Topic 4 Office Accommodation and Layout

Introduction

Office manager aims at getting the work done in the office at the lowest possible cost through proper selection and training of staff.

• —  Office staffs work efficiently if they are properly accommodated.
• —  Officers spend long hours in the office.
• —  Bad and insufficient accommodation can cause boredom, monotony and frustration which will affect their efficiency.
• —  Suitable accommodation, modern equipment and proper working conditions are important factors.
• —  A scientific arrangement of the office will naturally fetch maximum efficiency and reducing costs.
• —  The office manager aims at getting maximum benefits through proper arrangements of office at minimum costs.

—The efficiency of the modern and up-to-date office depends upon location, layout, light, ventilation, office equipment’s, undisturbed atmosphere etc. apart from the people working there. —  Best result is attained through proper selection of staff, equipment and working environment. Concentration of the mind and brain is important.  

The Site or Location of the Office Building

—Selecting the site and or location of the office is very important. It also important to select a building that will house the office. —Before selection, it is best to finalize your decision where to conduct your business in a rural area or urban area. The selection has its advantage and disadvantages and depends on certain circumstances. 

Advantages of office in urban areas

• —  Availability of Transport.
• —  Availability of shops and city dwellers.
• —  Availability of postal and banking services.
• —  Working people prefer to work in the city.
• —  Government offices,  Taxation, Business Registration are in the city.
• —  Main services of electricity, water, communication and specialized agencies are in the city. 

Disadvantages of urban areas

• —  High rental of office accommodation.
• —  High cost of construction of office building.
• —  Overcrowding.
• —  Dust, noise and pollution.
• —  High cost of living resulting in high cost of labor. 

Advantages of rural area

• —  Low labor cost.
• —  Low rental cost.
• —  Low construction cost.
• —  Availability of space for future expansion.
• —  Low cost of living. 

Disadvantage of rural areas

• —  No proper transport and communication.
• —  No electricity.
• —  No facilities for repair and maintenance.
• —  Non availability of skilled employees.
• —  Delay in getting essential services.
• —  Non availability of banking, postal, engineering, insurance services.
• —  Staff may be reluctant to work in rural areas and no scope of expansion.
• —  Own Premises.
• —  According to the one’s own will and pleasure a building of any size and space can be constructed.
• —  Initial expenses will be high as large amount of capital to be invested.
• —  An attractive building owned by the firm will add prestige and value to the firm.
• —  Subletting is possible.
• —  Not convenience for medium, small, and newly started firms.
• —  Rental Premises.
• —  One must adjust and satisfy oneself with the size of the building and space available.
• —  Nominal expenses in rent,  monthly or quarterly.
• —  Rented building does not add value or prestige to the firm.
• —  Office can be easily shifted.
• —  Convenient for medium small offices and newly starts firms.

— 

Choosing the office.— 

• When choosing the location of the office, choose a location where same line of trade is engaged.

• —  Locality must have transport services of all kind.
• —The locality must have service facilities such as banks, post office, business regulation centers insurance, preferably in municipal area.
• —  Be near the source of availability of labor and availability of housing, water and electricity supply.
• —  The size and shape of the office.
• —  The size and shape of the office should be conducive to the present requirements and future expansion.
• —  Long and narrow space is undesirable and a waste of time walking.
• —  Square and rectangular space is a better choice for office space.
• —  Lay out of the office.

—According to Terry, Lay out of the office is the determination of the space requirements and of the specialized utilization of this space in order to provide a practical arrangement of the physical factors considered necessary for the execution of the office work within a reasonable cost.

— 
Hicks and Place describes The problem of the layout relates to the arrangements of the space involved so that all equipment, supplies, personnel and procedures can function at a minimum cost.

Systematic and scientific arrangement of different departments and equipment on a well-defined plan so as to get the maximum benefit from the space available can be called office layout.
 

• Office layout ensure an effective, steady and smooth flow of work.
• —Arrangement of department must facilitate speed and smoothness of the flow of work. A proper and constant flow of work means that the work moves from one operation to another efficiently.
• The Reception section must be located near the doorway for easy access and convenience for customers.
• —Different sections of the departments should be placed near to each other for ease and convenience.
• The office of the Office Manager must be placed near the Reception for easy approach.
• — Adequate space must be allocated to enable ease of movement.  Available space must be fully utilized.
• — Privacy must also be considered when allocating space/rooms.
• — Equipment must be placed in a way that the noise will not disturb the staff.
• Adequate facilities must be provided to enable executive and staff to work in comfort. Furniture must be arranged in a systematic way that to provide good working atmosphere.

Advantage of Good Layout.

A good layout is a good investment. A good office layout:-

• — Makes supervision more affective.
• — Promotes efficiency.
• — Aims at economic and effective use of available space.
• — Enables better communication among departments.
• — Enables good planning, coordination and organization.
• — It reduces the cost of cooling, heating, air-conditioning etc. and their maintenance costs.
• — It aims at providing the best working condition.
• —It projects a good impression about the enterprise on customers and visitors. This results in better goodwill.

—  Checklist for an office layout.

• —  Avoid overcrowding.
• —  Ease of daily cleaning.
• —  Staff not facing directly into light.
• —  Proximity of cloakroom and toilets.
• —  Comfortable furniture.
• —  Minimize staff movement.
• —  Fencing any exposed moving part of machines.
• —  Adequate space for main aisles and sideways.
• —  Open Office and Private Office.

The question is whether the department or unit will be provided with separate rooms or all the department offices will be accommodated in a large hall. There is a tendency among officials to prefer open office rather than private or separate office.  Both systems have advantages and disadvantages. 

Advantage of Open Office

• —  Better utilization of space due to no partitioning.
• —  Easy for supervisors to watch the office.
• —  Layout of office can be altered with no expenses.
• —  Easy communication from department into department.
• —  Better working condition.
• —  Reduces the movement of staff. 

Disadvantage of Open Office.

• —  Disturbance by movement of staff and visitors.
• —  Too noisy from conversation and telephone calls.
• —  Fast spreading of infectious diseases.
• —  A big hall may not be efficiently supervised.
• —  Secrecy cannot be maintained.
• —  Top executive may not feel comfortable in the open office.
• —  Private Office

Private offices are small rooms allotted and occupied by departments.  Allotment depends on the nature confidential matters to be dealt with.  Secrecy and security can be maintained. 

Advantages of Private Office

• — Gives prestige and importance to top executive.
• — Ensure privacy and concentration of work leading to increased efficiency.
• — Disadvantage of private office.
• — Wastage of space due to partitioning.
• — Effects the flow of work.
• — More supervisors needed to watch the work done resulting in high costs.
• — More costly to build separate rooms and provide adequate lighting.
• — Cleaning the office will be a tedious work.
• — Extra means of communication needed for each room.
• — Expensive furniture is needed.
• — Staff-visitors’ convenience.
• — Easy access to different sections of the office.
• — Sufficient office must be provided for ease of movement.

—  Reception area must be made available for visitors and should be located near the main entrance.

—  Display merchandise and reading materials, current magazines etc and must be self-contained.

New trends in office layout

Now-a-days attempts are being made to minimize the disadvantages of private offices while at the same time providing some degree of privacy in work through the use of modular desk units and movable partitions.

—Modular units - Modular units becoming popular. Consist of a combined desk and file cabinet with a working surface on the top of each and dwarfed partition to the height of 4 to 6 feet. Design to meet specific needs of employees resulting in great productivity and efficiency. The units offer the benefit of privacy, easy access to working materials and economy in space.

 

Movable partition

Are used in setting up private offices.

Made of metal, wood, plastic or glass.

Maintains privacy.

Choice depends upon the type of work.
Lower costs and provide flexibility

Source:

Office Management by Pilai, R.S.N, Bagavathi. S.Chand & Company Ltd. Ram Nagar, New Delhi-110055, 2003.