Eco-friendly and Sustainable Office Design: How can corporates incorporate it!

The impact of global warming is obvious and increasingly apparent now, causing a damaging effect on our environment. At an individual level, more and more people are taking steps to go green and be eco-friendly, and organizations on their part can play a bigger role in this cause companies. Since a large portion of our lives is spent at work, pushing for a sustainable and eco-friendly environment at the workplace will certainly help care for the environment on a bigger scale.

In this post, let us look at how corporates can bring about this change beginning with the design of the office space.

What do eco-friendly and sustainable mean?

Eco-friendly means earth-friendly or not being harmful to the environment. It alludes to the use of products that contribute to green living which do not harm or pollute and employing best practices that help conserve resources like water and energy.

Sustainability on the other hand means being able to meet the needs of the present without compromising on the needs of the future generation. Be mindful that our future generations also require natural resources that are limited in nature.

So how can an organization create an eco-friendly and sustainable design for the office? Let’s find out…

Ways to Incorporate Eco-friendliness and Sustainability into your Office Design

It is amazing what a little refurbishing can do to make the workplace more environmentally and eco-friendly and at the same time save your company money. Consuming less energy, reducing the amount of unnecessary waste created, incorporating natural features into office design, and bringing greenery into the space to provide a healthy and conducive environment for your employees to work in. Here are 5 ways to do that.

1. Office Lighting

Using natural light, installing smart technology, and changing to LED lights. We all know natural sunlight does not cost anything and is eco-friendly too. Using automated lighting systems which include timers, motion detectors and photosensors can activate lighting when needed while turning lights off when unneeded and when rooms are empty.

2. Sustainable Materials

Wooden furniture gives off a classic, timeless look that compliments most workspaces. However, they cause damage to our forests and ecosystem if the raw materials were not obtained responsibly. Use repurposed furniture and make effective use of recycled or recyclable materials when decorating the office. This not only protects the environment, but saves money, and is better than choosing trendy, non-recyclable pieces that will end up going to a landfill.

3. Go Green in your Design

This is exactly what it means quite literally. Bring the outdoors in by growing say a Green Wall indoors. A fantastic option for any business that wants to make a strong visual statement while reaping the benefits of having plants in the office. Plants also provide better air quality, which is an important component of a healthy and sustainable office environment.

4. Temperature Control

Use programmable thermostats to let managers and employees control temperature settings. Turn off or reduce air conditioning automatically in unused spaces such as empty conference rooms or vacant offices. Using smart window technology to block out heat can also help to keep a room cooler without turning up the aircon.

5. Recycling & Reuse

Recycling should not be dumping papers into common recycling bins (only to end up as trash). Having clearly labeled and separate bins for different types of waste promotes better and more efficient recycling. And more importantly, educating inhabitants on the correct method of disposal can really help such initiatives bear fruit. Encouraging your staff to reuse folders and side-used paper helps the environment in small ways and saves money too.

Wrapping it up

There is a common misconception that being eco-friendly will be expensive and bring about restrictions in interior design. But with proper planning and the growing popularity of eco-friendly design, there are now more options than ever to create beautiful, dynamic office spaces that are good for employees and the environment.

Let’s make the change for a better future for our next generation!