The Evolution Of Office Partitions - How They've Changed Over Time

 

The layout of your office is an important design element that can have a big impact on how productive you feel, and how much stress you experience, every day. If you’re working in an open layout with a large desk for each individual user, for example, it’s very unlikely that everyone will be able to see everyone else throughout the whole workspace and collaborate whenever necessary. However, if you have multiple smaller offices and only one is open at any time, then this layout might work better for you than others. The layouts of offices are constantly evolving over time to match changing business needs and the latest office design trends. This article explores the evolution of office partitions from the mid-20th century until today. You'll learn about some common design patterns used by office interior designers to create more functional, private spaces in modern offices while still keeping them open and accessible to coworkers Office Partitions Manchester.

 

From single-room offices to open layouts with multiple zones

The office partition in the mid-20th century was very different to the open layouts we have today. The main goal of an office partition in the past was to create single, closed spaces for different activities. This might include a conference room, a private office for an executive, or even a separate reception area for a receptionist. To create privacy, your partitions might have been built with opaque materials like wood or glass, or they might have been painted with a color that made them look opaque even though they weren’t. In the ’70s and ’80s, however, many of these single-room offices were transformed into open layouts with multiple zones. Temporarily closing partitions between zones was done to create different zones like a reception area with a desk, a conference room with a whiteboard, or a private office with a whiteboard to share work. You might also see open offices that have areas that are temporarily set up like a desk in a conference room or other similar setups.

 

Closed co working spaces

Today’s open workspaces with virtual walls, however, aren’t always post-78. The open layout with multiple zones was also used in the ’70s and ’80s as a more temporary solution. For example, after a renovation is complete, remodeling workers might choose to remodel a room in a building with a large open floor plan using a temporary partition layout. Instead of closing some rooms to create new zones, the entire open floor plan is used for activity. Temporary office partitions might also be used to separate different business functions. For example, a restaurant might have a separate kitchen area with a partition that keeps food prep isolated from the dining area. An advertising agency might have an isolated office with a desk and computer so that employees can focus exclusively on their clients’ projects.

 

Open workspaces with private offices

Private offices were also a more common type of space in the ’70s and ’80s, but they were increasingly replaced by open workspaces in the ’90s and 2000s. Large open workspaces might experience a decline when companies began migrating to virtual work environments like virtual private networks (VPNs) and cloud computing. However, open workspaces with private offices are making a comeback. Companies are realizing that private offices are a better option than open workspaces with only whiteboards. With the advent of videoconferencing, remote work, and virtual team software, private offices are a great option for many companies. Remote workers can set up an impromptu meeting in a virtual room, while larger organizations can use remote offices to support regional offices with less overhead.

 

Open workspaces with private offices

Remote working also became more popular as internet speeds improved and smartphones became more advanced. More people wanted to work from home, whether full-time or as contractors, but they faced challenges like how to stay productive without having constant face-to-face interaction with colleagues. Remote workers can set up virtual office spaces like remote offices, virtual team rooms, and virtual conference rooms to keep collaborating.

 

Hidden rooms and dark zones

Today’s open workspaces with virtual walls, however, aren’t always post-78. The open layout with multiple zones was also used in the ’70s and ’80s as a more temporary solution. For example, after a renovation is complete, remodeling workers might choose to remodel a room in a building with a large open floor plan using a temporary partition layout. Instead of closing some rooms to create new zones, the entire open floor plan is used for activity. Temporary office partitions might also be used to separate different business functions. For example, a restaurant might have a separate kitchen area with a partition that keeps food prep isolated from the dining area. An advertising agency might have an isolated office with a desk and computer so that employees can focus exclusively on their clients’ projects.

 

Dark zones, however, were rarely used in office partitions until the ’90s. Dark zones might be found in conference rooms or other rooms where natural light is difficult to access. Dark zones are great for meeting rooms, but they might also be used for offices that need to be completely dark for privacy reasons like a doctor’s office.

Dark zones might be useful in offices, but they’re rarely found in today’s open workspaces. Dark zones were rarely used in the ’90s, but they gained popularity again in the mid-2000s. Dark zones are still used in office partitions today, but they’re not as common as they once were.

 

Conclusion

The layout of your office is an important design element that can have a big impact on how productive you feel, and how much stress you experience, every day. If you’re working in an open layout with a large desk for each individual user, for example, it’s very unlikely that everyone will be able to see everyone else throughout the whole workspace and collaborate whenever necessary. However, if you have multiple smaller offices and only one is open at any time, then this layout might work better for you than others. The layouts of offices are constantly evolving over time to match changing business needs and the latest office design trends. This article explores the evolution of office partitions from the mid-20th century until today. You'll learn about some common design patterns used by office interior designers to create more functional, private spaces in modern offices while still keeping them open and accessible to coworkers.