, especially in the HORECA segment. Part of our business strategy is to grow in that market where we have already established ourselves as a reliable partner for our clients.

When work is a pleasure, life is a joy!

The Croatian market is large and offers various opportunities, and high salaries – if you are a good and hardworking employee, you will quickly find a job! Considering the opportunities available, the biggest challenge I face is keeping the team together and motivating them to stay and grow together. We communicate daily and spend a lot of time together. Although I consider our sales team very strong, each of us faces various challenges, but we strive to support each other. The team does the job, but the team also needs to be worked on! Delight’s sales team in Croatia is a real team, and that’s our response to market challenges.

Considering these challenges, we try to attract and retain people not only through better business conditions and benefits but also by valuing their opinions. People, as social beings, need to know that they are part of a community, feel good, and that their work contributes to the growth and development of the team and, consequently, the business. When people within the company are satisfied, the results are inevitable!

Our goal is to achieve a new record every year compared to previous results, and with a stable and strong team, we are working to increase it! We are making good progress towards making 2023 a record year for Delight in Croatia. We have announced significant projects for the period ahead – some of them are existing clients we have been working with for years and who always return to Delight, thanks to us and our partners – Steelcase, Interface, and Deko.

In addition to expanding our showroom a few months ago, we want to continue to grow and have plans to increase our team and turnover! We are growing as a company, both locally and regionally. Growth is planned, foreseen, and achieved! On one occasion, our CSO, Zoran, mentioned a sentence that I often quote, and I truly mean it word for word – When the work is a pleasure, life is a joy!

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Delight’s unique approach propels constant collective development

Ivan Čanović is the new Country Manager at Delight Office Solution for the Montenegro market. He is a husband, father, and a master’s degree holder in economics, having earned his higher education degrees at universities in Podgorica and Vienna.
He began his professional career at the Faculty of Economics in Podgorica, working as a teaching assistant for courses in Organizational Behaviour and Market Communication. He continued his career in an international company that also operates in the Montenegrin market, where he had the opportunity to lead the firm and contribute to its growth and business development.
Ivan first learned about Delight a few years ago from a friend and is now the Country Manager for our company in the Montenegro market, with incredible plans.

Achieving Better Results Together
I first heard about Delight from a friend in Belgrade. His experiences as a client were excellent, and after conducting further research, I realized that Delight is indeed a credible and reliable company in its field of operation. Through analyzing the local market and informal discussions with businesspeople in Montenegro, I concluded that despite its successful regional operations and years of delivering top-notch design and quality turnkey projects, Delight has not yet fully tapped into its potential in the Montenegrin market. It’s clear that Montenegro will be a bigger focus for the company in the near future.

After spending a decade in my previous company, initially as a sales manager and since 2018 as an executive director, I felt that I had reached certain limits and it was time for a new challenge. Delight seemed like the perfect place for me to apply my acquired knowledge and experience, acquire new skills, take on a new challenge, leave a personal mark, and contribute to the team and the company’s business fulfillment.

The Direction of Delight’s Development in Montenegro
What I particularly appreciate about Delight is that it’s not a company engaged in traditional sales but strives to improve the quality of life for the employees of its clients. What Delight does is a completely different dimension – it’s a holistic, sophisticated approach that allows me as an individual, as well as Delight as a company, to further develop, constantly explore and find new and better solutions, and provide the local and regional markets with a modern perspective on this business segment.

I also started with the assumption that a company focused on improving the lives of its clients’ employees would certainly also care about the satisfaction of its own employees.

I am confident that with globalization, digitalization, and a wide range of new business opportunities, it is becoming increasingly challenging to attract and retain top talent. Delight, with the business segment it represents, certainly offers a range of tools that can help companies gain a comparative advantage in this regard. This is the experience that sets us apart from competitors in the market in which we operate, and it should be leveraged for further business development.

When it comes to HoReCa, Montenegro’s potential is truly significant!
Montenegro can offer something that very few countries in the world can – the ability to ski on a mountain and swim in the sea on the same May day is truly impressive! Regarding tourism, Montenegro has a vast untapped potential that nature has bestowed upon it, and I believe that in the period ahead, there will be significant progress in harnessing this potential.

The development and progress of tourism go hand in hand with the development of the hotel industry. In recent years, hotels of renowned global chains have opened, but smaller boutique hotels and condo complexes have also begun to be built. I believe that the growth and development of the HoReCa sector in Montenegro open a new dimension of potential for our company.

In addition to clients in the hospitality sector, multinational and rapidly growing IT companies, which are increasingly present in Montenegro, are clients that we should also aim to serve in the future. Alongside this, there is a growing need for business centers and co-working spaces, and we will certainly be there to support this development and bring their ideas regarding ambiance and organizational culture to life.

Our primary goal in the months ahead should be to make our brand, ideas, and portfolio even more recognizable! The opening of our new showroom will be accompanied by a special event, which we are carefully planning. We want to thoroughly introduce all interested parties in the market to our wide range of offerings, the quality, and reliability of our services, and provide them with the opportunity to test a part of our product range through the showroom.

I am personally a strong optimist when it comes to Delight’s future, and I firmly believe that our company in Montenegro is entering a period of dynamic growth.

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We proved that we can deal with significant challenges!

Radoslav Milosheski is one of the youngest employees at Delight Office Solution company throughout the region, and the youngest country manager! The experience Radoslav gained after finishing college led him to this responsible, and challenging position at Delight North Macedonia, where he has been for over a year. After his time as an office consultant at a corporate real estate company, as he reached a certain level, he needed a new challenge. Thanks to the job he was in, which he successfully carried out, he became familiar with the real estate market as well as Delight. Therefore, the logical next step is for him to become a part of our company!

Knowledge and energy are the formula for a successful team

I lead an amazing team of 16 people that operates seamlessly in all conditions. There are several reasons I consider crucial for the success of our team and our company in the Macedonian market. One of them is that our team is a blend of experienced individuals with years of company service and younger members. Some selflessly share their knowledge and some are eager to listen and learn something new. When these elements come together, knowledge and energy combine, which, in my opinion, form the formula for a successful team.

I believe that our energy is what colleagues from the region primarily associate with our team. Beyond excellent collaboration, we are also friends outside of work – there is great chemistry among the team members!

Market in North Macedonia

The market in North Macedonia is quite specific due to its limitations, but we are moving in the direction of constructing such buildings and having investors who want to build such structures. The previous year was quite good for both Delight and the entire Macedonian market, as we completed several business centers. This led people to acquire new business spaces, renovate them, and expand – considering this, the past year was very dynamic.
I believe that the trend happening in Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia is also coming to us, and an expansion will occur in North Macedonia. The market will develop, and businesses will grow, with companies like ours being the initiators. Companies that emphasize investing in employee conditions and well-being, because when employees are satisfied, they give back to the company with hard and valuable work. The pioneers here were IT and international companies, which have standards they must follow wherever their company is located, and we are here to help them. Call centers invested in their offices, and they have changed the way of operations!

What we do best is listen to our clients!

What people sometimes think is that Delight only sells furniture, and the truth is that furniture sales are just one segment of our business. Delight is a company dedicated to the science of office space! Our biggest distributors, Steelcase, Interface, and DEKO, share their knowledge with us, and we are grateful for that. We use everything we receive from them. It’s worth mentioning that our employees are the only ones in the market with such wide and comprehensive knowledge.

What sets us apart from other companies in the market is that we offer a specific approach for each client because each client has specific needs and challenges, they face. When we talk to a client, we don’t just discuss the warranty of our products, but the benefits of the space they are in – what kinds of zones need to exist, how the space should look, the importance of having areas for concentration, rest, and private conversations.

Additionally, our distinction in the market lies in the fact that our relationship with clients doesn’t end with a sale. After we complete a project, we provide clients with 24/7 after-sales support! Our goal is to ensure that clients still are happy even after the project is completed and that they still are our clients for many years, as we have provided them with top-notch service not just during the purchase but also afterward.
In business, as in life, having a reliable partner is essential, and Delight undoubtedly fulfills that role for all clients who use our services for the next 10 years!

Presenting Philosophy Through the New Showroom!

Although the old showroom was beautifully designed, Delight Holding recognized the potential in the Macedonian market and decided to open a new space in an exclusive location in the city centre, to position ourselves at the heart of events and among all clients. We are now situated in one of the finest business centers in Skopje, in a building that everyone is familiar with.

In our new showroom, we have implemented everything we recommend to our clients is necessary. Our space includes collaboration zones, an area for informal meetings, an oval room for private discussions, as well as offices for teams that require separation from their colleagues. It took an extraordinary effort to bring everything to life, but it was smooth because the entire team participated in the realization!

Judging by the employees’ reactions and behavior, I see that they like the new showroom – it’s more spacious, offers greater privacy, less noise, a different working atmosphere, and employees don’t leave work tired, but rather content. All the necessary elements are present, and there’s scientific evidence of their importance in the workplace. Through our own experience, we’ve realized the process of creating a space according to rules and standards, and our offices will also serve as an example to show clients everything we recommend for their own offices.

From demolition to furnishing

During the earlier period, we’ve had numerous successful projects under our belt. I would like to highlight the Allocate Software project, one of the largest IT companies in Skopje with over 300 employees. We managed the entire project from demolition, renovating old installations, floors, design, and space furnishing, providing turnkey solutions. This project presented significant challenges, from the functional requirements the space needed to meet to the complexity of the building itself where Allocate Software is located.

Following that, we collaborated with another global company, Endava, which occupies over 3,500 square meters. We managed the complete Interface flooring as well as curved glass partitions, a first-of-its-kind installation in the Macedonian market. Despite the challenges, from transporting the glass to North Macedonia to installing it everything went smoothly.

While there are indeed several excellent IT companies in North Macedonia, we were fortunate to have the best companies as our clients! Our collaboration with investors has intensified lately as they recognized the quality of products from our suppliers. Through investor partnerships, we completed two business centers – Palata Kan and Maksim Gorki. This means we installed 16,000 square meters of DEKO glass partitions and Interface flooring. This shows our ability to tackle substantial challenges, leading investors to continue their collaboration with Delight.

I want to emphasize that I’m extremely proud to lead a team like Delight North Macedonia. I’m glad to be here and to have colleagues who accepted me despite my young age. Together, we’ve proven our compatibility and ability to collaborate successfully, paving the way for more achievements in the future!

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When “I got the job” becomes “I accepted the offer”, changes are required!

Ivana Peričin is a Master of Psychology, a travel lover, and the HR manager of Delight Holding, which operates across the region and has around 100 employees.

We talked about her goals for the business, how it would evolve, and the standards she set for HR management.

Unique regional identity

One of Delight’s unique aspects is its complex and interconnected structure, consisting of several sectors that collaborate closely daily. A significant challenge is creating a seamless organizational flow that accommodates each team’s specificities.

We aim to preserve and strengthen regional cooperation among our teams, as daily regional communication allows us to share experiences, exchange essential information important for employee efficiency, and enhance our regional identity.

Establishing a unifying identity for the whole Delight group while embracing the unique specificities of each place we operate in is a key objective for our business culture. This unique identity is based on universal values upheld by everyone in the Delight group, both internally between colleagues and externally with our clients.

We also aim to intensify regional cross-team collaboration in the future, fostering a sense of belonging and unity among our teams, all working towards the same goal – client satisfaction.

Delight currently has around 100 employees and a wide network of subcontractors in local territories. Today, we are working on improving team structures through more efficient organization, development of company culture, and improvements in internal software and digital communication while retaining flexibility.

Since our clients come from a variety of sectors, our flexibility and open lines of communication help us to understand their needs.

Company culture makes the company alive!

Every company has a culture, whether it’s clearly defined or not. When looking at a company’s long-term success, culture is crucial alongside external business strategy as it reflects the quality of work, products, customer relationships, and the quality of life within the company. It makes the company a living organism and guides its overall quality.

At Delight, we strive to understand and embody our values dimensionally, both in our internal functioning and in our collaboration with clients. Some of our values are:

Responsibility – first and foremost, responsibility to ourselves, our values, and interests, followed by responsibility to our team and colleagues we work with, responsibility to the company we are a part of, and of course, responsibility to the client and their needs, as they are the main reason we exist as a company.

Transparency – a clear setting of expectations, determining deadlines, and adhering to them, transparent sharing of information. Transparency is essential for efficiency and ethics while respecting our colleagues and clients.

Flexibility – not only in hybrid, remote work, and flexible working hours, but also in openness to different opinions, sensibilities, and needs. All of this contributes to faster adaptability, not only to changes in local market dynamics but also to global trends that inevitably affect us through our clients.

Teamwork – both internally and with clients during project execution. The projects we work on are often long-term and require continuous presence and evaluation of the entire process.

Integrity – alignment of internal values that exist “on paper” with what truly happens within the company, how we represent the company, build our brand, and act daily in the external market.

Culture is crucial for the quality of life within the company and greatly influences our company’s ability to adapt to the rapid changes happening in the global market. Our attachment to the company, how well we feel as part of it, our efficiency, and our willingness to change, embrace innovations, and follow market trends from month to month are all significantly influenced by the company’s culture.

Culture determines who we accept and exclude from the company. Today, when the concept of “team fit” exists, anyone who does not share these values may not function well or disrupt our established homeostasis. What’s important is to create a healthy system that naturally excludes what doesn’t belong and strengthens the segments that are good and healthy, ensuring the company’s continuity and improvement.

Global and regional recruitments give us an excellent insight into current values in the job market. For example, in the region, the importance of flexibility has become evident lately, especially in Slovenia, Croatia, and even more so in Serbia compared to previous years. The focus on delivering good results, creativity, development, and the desire for flexibility in terms of location and sliding working hours have increased. Creativity seems to be increasingly present as a need among employees. Delight can boast about this, especially considering the diverse spectrum of clients we collaborate with. Financial stability is undoubtedly essential, but it seems that it is often not decisive for whether we will stay somewhere and be fulfilled in our workplace.

Continuous development and adaptation to change are vital. The psychological safety environment is also important, as it provides us with space for continuous growth – a space to make mistakes, learn from them, and evolve. Without mistakes, there is no growth; perfection is an illusion. To be competitive in the market, continuous growth is necessary for both individuals and the company.

What I truly believe and what particularly motivates me at Delight is the significance of the work environment, especially as the demands of employees have changed considerably. It’s fascinating to observe how the workspace influences relationships within teams. Flexibility not only entails hybrid work but also working in a physically healthy atmosphere, where we can change our location during the workday, take a walk through the space, and be inspired by the environment itself. The workspace is crucial for connecting employees; it serves as inspiration and the foundation of our company identity. The workspace can be the base that provides stability and routine when needed, while simultaneously offering flexibility when the need arises.

Today, companies face the challenge of accommodating different generations with diverse approaches to work, values, and demands, and the workspace should connect and reconcile these differences. This is a significant challenge for those designing the workspace, but it’s fantastic to see how people connect and integrate into a unique system.

To be competitive in the market, rapid adaptability has become necessary because changes are constantly happening in the global market and our personal lives.

With the opening of the global market and digitization, high-quality employees have many more opportunities than it has been before. We all compete for quality employees who continuously work on themselves, have a desire for self-improvement, and are unafraid of change. However, companies need to be aware that every professional, aware of their experience and potential, also has self-respect and will seek a company that respects them as human beings and as an employee. Their criteria will inevitably be high, and this requires us, as a company, to continuously improve and advance our human resources strategies.

Thanks to the opening of the global market, conditions have drastically changed, and there is a visible trend toward further changes. For instance, when talking about recruitment, it used to be typical to say, “I got the job,” and now we say, “I accepted the offer.” Through this sentence, we can see the change in the psychology of power in the job market and the change in the relationship between employers and employees.

Humanity, ethics, knowledge, transparency, reciprocity, and a common goal can take us far and significantly improve us both as individuals and as a business.

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So what office chair do I need?  Well, we’ve answered some of your burning questions so when the time comes to buy your new office chair you’re all clued up and know what you need.

What different office chairs are there?

Office chairs have come a long way from standard swivel chairs.  There’s now posture chairs and executive leather chairs for maximum comfort which are a great investment for you and your business.

Office chairs come in a wide range of different styles. Here are some of the common styles available:

Task Chair

Task chairs are also known as operator or computer chairs and are probably the first thing that comes to mind when you think about an office chair.

Standard task chair features include swivel castors and gas lift for adjusting the height to fit your needs. However, more advanced task chair models includes features such as adjustable armrests, headrests, adjustable backs, lumbar support and an ergonomically designed seat pad.

Task chairs are suitable for both home and business available in wide range of materials, from plastic chairs with padded foam seats, through to fabric, mesh and leather finishes.  These chairs are designed for operators spending a lot of time in front of a computer. Task chairs will provide good all-day comfort for most users as long as you choose high quality and ergonomic designs.

Executive Chairs

Executive chairs are large, more stylish and offer more comfort than most task chairs due to their elongated shape and padding.

Generally, executive chairs offer height adjustability, but don’t come with fully adjustable backs which means they are unsuitable for people who need to work at a computer for long periods of time.

Designer Chairs

These chairs are designed to look a bit different with their simple, elegant style available in a range of colours and materials to suit any environment.

One downside to these office chairs is that comfort does sometimes suffer due to often being manufactured from hard materials like plastic, mesh, chrome and leather so they don’t have the same levels of padding, support or adjustability as other office chairs.  They can be very much about the looks over the function.

These chairs are suitable for short working sessions, but generally won’t be comfortable or supportive enough for all day use. They are ideal for communal areas like meeting rooms and breakout areas enhancing your current workspace.

What are the benefits of buying an ergonomic office chair?

An ergonomic chair is any chair that’s designed to work with the human body, providing the right support and improving posture to maximise comfort during extended work hours. Since office chairs take up a big part of our lives, it’s more than important then ever to choose ones that provide us with maximum comfort. Here are 3 of the best benefits from choosing an ergonomic office chair:

Increased Productivity – Sitting in an uncomfortable chair can cause you nagging back pain constantly moving to find a comfortable position to sit in can affect your concentration and make your mind wonder.

An ergonomic office chair that molds to your body will make you feel more relaxed and focus on the work in hand instead of your uncomfortable chair.

Improve Posture and Back Pain – Slouching over your office desk for 8 hours a day will affect your posture and you’ll soon start to resemble the Hunchback of Notredame!

Sitting in a slouched position for long periods of time puts a lot of tension on the muscles and ligaments in the back which results in serious back pain. Having a good office chair will allow your body to the adjust to the ergonomic shape. Office chairs are designed to offer the necessary back support and can adjust to every size and body type.

Reduce Health Risks – In recent articles we mentioned how sitting is as bad for you as smoking and that it has similar dangerous effects on our bodies. A bad sitting position affects the blood circulation in the body which can cause blood clots.

Investing in a good chair means reducing the pressure on your muscles from sitting down which will allow the blood to flow through the body without any obstructions.

AUTHOR: Chloe Beevers

(https://www.kitoutmyoffice.com/blogs/news/what-office-chair-do-i-need)

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The good news is that the building community is becoming more aware of the importance of acoustics at the same time that the industry is giving designers more options to address them.

Acoustic panels used to be thought of primarily for large commercial spaces such as auditoriums and theatres, swimming pools and sports complexes, airports and schools. And given these applications, the large square or rectangular shapes that were mostly available were fine — not gorgeous, but fine.

But now, much is changing in the realm of interior acoustics, including three key trends:

1. Interiors are noisier

Design trends over the past few years have caused noise levels to increase in the everyday places where people work, socialize and live. Open offices have removed wall barriers that formerly served to contain noise. Restaurants have largely replaced soft, noise-absorbent materials such as carpet and cloth with reflective hardwood, concrete, glass and metal. Even in modern home design, there is more noise-reflective surface, with expanses of drywall and glass.

2. Awareness of the harmful impacts of unwanted sound is growing

Understanding of the impacts of the acoustic environment is growing. The International Well Building Standard introduced in September 2015 notes that bad acoustics negatively affect not only human comfort but also people’s bodies, across cardiovascular, endocrine, immune and nervous systems! At work, organizations are recognizing the costs of lowered productivity and well-being that result from noise. In social situations, noise hampers conversation and comfort.

3. Acoustics product options are more plentiful and attractive

Designers have historically been frustrated by the trade-offs they had to make between good-sounding and beautiful-looking interiors. In all the smaller spaces where acoustic treatments are now needed, the visual impact of panels becomes even more important. This need for compromise is changing too, with the introduction of new products and the creativity of designers themselves in developing acoustic installations.

Acoustic panels mounted on walls and/or ceilings can make the difference between an unbearable room and a functional, beautiful space.

There are several ways to make an acoustic panels treatment look great and stay consistent with the design vision. Product options, placement considerations and designers’ own creative approaches can all enhance design while meeting noise reduction goals.

Product options

Conventional, two-inch-thick, fabric-wrapped acoustic panels are still widely recommended and used in most interiors. However, the market is exploding with alternatives and now designers’ options for acoustic treatments have expanded well beyond the conventional flat surfaces and right angles of those rigid panels.

As is so often the case in design, Scandinavia seems to be ahead of the curve. Many exciting lines are now coming out of Sweden and Finland and innovation has spread to other countries including Belgium, Italy and more.

Acoustic panels are available in more materials, such as felt, foam and melamine, and in a variety of shapes, from flat to curved, cylindrical and even nature-inspired outlines. Every big interior design show seems to introduce more beautiful alternative acoustic products, for wall, ceiling and free-standing applications.

There are even acoustically absorbent lighting fixtures! A quick online search for “decorative acoustic panels” — via Google, Pinterest or Instagram — shows how much the sector is evolving.

Placement considerations

An acoustician or product supplier can advise on the most effective areas of the room to treat for acoustical impact. Ceiling treatments can be suspended and colourful for visual interest or inconspicuously flush-mounted and colour-neutral. Wall-mounting position is usually similar to art, with lower edge just about eye level, about five feet above the floor.

Then, design considerations can take over. Conventional panels can be cut to almost any size and many shapes within a four-by-eight-feet grid, then arranged or grouped to create a configuration.
Some of the decorative panels now on offer have unique mounting configurations that allow for easy rearranging on a wall, to refresh an installation by changing up the colour combinations or even the overall shape and placement.

Design possibilities

Within the conventional panel offerings, a vast number of fabric choices support any colour scheme. Fabric textures range from fine weaves to burlap. Literally! One coffee shop wrapped panels with the bags used to ship their beans!

Today’s high quality digital fabric-printing processes mean acoustic panel surfaces can become a “canvas” on the wall for a stunning photograph, an art reproduction or a meaningful message. A restaurant can display some mouth-watering photos of the attractive menu items in a restaurant, to whet their diners’ appetites.

One of the newest products uses the basic rectangular acoustic panel shape and sculpts a three-dimensional image onto the surface — numbers and letters for a playschool, a corporate logo for an office or an abstract flourish for a home entertainment room.

Increasing awareness of the need for a good acoustic environment, along with a wider range of solutions, plus design creativity, are leading to more spaces that are wonderful both visually and acoustically. Consult with acoustics professionals during the design stage to help ensure projects are delightful in every way.

AUTHOR: Janine Gliener

(https://www.reminetwork.com/articles/good-acoustics-design-no-longer-mutually-exclusive/)

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There are 5 distinct advantages to installing carpet in commercial buildings.

1. Carpet adds beauty and enhances the appearance. This feeling of making the right choice by the client cannot be over stated and taken for granted. When entering the reception area, the first general appearance is office décor, office professionalism and office appearance. What better way to provide the most professional image than beautiful designed carpet floor covering.

1. Carpet is a noise reducer. Most companies have open office settings with a large number of people dealing and interacting with each other. Ringing phones and frequent movement of staff within the office environment raises the noise that hinders the efficiency of the staff and becomes an obstacle to proper communication. Carpet offers an excellent solution in tackling the loud sounds in the office and helps to increase productivity.

1. Carpet is healthy. When we understand that carpet is the best air filter in the building, we realize the importance of keeping it clean. Carpet is like a kitchen sink, a collector of stuff. Carpet collects air pollutants, dust, allergens and toxins and traps the molecules in its fibers. By regular carpet cleaning we not only keep spots and stains to a minimum, the air is cleaner and staff healthier.

1. Carpet is cost effective. Proper carpet cleaning extends the life cycle of carpet. Contracting with a professional and experienced commercial carpet cleaning company who has consistent great outcomes with commercial contracts, allows you to rest assured that your office carpet is being cleaned with the right system and in the right manner. All carpeted areas must be cleaned on a regular scheduled maintenance plan to maintain the highest quality of office appearance.

1. Carpet appearance management is easy to maintain. When scheduling the frequency of carpet cleaning, notice must be observed of foot traffic, outside entry ways, type and style of fiber, future plans of the office space and budget allowances. Not all areas need cleaning every month, depending on foot traffic, office carpet cleaning can be broken out in to a monthly, quarterly and annual program. There are professional ways and systems to keep carpet looking good and uniform all the time.

When carpet is the choice for office flooring and décor, carpet maintenance is a fraction of the cost of other surfaces. You will find carpet installed in Corporate Headquarters, Banks, Call Centers, Office Buildings, Government Centers, Senior Care Facilities and Hotels for the best use of dollars and overall satisfaction of staff and clients.

AUTHOR: Marleen Geyen

(https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/five-advantages-carpet-commercial-buildings-marleen-geyen)

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Besides keeping your employees safe, office ergonomics comes with plenty of other benefits for the office.

Benefits of Office Ergonomics

• Reduces Costs – By investing in office ergonomic strategies, you reduce ergonomic risk factors like MSDs. MSDs are musculoskeletal disorders that occur due to movement repetition or poor posture. If you provide ergonomics in the office, these risk factors drastically decrease. About one-third of workers compensation are paid to cases of MSD. Reduce these costs. Invest in ergonomic office chairs.

• Boosts Productivity – Office ergonomics boosts productivity. Designing a workspace that promotes good posture, less repetitive motions, easier heights and reaches, and less exertion nurtures a more efficient work process. More efficiency equals more productivity.

• Work Quality – Poor office ergonomics leads to tired and easily irritated workers that cannot do their best work. They may miss an important detail or forget an important call to a client. The best way to keep your employees in top form is to invest in office ergonomics. Proper office ergonomics will keep everyone in top working form.

• Improvement in Employee Engagement – Office ergonomics will reduce turnover, lessen absenteeism, boost morale, and increase employee involvement. Also, employees will appreciate that the company that they work for is working so hard to see to their safety and health.

• Safety Culture – Investing in ergonomics shows your company is committed to health and safety. By making health and safety a core value of your company, you create a stronger safety culture in your workplace. Your workers are your most valuable asset and keeping them healthy and safe is good business and the right thing to do.

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