Commercial office design is dynamic, as the needs and behaviour of users evolve. Commercial office design in Melbourne is no exception. As society is driven by culture, tradition and heritage, as well as the economy and its technology, commercial office design is no different. The idea of an office has drastically changed throughout the years. From the simple cubicle to the collaborative spaces of an open area, it just seems to keep on evolving. It is partly due to the necessities one needs to ease the working process and the expected environment one wants to have when at work. An office is an environment that differs among individuals and depends on what is being done in the office. Commercial office fitout designers have to take into account the people, the work being done, the culture and technology present at the time necessary for a smooth, transactional office space. To trace Melbourne’s commercial office design, one needs to understand history as well since it plays a part into what is anchored in each evolution of office design. 1800Industrial OfficeIn the 1800s, offices started to gain traction due to the need of a singular area where workers could exact their job in a manner that provided a close vicinity for communication and processes. Hierarchy in the building was highly present where the lower level workers were separated from the higher level employees through different floors and varying rooms for privacy and seclusion. Wood was the common material used since it was cheaper. From the tables to the chairs, it had no aesthetics, only practically, as expected from the beginning of an office design suited for jobs alone without taking into account the human aspects of it. In fact, only the highest level employees had access to an office with upholstered fabric furniture.Although it did make use of open spaces for the lower level workers and made use of natural light through large windows since gas lamps were in majority their source of light, it did not entertain once again the human aspects since the open space was not used for collaboration but instead for more people to be cramped together to provide maximum output and natural light was not used to alleviate mood but because there were little resources for electricity at that time. In other words, it was work for work’s sake and not for the people during the time.Early 1900Taylorist OfficeIn the early 1900s, there were slight adjustments to the office set-up since electric lighting was finally developed to replace gas lamps. With the advancement of lighting, there was also a slight advancement in terms of hierarchy since although the executives still had a separate floor or room, the higher-ups were now lumped with the lower-level workers to provide ease in communication and supervision. The cubicle was born. In this time, there were little human aspects being considered such as privacy and ease in materials since cubicles gave space for privacy while their tables now had cabinets to place belongings and needed materials to aid them in their work. It was still symmetrical and a plain office setup which was greatly influenced by the industrial office setup but it greatly improved with the sense of necessary lighting, steel swivel chairs, and armchairs as well as cabinets in tables. The advancement is said to resemble a family or a machine.Late 1900Burolandschaft OfficeIn the later half of the 20th century, just as the moon landing occurred being a big step for mankind, so did the office fitout design since it, now, greatly considered mankind as well as the environment. There were now office plan spaces that included irregular geometry and circular organic patterns that aided in better collaboration as well as the possibility of bringing nature and plants into the office. Aside from the simple plant decor, natural lighting was also being brought up once again to the fold to save electricity. It took on a flexible approach to office space where modular office designs were brought into the picture. It now catered for the needs of the employees and saw an enlightenment into the men-are-not-robots issue that is still being fought even today. Additionally, since it saw an influx of women in the workplace, tables now had modesty boards or wooden panels on the front to cover their legs. This further led to a regression in the workplace since cubicle farms were brought back in the workplace to ensure privacy and safety among women. 2000Virtual OfficeThe world wide web was now a hit and brought forth the computers in offices and advances in technology later on brought forth a new age of office fitout design that included proper lighting, sockets and charging stations to accommodate the many technology-savvy employees. Communal areas and meeting rooms were now quite important to answer the needs of employees’ social aspects as well as their individual differences. Collaboration is quite important here since it now designs itself in a variety of workspaces fit for the unique individuals in the workspace. Later on in the 2010s and up, employee well-being was now focused on where gone are the office cubicles and here are the free spaces of natural light and natural systems in the office were back again.Sort of like a two steps forward, one step back, the office fitout design was now back to being two steps ahead. Aside from mental health and individual differences being in the picture. Melbourne is now interested in not just the office once again but of people too since productivity and well-being are correlational in the workplace. It now caters to a hybrid setup and focuses on aesthetics and comfort in the picture as seen in game rooms, quiet rooms or sleeping rooms, art installations being present and basically a home away from home idea brought to life to ensure maximum output as well as maximum humanity in the highly technological, modular and adaptable workplace. In fact, AI is now a promising aspect of office fitout design. Could it be the next trend? We’ll find out soon enough. Greater Group is a multi-disciplinary global retail design agency. We have been creating award-winning retail spaces, customer experiences and workplaces since 1989, utilising our combined expertise to deliver high-impact, high-return design, fit-out and manufacturing solutions and provide clients with one point of contact throughout. Contact us at contact@thegreatergroup.com to discuss how we can elevate your brand through innovative, future-proof workplace design solutions.Share :
Commercial office design is dynamic, as the needs and behaviour of users evolve. Commercial office design in Melbourne is no exception. As society is driven by culture, tradition and heritage, as well as the economy and its technology, commercial office design is no different. The idea of an office has drastically changed throughout the years. From the simple cubicle to the collaborative spaces of an open area, it just seems to keep on evolving. It is partly due to the necessities one needs to ease the working process and the expected environment one wants to have when at work. An office is an environment that differs among individuals and depends on what is being done in the office. Commercial office fitout designers have to take into account the people, the work being done, the culture and technology present at the time necessary for a smooth, transactional office space. To trace Melbourne’s commercial office design, one needs to understand history as well since it plays a part into what is anchored in each evolution of office design. 1800Industrial OfficeIn the 1800s, offices started to gain traction due to the need of a singular area where workers could exact their job in a manner that provided a close vicinity for communication and processes. Hierarchy in the building was highly present where the lower level workers were separated from the higher level employees through different floors and varying rooms for privacy and seclusion. Wood was the common material used since it was cheaper. From the tables to the chairs, it had no aesthetics, only practically, as expected from the beginning of an office design suited for jobs alone without taking into account the human aspects of it. In fact, only the highest level employees had access to an office with upholstered fabric furniture.Although it did make use of open spaces for the lower level workers and made use of natural light through large windows since gas lamps were in majority their source of light, it did not entertain once again the human aspects since the open space was not used for collaboration but instead for more people to be cramped together to provide maximum output and natural light was not used to alleviate mood but because there were little resources for electricity at that time. In other words, it was work for work’s sake and not for the people during the time.Early 1900Taylorist OfficeIn the early 1900s, there were slight adjustments to the office set-up since electric lighting was finally developed to replace gas lamps. With the advancement of lighting, there was also a slight advancement in terms of hierarchy since although the executives still had a separate floor or room, the higher-ups were now lumped with the lower-level workers to provide ease in communication and supervision. The cubicle was born. In this time, there were little human aspects being considered such as privacy and ease in materials since cubicles gave space for privacy while their tables now had cabinets to place belongings and needed materials to aid them in their work. It was still symmetrical and a plain office setup which was greatly influenced by the industrial office setup but it greatly improved with the sense of necessary lighting, steel swivel chairs, and armchairs as well as cabinets in tables. The advancement is said to resemble a family or a machine.Late 1900Burolandschaft OfficeIn the later half of the 20th century, just as the moon landing occurred being a big step for mankind, so did the office fitout design since it, now, greatly considered mankind as well as the environment. There were now office plan spaces that included irregular geometry and circular organic patterns that aided in better collaboration as well as the possibility of bringing nature and plants into the office. Aside from the simple plant decor, natural lighting was also being brought up once again to the fold to save electricity. It took on a flexible approach to office space where modular office designs were brought into the picture. It now catered for the needs of the employees and saw an enlightenment into the men-are-not-robots issue that is still being fought even today. Additionally, since it saw an influx of women in the workplace, tables now had modesty boards or wooden panels on the front to cover their legs. This further led to a regression in the workplace since cubicle farms were brought back in the workplace to ensure privacy and safety among women. 2000Virtual OfficeThe world wide web was now a hit and brought forth the computers in offices and advances in technology later on brought forth a new age of office fitout design that included proper lighting, sockets and charging stations to accommodate the many technology-savvy employees. Communal areas and meeting rooms were now quite important to answer the needs of employees’ social aspects as well as their individual differences. Collaboration is quite important here since it now designs itself in a variety of workspaces fit for the unique individuals in the workspace. Later on in the 2010s and up, employee well-being was now focused on where gone are the office cubicles and here are the free spaces of natural light and natural systems in the office were back again.Sort of like a two steps forward, one step back, the office fitout design was now back to being two steps ahead. Aside from mental health and individual differences being in the picture. Melbourne is now interested in not just the office once again but of people too since productivity and well-being are correlational in the workplace. It now caters to a hybrid setup and focuses on aesthetics and comfort in the picture as seen in game rooms, quiet rooms or sleeping rooms, art installations being present and basically a home away from home idea brought to life to ensure maximum output as well as maximum humanity in the highly technological, modular and adaptable workplace. In fact, AI is now a promising aspect of office fitout design. Could it be the next trend? We’ll find out soon enough. Greater Group is a multi-disciplinary global retail design agency. We have been creating award-winning retail spaces, customer experiences and workplaces since 1989, utilising our combined expertise to deliver high-impact, high-return design, fit-out and manufacturing solutions and provide clients with one point of contact throughout. Contact us at contact@thegreatergroup.com to discuss how we can elevate your brand through innovative, future-proof workplace design solutions.Share :