Benching workstations are open-concept furnishings that allow employees to work side by side at a shared table rather than at separate desks or in separate cubicles. This furniture style contributes to the open concept and can be highly effective when appropriately implemented. Carefully consider your office’s needs, your employees’ preferences, and the pros and cons of benching workstations to determine if benching workstations are right for your business.
Benching Workstations: The Benefits
Incorporating benching workstations into your office can provide several important benefits:
- By grouping employees together, these workstations foster employee collaborations, which can generate heightened creativity and camaraderie.
- Benching workstations maximize office space and are, thus, cost efficient.
- Benching workstations are extremely flexible, which allows them to be arranged and reconfigured as your work needs evolve (or as new projects arise).
While cubicle systems share some of these benefits, benching workstations take them to the next level by tearing down cubicle’s walls, halving their physical space, costing less, and being much less cumbersome to move.
Benching Workstations: The Concerns
Incorporating an office full of benching workstations is obviously not the right choice for every business. These open-concept furnishings incorporate features that can be detrimental in some office settings:
- Because benching workstations are open concept, they provide very little privacy and do little to minimize distractions. Division panels, however, can be incorporated and are easy to customize for individual needs.
- Due to the increased distraction levels inherent to the open plan generally and to benching workstations specifically, employees can experience decreased productivity.
- The proximity of employees working at benching workstations can also speed the spread of employee illnesses during the cold and flu season.
Pick and Choose
Some businesses find that incorporating pockets of open-concept furnishings throughout their workspace – rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach – works well. Such workspaces are often implemented for those tasks and projects that hinge upon creative collaborations. If you are contemplating incorporating open-concept furnishings like benching workstations into your office, carefully consider your goals and your employees’ needs and consult with an experienced office-furniture professional who will guide you toward the best fit for your office.
Allow InterWork to Help You Optimize Your Office
InterWork is here to help you optimize your office space. We have 30 years of experience helping employers just like you invest in office furniture that suits their needs, budget, employees, and aesthetic. At InterWork, we offer a vast selection of benching stations, and our massive inventory includes new, refurbished, and Grade A pre-owned. For skilled guidance in optimizing your office space with open-plan furnishings, give us a call at 800-821-3522 or send us an email through our online contact form today.
