The main purpose of an office environment is to support its occupants in performing their job. Work spaces in an office are typically used for conventional office activities such as reading, writing and computer work. There are nine generic types of work space, each supporting different activities. In addition to individual cubicles, there are also meeting rooms, lounges, and spaces for support activities, such as photocopying and filing. Some offices also have a kitchen area where workers can make their lunches. There are many different ways of arranging the space in an office and whilst these vary according to function, managerial fashions and the culture of specific companies can be even more important. While offices can be built in almost any location and in almost any building, some modern requirements for offices make this more difficult, such as requirements for light, networking, and security. The primary purpose of an office building is to provide a workplace and working environment primarily for administrative and managerial workers. These workers usually occupy set areas within the office building, and usually are provided with desks, PCs and other equipment they may need within these areas.
By 1906, Sears, Roebuck and Co had opened their mail order and headquarters operation in a 3,000,000-square-foot (280,000 m2) building in Chicago, at the time the largest building in the world. The time and motion study, pioneered in manufacturing by F. W. Taylor and later applied to the office environment by Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, led to the idea that managers needed to play an active role in directing the work of subordinates in order to increase the efficiency of the workplace. F.W. Taylor advocated the use of large, open floor plans, and desks that faced supervisors.[5] As a result, in 1915, the Equitable Life Insurance Company in New York City introduced the “Modern Efficiency Desk” with a flat top and drawers below, designed to allow managers an easy view of the workers. This led to a demand for a large square footages per floor in buildings, and a return to the open spaces that were seen in pre–industrial revolution buildings.Japanese businesses have set themselves apart from their American counterparts by implementing different techniques in the way they handle business. The Japanese office layout improves work productivity, harmony in the office, and holds every employee accountable for the work they produce. The type of office layout used in Japan is called an open plan, and relies on ergonomics to help make employees as productive as possible. The Japanese open office layout allows them to use an organizational structure known as the horizontal structure. In the typical Japanese office there are no walls dividing desks, no cubicles, and no individual offices. Also they are able to implement policies using the ringi-sho consensus.In order to get group members to work effectively in the open office floor plan the use of island style desks are used. The most dominant feature of the Japanese island style office layout is that each group forms an island. Kageyu Noro, Goroh Fujimaki & Shinsuke Kishi, researches of ergonomics in the work place, stated,” Japanese offices have traditionally adhered to island layouts because these reflect the Japanese style of teamwork and top-down style of management.”[6] The group leader will then sit at the prominent position and ensure productivity.The group leader will assign a task to the group, and each member of the group then receives their individual task to complete. Island style seating also gives the group the benefit of being able to speak to one another at any time, and ask for help if needed. Being in such close proximity to one another in the office gives another advantage to the supervisor in that he can call an uchi-awase. Uchi-awase is an informal meeting in order to get an important message across, and also allows all members of the team to be creative in the office. “The open office layout allows for this because there are hardly any independent rooms or enclosures. If the supervisor stands at his desk he can glance at his associates and easily call them over.
By 1906, Sears, Roebuck and Co had opened their mail order and headquarters operation in a 3,000,000-square-foot (280,000 m2) building in Chicago, at the time the largest building in the world. The time and motion study, pioneered in manufacturing by F. W. Taylor and later applied to the office environment by Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, led to the idea that managers needed to play an active role in directing the work of subordinates in order to increase the efficiency of the workplace. F.W. Taylor advocated the use of large, open floor plans, and desks that faced supervisors.[5] As a result, in 1915, the Equitable Life Insurance Company in New York City introduced the “Modern Efficiency Desk” with a flat top and drawers below, designed to allow managers an easy view of the workers. This led to a demand for a large square footages per floor in buildings, and a return to the open spaces that were seen in pre–industrial revolution buildings.Japanese businesses have set themselves apart from their American counterparts by implementing different techniques in the way they handle business. The Japanese office layout improves work productivity, harmony in the office, and holds every employee accountable for the work they produce. The type of office layout used in Japan is called an open plan, and relies on ergonomics to help make employees as productive as possible. The Japanese open office layout allows them to use an organizational structure known as the horizontal structure. In the typical Japanese office there are no walls dividing desks, no cubicles, and no individual offices. Also they are able to implement policies using the ringi-sho consensus.In order to get group members to work effectively in the open office floor plan the use of island style desks are used. The most dominant feature of the Japanese island style office layout is that each group forms an island. Kageyu Noro, Goroh Fujimaki & Shinsuke Kishi, researches of ergonomics in the work place, stated,” Japanese offices have traditionally adhered to island layouts because these reflect the Japanese style of teamwork and top-down style of management.”[6] The group leader will then sit at the prominent position and ensure productivity.The group leader will assign a task to the group, and each member of the group then receives their individual task to complete. Island style seating also gives the group the benefit of being able to speak to one another at any time, and ask for help if needed. Being in such close proximity to one another in the office gives another advantage to the supervisor in that he can call an uchi-awase. Uchi-awase is an informal meeting in order to get an important message across, and also allows all members of the team to be creative in the office. “The open office layout allows for this because there are hardly any independent rooms or enclosures. If the supervisor stands at his desk he can glance at his associates and easily call them over.
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