Open plan

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The team-oriented "bullpen", an example of open plan in use OpenPlanRedBalloon1.jpg
The team-oriented "bullpen", an example of open plan in use
A sea of cubicles, one type of open plan Sea-of-cubicles-2.jpg
A sea of cubicles, one type of open plan
An office landscape floor plan, another type of open plan Office-landscape-plan.jpg
An office landscape floor plan, another type of open plan
An information technology department in a French company in 2019 Verisure information technology department at Chatenay-Malabry - 2019-01-10.jpg
An information technology department in a French company in 2019

Open plan is the generic term used in architectural and interior design for any floor plan that makes use of large, open spaces and minimizes the use of small, enclosed rooms such as private offices. The term can also refer to landscaping of housing estates, business parks, etc., in which there are no defined property boundaries, such as hedges, fences, or walls.

Contents

Open-plan office designs (e.g., tables with no visual barriers) reduce short-term building costs, compared to cubicles or private offices, and result in persistently lower productivity, dramatically fewer face-to-face interactions among staff, and a higher number of sick days. [1] An open office plan may have permanently assigned spaces at a table, or it may be used as a flex space or hot desking program.

In residential design, open plan or open concept (the term used mainly in Canada) [2] describes the elimination of barriers such as walls and doors that traditionally separated distinct functional areas, such as combining the kitchen, living room, and dining room into a single great room.

Homes

Many pre-industrial homes were huts that consisted of a single room, but this was usually small. Already in the Middle Ages, however, there were some single-room hearth-heated hall houses, for example in England, that were large enough so they could develop into multi-room houses. Multi-room houses however didn't become popular until later when the country industrialized, as a result of which more people could afford them.

In the 1880s,[ clarification needed ] small public rooms of the home with specific functions began to be replaced by larger rooms that fulfilled multiple uses, but kitchens, bedrooms, and bathrooms remained enclosed private spaces. [3] Larger rooms were made possible by advances in centralized heating that allowed larger spaces to be kept at comfortable temperatures. [3]

Frank Lloyd Wright was one of the early advocates for open plan design in houses, [4] expanding on the ideas of Charles and Henry Greene and shingle style architecture. [5] Wright's designs were based on a centralized kitchen open to other public spaces of the home where the housewife could be "more hostess 'officio', operating in gracious relation to her home, instead of being a kitchen mechanic behind closed doors." [6] Not having a dividing wall between the kitchen and a combined living-dining room became more popular especially in the United States in the 1970s. [7]

A home with this type of layout has one or more large, open rooms that function as multiple rooms within a single living space. The most common design is a great room that combines the kitchen, dining room, and living room into one shared space. Such floor plans usually work well in homes with a smaller area, while larger homes have more leeway to work with[ clarification needed ] when integrating great rooms into a floor plan. [8] The removal of interior walls increases views and allows sunlight from windows in the exterior walls to spread throughout the house.

In the late 2010s, the open plan design became less common. Complaints about open plan designs include that they make it more difficult for different people to engage in different activities and make it difficult to hide clutter or a dirty kitchen. [9] Walls are useful to contain noise and smells and to provide privacy, and small rooms are more efficient to heat and cool (especially when kitchen appliances are in use). [7] A follow-on trend among relatively wealthy homeowners is to build a second "mess kitchen" where the actual activity of food preparation takes place, while entertaining happens in a clean kitchen that is part of the open concept space. [7] [10]

Office spaces

Development of open-plan workspace types

Prior to the 1950s open-plan offices mostly consisted of large regular rows of desks or benches where clerks, typists, or technicians performed repetitive tasks. [11] Such designs were rooted in the work of industrial engineers or efficiency experts such as Frederick Winslow Taylor and Henry Ford. In the 1950s a German team named Quickborner developed the office landscape, which used conventional furniture, curved screens, large potted plants, and organic geometry to create work groups on large, open floors. Office landscape was quickly supplanted by office-furniture companies which developed cubicles based on panel-hung or systems furniture. Many terms (mostly derisive) have been used over time for offices using the old-style, large arrays of open cubicles.

An increase in knowledge work and the emergence of mobile technology during the late 20th-century led to an evolution in open-plan offices. [12] [13] Some companies experimented with designs that provided a mix of cubicles, open workstations, private offices, and group workstations. In some cases, these are not assigned to one particular individual, but are available to any employee of the company on either a reservable or "drop-in" (first come, first served) basis. Terms for this strategy include hoteling, "alternative officing" [14] and "hot desking".

Michael Bloomberg used a team-oriented bullpen style – where employees can see and hear each other freely, but desks are grouped into teams – at his media company Bloomberg L.P. and for his staff while Mayor of New York City [15] (in office: 2002–2013).

Evaluation

A systematic survey of research upon the effects of open-plan offices found frequent negative effects in some traditional workplaces: high levels of noise, stress, conflict, high blood pressure and a high staff turnover. [16] [17]

The noise level in open-plan offices greatly reduces productivity. Productivity in an open-office plan has been estimated to be one-third what the same workers would achieve in quiet rooms. [18] Noisy new technologies, like voice-activation and mobile phones, also decrease effectiveness in the open-plan setting. [19] One study found employees were less likely to share their views on phone calls in open offices, because they worry that their co-workers will overhear them and judge them negatively. [20] Employees worry that speaking out loud will distract their co-workers. [20]

Some design goals of open plan offices include letting everyone see what everyone else is doing at any given moment, reducing information silos by letting everyone overhear what everyone else is saying, and flattening organizational hierarchies. [21]

Although promoted as a way to encourage collaboration, speed decision-making, and increase the group's collective intelligence, open-plan offices result in a dramatic reduction in face-to-face interactions, as employees turn to digital communication, such as sending e-mail messages. [22] Open-plan offices have frequently been found to reduce the confidential or private conversations which employees engage in, and to reduce job satisfaction, concentration and performance, whilst increasing auditory and visual distractions. [23] [13] [24]

Open-plan offices elevate the risk of employees needing to take time off for sickness. [25] [26] The more people working in a single room, the more sick time is needed. [25] People who work in open-office plans containing more than six people take over 160% as many sick days as those who work in private offices. [27] Different plans have slightly different risks; for example, men working in a flex space have a significantly increased risk for short-term illnesses (e.g., the common cold or influenza). [26] Easily spread respiratory diseases such as COVID-19 may militate against working in open-plan offices. [28]

Some negative aspects of open plan offices can be addressed with interior design, such as establishing separate places for face-to-face discussions or using materials that absorb noise. [29]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House</span> Building comprising a single dwelling

A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. Houses use a range of different roofing systems to keep precipitation such as rain from getting into the dwelling space. Houses may have doors or locks to secure the dwelling space and protect its inhabitants and contents from burglars or other trespassers. Most conventional modern houses in Western cultures will contain one or more bedrooms and bathrooms, a kitchen or cooking area, and a living room. A house may have a separate dining room, or the eating area may be integrated into another room. Some large houses in North America have a recreation room. In traditional agriculture-oriented societies, domestic animals such as chickens or larger livestock may share part of the house with humans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cubicle</span> Office furniture meant to allow for concentration

A cubicle is a partially enclosed office workspace that is separated from neighboring workspaces by partitions that are usually 5–6 feet (1.5–1.8 m) tall. Its purpose is to isolate office workers and managers from the sights and noises of an open workspace so that they may concentrate with fewer distractions. Cubicles are composed of modular elements such as walls, work surfaces, overhead bins, drawers, and shelving, which can be configured depending on the user's needs. Installation is generally performed by trained personnel, although some cubicles allow configuration changes to be performed by users without specific training.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Office</span> Room where administrative work is performed

An office is a space where the employees of an organization perform administrative work in order to support and realize the various goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific duties attached to it ; the latter is an earlier usage, office as place originally referring to the location of one's duty. In the adjective form, the term "office" may refer to business-related tasks. In law, a company or organization has offices in any place where it has an official presence, even if that presence consists of a storage silo, for example, instead of a more traditional establishment with a desk and chair. An office is also an architectural and design phenomenon, including small offices, such as a bench in the corner of a small business or a room in someone's home, entire floors of buildings, and massive buildings dedicated entirely to one company. In modern terms, an office is usually the location where white-collar workers carry out their functions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Computer desk</span> Furniture for computer users

The computer desk and related ergonomic desk are furniture pieces designed to comfortably and aesthetically provide a working surface and house or conceal office equipment including computers, peripherals and cabling for office and home-office users.

A virtual office is part of the flexible workspace industry that provides businesses with any combination of services, space and/or technology, without those businesses bearing the capital expenses of owning or leasing a traditional office.

Hoteling is a method of office management in which workers dynamically schedule their use of workspaces such as desks, cubicles, and offices. It is an alternative approach to the more traditional method of permanently assigned seating. Hoteling is reservation-based unassigned seating; employees reserve a workspace before they come to work in an office. An alternate method of handling unassigned seating is hot desking, which does not involve reservations; with hot-desking, a worker chooses a workspace upon arrival, rather than reserving it in advance. The use of the term has declined in recent years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utah State Capitol</span> State capitol building of the U.S. state of Utah

The Utah State Capitol is the house of government for the U.S. state of Utah. The building houses the chambers and offices of the Utah State Legislature, the offices of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, the State Auditor and their staffs. The capitol is the main building of the Utah State Capitol Complex, which is located on Capitol Hill, overlooking downtown Salt Lake City.

The Action Office is a series of furniture designed by Robert Propst, and manufactured and marketed by Herman Miller. First introduced in 1964 as the Action Office I product line, then superseded by the Action Office II series, it is an influential design in the history of "contract furniture". The Action Office II series introduced the concept of the flexible, semi-enclosed workspaces, now better known as the cubicle. All cubicle office designs can be traced back to Herman Miller's Action Office product lines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Industrial style</span> Aesthetic trend in interior design of the 21st century

Industrial style or industrial chic refers to an aesthetic trend in interior design that takes cues from old factories and industrial spaces that in recent years have been converted to lofts and other living spaces. Components of industrial style include weathered wood, building systems, exposed brick, industrial lighting fixtures and concrete.

A virtual workplace is a work environment where employees can perform their duties remotely, using technology such as laptops, smartphones, and video conferencing tools. A virtual workplace is not located in any one physical space. It is usually a network of several workplaces technologically connected without regard to geographic boundaries. Employees are thus able to interact in a collaborative working environment regardless of where they are located. A virtual workplace integrates hardware, people, and online processes.

Sound masking is the inclusion of generated sound into an environment to mask unwanted sound. It relies on auditory masking. Sound masking is not a form of active noise control ; however, it can reduce or eliminate the perception of sound. Sound masking is applied to an entire area to improve acoustical satisfaction, thus improving the acoustical privacy of the space. This can help an individual focus and thereby enhance productivity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Executive Residence</span> Central building of the White House complex

The Executive Residence is the central building of the White House complex located between the East Wing and West Wing. It is the most recognizable part of the complex, being the actual "house" part of the White House. This central building, first constructed from 1792 to 1800, is home to the president of the United States and the first family. The Executive Residence primarily occupies four floors: the ground floor, the state floor, the second floor, and the third floor. A two-story sub-basement with mezzanine, created during the 1948–1952 Truman reconstruction, is used for HVAC and mechanical systems, storage, and service areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Room</span> Distinguishable space within a building or other structure

In a building or ship, a room is any enclosed space within a number of walls to which entry is possible only via a door or other dividing structure. The entrance connects it to either a passageway, another room, or the outdoors. The space is typically large enough for several people to move about. The size, fixtures, furnishings, and sometimes placement of the room within the building or ship support the activity to be conducted in it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Office landscape</span> Type of open plan using irregular angles and plants

Office landscape was an early (1950s) movement in open plan office space planning that typically used irregular geometry and organic circulation patterns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Room divider</span> Furniture used to divide a room

A room divider is a screen or piece of furniture placed in a way that divides a room into separate areas. Room dividers are used by interior designers and architects as means to divide space into separate distinct areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suntop Homes</span> House in Ardmore, Pennsylvania

The Suntop Homes, also known under the early name of The Ardmore Experiment, were quadruple residences located in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, and based largely upon the 1935 conceptual Broadacre City model of the minimum houses. The design was commissioned by Otto Tod Mallery of the Tod Company in 1938 in an attempt to set a new standard for the entry-level housing market in the United States and to increase single-family dwelling density in the suburbs. In cooperation with Frank Lloyd Wright, the Tod Company secured a patent for the unique design, intending to sell development rights for Suntops across the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Office space planning</span> Process of organizing workspace layout

Office space planning is the process of organizing the workplace layout, furniture and office functions to work effectively together, while using space efficiently. Floor plans should consider the workgroup function, building codes and regulations, lighting, teaming requirements, inter-communication and storage, as well as zoning for employee workstations, task space needs, support rooms and reception areas to make the best use of available space. Optimising office spaces with effective space planning can aid circulation, productivity and improve workplace wellness, as well as the health and safety of occupants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C&O desk</span> Oval Office desk

The C&O desk is one of six desks ever used in the Oval Office by a sitting President of the United States. The C&O Desk was used in the executive office by only George H. W. Bush, making it one of two Oval Office desks to be used by only one president there. Prior to its use in the Oval Office by Bush, the desk had been in use elsewhere in the White House. It is the shortest-serving Oval Office desk to date, having been used for one four-year term.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockhampton Girls Grammar School</span> Historic site in Queensland, Australia

Rockhampton Girls Grammar School is a heritage-listed private school at 155 Agnes Street, The Range, Rockhampton, Rockhampton Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Edwin Morton Hockings and built in 1890 by Moir Cousins and Co. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 20 October 2000.

Activity-based working (ABW) is an organizational strategic framework that recognizes that people often perform a variety of activities in their day-to-day work, and therefore need a variety of work settings supported by the right technology and culture to carry out these activities effectively. Based on activity, individuals, teams, and the organization are empowered to achieve their full potential by developing a culture of connection, inspiration, accountability, and trust. On a personal level, ABW also enables each person to organize their work activities in a way that best suits what and with whom they are trying to accomplish, promoting productivity and engagement at work. Although not normally implemented as a cost-saving business strategy, it can produce efficiencies and cost savings through more effective collaboration and team work. Inspiring spaces that evolve from an activity-based approach are designed to create opportunities for a variety of workplace activities, ranging from intense focused work to collaboration, as well as areas for meetings, whether formal or impromptu.

References

  1. ↑ Bodin Danielsson, Christina; Chungkham, Holendro Singh; Wulff, Cornelia; Westerlund, Hugo (2014-02-01). "Office design's impact on sick leave rates". Ergonomics. 57 (2): 139–147. doi:10.1080/00140139.2013.871064. ISSN   0014-0139. PMID   24460745.
  2. ↑ Definition of open-concept at Dictionary.com
  3. 1 2 Ward, Peter (2011-01-01). A History of Domestic Space: Privacy and the Canadian Home. UBC Press. pp. 37–. ISBN   9780774841825 . Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  4. ↑ Schwartz, Tony; Gomes, Jean; McCarthy, Catherine (2011-02-01). Be Excellent at Anything: The Four Keys To Transforming the Way We Work and. Simon and Schuster. pp. 224–. ISBN   9781451639452 . Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  5. ↑ Elliott, Lynn (May–June 2002). "Breaking Down Walls". Old-House Journal . Active Interest Media, Inc.: 50–53. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  6. ↑ Schoenauer, Norbert (2003-06-24). 6,000 Years of Housing. W.W. Norton. pp. 384–. ISBN   9780393731200 . Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 The Case for Rooms
  8. ↑ "The Pros and Cons of Open Floor Plans | Case Design/Remodeling". 3 April 2012.
  9. ↑ "People in open-concept homes are realizing the walls were there for a reason". The Boston Globe .
  10. ↑ "The new home trend: two kitchens". House Beautiful. August 14, 2014.
  11. ↑ Duffy, F. (1997). The new office. London Conran Octopus
  12. ↑ Gillen, N. M. (2006). "The Future Workplace, Opportunities, Realities and Myths: A Practical Approach to Creating Meaningful Environments." In J. Worthington (Ed.), Reinventing the Workplace (2nd ed., pp. 61–78). Oxford: Architectural Press.
  13. 1 2 Davis, M. C., Leach, D. J., & Clegg, C. W. (2011). "The Physical Environment of the Office: Contemporary and Emerging Issues." In G. P. Hodgkinson & J. K. Ford (Eds.), International Review of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (Vol. 26, pp. 193–235). Chichester, UK: Wiley. doi : 10.1002/9781119992592.ch6
  14. ↑ "Cornell study".
  15. ↑ Nagourney, Adam. "Bloomberg Vows to Work at Center of Things", New York Times
  16. ↑ Vinesh Oommen (13 Jan 2009), "Why your office could be making you sick", Asia-Pacific Journal of Health Management, archived from the original on February 18, 2009
  17. ↑ Vinesh Oommen. "Why your office could be making you sick: study". Asia-Pacific Journal of Health Management. Archived from the original on 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  18. ↑ Treasure, Julian (16 October 2009). "The 4 ways sound affects us". TED.com. TED Talks. TED. Retrieved 2015-06-16. You are one third as productive in open-plan offices as in quiet rooms.
  19. ↑ Langston, Craig; Lauge-Kristensen, Rima (2013). Strategic Management of Built Facilities. Routledge. p. 137. ISBN   9781135138738 . Retrieved 2015-06-16. [...] voice-activated technology and mobile phones are increasing office noise levels and decreasing the effectiveness of existing open-plan arrangements.
  20. 1 2 Wertz, Jia. "Open-Plan Work Spaces Lower Productivity And Employee Morale". Forbes.
  21. ↑ "Open Office Plans: Advantages, Disadvantages, & Research". Adventure Associates. June 4, 2015.
  22. ↑ Bernstein, Ethan S.; Turban, Stephen (2018-08-19). "The impact of the 'open' workspace on human collaboration". Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B. 373 (1753): 20170239. doi:10.1098/rstb.2017.0239. ISSN   0962-8436. PMC   6030579 . PMID   29967303.
  23. ↑ Kim, Jungsoo; de Dear, Richard (2013). "Workspace satisfaction: The privacy-communication trade-off in open-plan offices" (PDF). Journal of Environmental Psychology. 36: 18–26. doi:10.1016/j.jenvp.2013.06.007. S2CID   18616604.
  24. ↑ Elsbach, K. D.; Pratt, M. G. (2007). "Chapter 4: The Physical Environment in Organizations". The Academy of Management Annals. 1 (1): 181–224. doi:10.1080/078559809.
  25. 1 2 Mauss, Daniel; Jarczok, Marc N.; Genser, Bernd; Herr, Raphael (2022-06-09). "Association of open-plan offices and sick leave - a systematic review and meta-analysis". Industrial Health. 61 (3): 173–183. doi: 10.2486/indhealth.2022-0053 . ISSN   1880-8026. PMC   10269830 . PMID   35675991.
  26. 1 2 Bodin Danielsson, Christina; Chungkham, Holendro Singh; Wulff, Cornelia; Westerlund, Hugo (2014). "Office design's impact on sick leave rates". Ergonomics. 57 (2): 139–147. doi:10.1080/00140139.2013.871064. PMID   24460745. S2CID   20019920.
  27. ↑ Pejtersen, Jan H; Feveile, Helene; Christensen, Karl B; Burr, Hermann (September 2011). "Sickness absence associated with shared and open-plan offices – a national cross sectional questionnaire survey". Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health. 37 (5): 376–382. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.3167 . ISSN   0355-3140. PMID   21528171.
  28. ↑ Richtel, Matt (7 May 2020). "Goodbye open plan, hello cubicles: What will offices look like after Covid-19?". The Irish Times. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  29. ↑ Candido C.; Chakraborty P.; Tjondronegoro D. (March 28, 2019). "The Rise of Office Design in High-Performance, Open-Plan Environments". Buildings. 100 (9): 100. doi: 10.3390/buildings9040100 . hdl: 10072/386437 . The majority of papers found in this Scopus search point to several shortcomings of open-plan offices, sometimes suggesting solutions to address dissatisfaction.
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