3 Mistakes to Avoid In Order To Maintain Ergonomics in the Workplace

According to a recent study made by the University of Texas, office walls that are grey, beige or similar colours can make employees sad and depressed (Lachance Shandrow, 2015 ¹). Along with the colour palette, discomfort is another factor that can negatively affect staff performance. In order to overcome these barriers to efficiency, businesses should look to give their workplace a makeover.

An office environment that is lively as well as comfortable can help in improving employees’ concentration. This can include a change in the colour scheme, aesthetics and furniture. While considering the furniture, offices should ensure that they provide comfortable and efficient options to their staff as most of their work is done on or around it. In order to provide optimum comfort to the employees, selecting ergonomic office furniture is important. However, due to the wide variety of options available, businesses can get confused and make an uninformed decision. To deter this, here are some of the common mistakes employers should avoid while buying furniture:

Physical characteristics

These traits include the height, weight, colour and material as well as the space the furniture might require. While selecting furniture for the office it is vital to consider the above factors so that employees have a hassle-free experience, while maintaining office ergonomics. For example, selecting chairs that are aesthetically appealing and also provide enough support to the lower back are an ideal option. However, if they are quite large and occupy a significant amount of office space, there might be less room for other things, thus making the office look congested. Hence, paying attention to only some and not all of the characteristics is one of the mistakes employers can avoid.

Quality over quantity

It is no surprise that everyone likes to get a discount on something they’ve purchased or get things at a more reasonable rate than expected. Employers might generally purchase products in bulk in order to receive the best discounts. However, while purchasing furniture in bulk, employers should make sure that the items are not defective or poorly made. They should verify that all the items match a certain quality standard. Purchasing office furniture in bulk at a low price but with no durability will mean that employers spend more in the future.

After sales services

This is an important point that is often not given enough attention. Businesses might purchase furniture that fulfils all of their requirements and is also of good quality but overlook the after sales services. This includes the cost of delivery, assembly, exchange period and the warranty period. Consider that the business has purchased chairs in bulk and assembled them in the office. A few months after assembling these, they find that the armrest of one of the chairs is not functioning. Not having a guarantee will mean the business spends money on a whole new chair. On the other hand, if the chair was guaranteed by the seller, the business would have been sent a substitute immediately, without having to pay a penny.

These are some of the mistakes employers can avoid while purchasing office furniture in order to maintain ergonomics in the workplace. If you would like to learn more about selecting office furniture, you can read our article about choosing executive office furniture here.