The emergence of hybrid working formats and the need for increased social distancing is going to require changes in office layouts. Rather than being a place where people spend all day in front of screens, the office is likely to become a place for meeting, collaboration and inspiration. What physical adaptations will be necessary to accommodate this new model? The pandemic has accelerated trends that were already underway. We know that different functions place separate demands on the office. For instance, high-data-use teams could work from the office just two days a week whereas operations staff may need to be in the office five days a week.
But broadly, 1.4 to 1.6 heads per desk is emerging as a new agile standard although there will clearly be sector, building-capacity and business-specific variations. However, this does not result in a massive reduction in overall floorspace as although there will be fewer desks, there will be a need for more multifunctional breakout areas and quiet work spaces. Companies that had already gone agile report a 10% reduction in space demand.
Office occupiers are creating more ‘drop in’ space. And although workers no longer have a desk to call their own, it helps to create neighbourhoods within the office where a team can work together and foster a sense of belonging. While reconfiguring their space, employers are also looking to improve the wider building environment with additional facilities, in particular bicycle storage and showers.
It was already becoming apparent that healthy buildings – as measured by the WELL accreditation scheme – have better staff retention. And the pandemic will have accelerated this trend. Ventilation and fresh air are now of the utmost importance. The British Council for Offices, LEED and the UK Green Building Council are all working on ways to bring back openable windows in office specifications. Sealed units emerged because of the traffic noise problem, especially in London, but reduced traffic levels and the increased take-up of electric vehicles should make this unnecessary, even in the busiest cities.
And where windows cannot be opened, air conditioning needs to be adapted to reduce air recirculation.
Video calls are now part of daily working life, but how can they best be conducted from the office without distracting colleagues who need to work quietly? Some have called for a return to a more cellular configuration in response to this.
But it is not feasible for everyone in the office to have their video calls in separate meeting rooms, so open-plan office space will need to be configured to create areas suitable for video calls. Better use of wireless technology and the use of noise-cancelling headphones will allow people to move to quieter parts of the office if required when on a call.
Clearly, all these changes have cost implications. The discussion groups shared some good examples of how occupiers have dealt with the unexpected costs of COVID-19. One company has closed an old office, mainly due to its poor ventilation, and the cost savings there have enabled expenditure elsewhere in the portfolio.
BNP Paribas Real Estate’s Project Management team talked about a recent project relocating a client from the City to the West End and what lessons could be learnt. Supply chains are facing disruption from Brexit as well as COVID-19, and if the client could do things over again, they say they would look more closely at where their fit-out products were sourced from. Could buying British be coming back into fashion?