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Has China made office furniture improved?

I just landed at Terminal two of Guangzhou’s Baiyun International Airport just in time for the 43rd CIFF (China International Furniture Fair). Phase-2 which is mostly for commercial furniture exhibitors. The first thing I noticed was this shiny new hi-tech terminal with face recognition capabilities and lots of smart technology integrated around the airport. This has to be good, China has come a long way since my last trip to the country 12 years ago.

Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport

Huge Marketplace

Upon arriving on the exhibition grounds, I find myself in a maze of stalls, space, and people. Honestly, I am lost and don’t know where to start. Much has changed since my last trip and the crowd is enormous. It’s like the whole of Asia converged in one place looking for the best bargain to trade into their home countries.

43rd CIFF (China International Furniture Fair)

After getting a map, I was able to find my way. Day one is basically just a meet and greet with some of my old friends and past suppliers. We hang out for an early dim sum nearby and talked about how things have changed over the years. As most of us would do, we tend to relax and take it easy on the first day. To focus and have more energy for the next day.

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Peace and Privacy in a Pod

It was the start of the week and I received a call from a client complaining about noise pollution in their office. Their workplace happens to be an open planned office with an integrated trading and operations center in one common space. Their principal from the US will be coming in a months time and this issue must be resolved as soon as possible.

Possible Solutions

We quickly rushed for the meeting and brainstormed solutions that can be done within a three-week timeline. Re-arranging the tables to isolate high noise generating areas is one, providing more glass and drywall partitions is another and finding another office space with a bigger floor plate to separate the departments are put on consideration.

None of this seems to work given the schedule as well as cost implication and disruption to its operations. Similarly, the management insists to keep the space open for natural lighting and flexibility of movement.

The S-Pod
A newly installed S-pod

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Whimsical Evening for Interior Designers in Singapore

It was a Friday night, time to spend a whimsical evening with the top interior designers in Singapore. The place, Marriott at South Beach Tower. The epicenter of the Singapore Interior Design Awards. Where the best of the region are given credit for their creativity, passion and work as Designers.

SIDA Gala 2019

Society of Interior Designers Singapore

The event is yearly organized by the Society of Interior Designers Singapore (SIDS)started in 1994 and is one of the oldest professional society to represent the Interior designers & interior design industry as a whole. As a non-profit organization that serves the interior design industry at a national level, the council headed by its President Mr. Keat Ong, sets stringent tasks to raise and uphold the professional standards and reputation of the Interior Design profession in the country.

Society of Interior Designers Singapore, Council Members

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Sharing my experience in a Singapore office design firm

The Office Designer Design Fees2

Expectation Vs Reality

When one is straight out of college, starting a job is an overwhelming experience. Working in a professional environment, living up to the expectations of your superiors and the underlying pressure to prove oneself can be a lot to juggle. When I started my trainee program. I was afraid to make decisions or give opinions as I continued to have a college student perspective.

First few days at work involved familiarizing myself with the project and the office workflow. I knew it was not going to be easy since this was the first time I was working on a real-life project. However, with the right mentoring and progressive guidance. I gradually managed to get the hang of things and understood the way they worked. When communication is clear and you know exactly what to do, tasks can be executed efficiently and delivered within deadlines.

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A complete workplace solution at the outskirts of Singapore

A client has approached me with a piece of ergonomic furniture that she liked and preferred for their office fit-out. The image provided to us has no clue of the brand and source of the piece of furniture. As we are searching for the product on the internet we came across a company located on the outskirts of Singapore.

Finding the right company

After driving almost an hour from our office in the Central Business District. I was surprised to see one of the widest collection of ergonomic and contemporary office furniture tucked away on a two-story showroom in Woodlands. The name of the company, Exsto Asia Pte Ltd.

The Office Designer_Exsto1

Looking around their showroom, We found what we are looking for. It was actually an Ergotron work fit product that our client has confirmed. We found more interesting products from this company. We had a good feeling that they will be one of our regular supplier for our future ergonomic requirements. Continue reading “A complete workplace solution at the outskirts of Singapore”

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Ergonomics, the Active Workspace, Healthy Workplace

We have been talking about office ergonomics for a while and the benefits that it brings to our life. But often times it may also be too complex a topic for us to understand. While specialist and chiropractors at juststand.org give about every fact and research about ergonomics, we tend to ignore it.

The office designer about ergonomics

For now, let’s just talk about the basics. Research shows that sedentary behavior or sitting for long periods of time can be detrimental to our health and wellbeing. Simply put it this way, being active in your own workspace can be healthy. It can ward off diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Disease associated with the sedentary lifestyle. Continue reading “Ergonomics, the Active Workspace, Healthy Workplace”