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Monday 28 February 2011

Brits Baffled by Modern Life?

A recent survey has found that millions of Britons are confused by modern life!  Among the most popular causes for confusion were financial jargon, sports rules and interpreting the instructions on flat-pack furniture.

So, What Gets Britons Confuddled?
  1. Cricket Rules- 40%
  2. Financial Terms and Conditions- 36%
  3. Credit Card Interest Rates- 35%
  4. Football Offside Rule- 33%
  5. Working out Petrol Prices in Gallons- 29%
  6. Flat-Pack Furniture Instructions- 25%
  7. Computer Software- 23%
  8. Train Ticket Prices- 20%
  9. Product Warranties- 15%
  10. Airport Check-In Regulations- 13%
If you're one of these people who finds themselves pulling their hair out at the prospect of putting together your own furniture, why not have a look for companies who can offer you furniture installations?  Whether you're buying home or office furniture, it is often more cost-effective and less time consuming to have a team install your furniture for you- and it certainly beats you struggling on your own!  

At Verve Workspace, we have an extremely dedicated and helpful installations team, who specialise in office furniture installations.  We always arrange installations around our customers' schedules so that the job can be done with minimum amounts of hassle for the client. 

"The service and quality of Verve's products is awesome!... Despite my fears of having to close the clinic whilst the desk was fitted, the guys started early in the morning and the whole installation was seamlessly completed in just over one hour. They didn't complain about carting our old desk down a flight of stairs afterwards. It was such great customer service- I haven't had this level of service from any other company I've dealt with."- Director, Weight Medics 

The team are always on hand to help our customers, and they're never afraid to get their hands dirty- they always clear away the mess of packaging that follows an installation- we even caught one member of our exceptional team hoovering up afterwards!  If needed, we can also arrange for the team to remove and dispose of your existing furniture for you.  

Whatever your specification, we can find the best options to suit you.  For more information about our services available, please visit our website or call us on: 08450 69 79 89.

"We have used Verve on many occasions and each time they have provided a good quality service from start to finish.  They provide good quality furniture and give valuable advice on planning.  All of the team at Verve were both professional and courteous and we were very pleased with the results- our offices now look and feel more like they should, and this was done with minimal disruption."- Business Continuity


Monday 21 February 2011

Having Trouble Choosing Boardroom and Meeting Tables?

At Verve Workspace, we are often called upon for advice from clients who are struggling to choose a suitable boardroom or meeting room table for their company.  At first, it might not sound too difficult to choose a suitable table, but there are thousands of different options that you could go for, and sometimes, the more choice you have, the more difficult the decisions become! So, where should you start?

Well, first of all, you should think about how many people you would generally need to fit around the table- this will give you a rough guide line on sizing.  Do you have a particular shape of table in mind?  Please be aware that different factories have different names for table shapes, so what most people may refer to as a 'barrel' shaped table may be a completely different shape to a factory- it is always best to clarify any ideas that you may have- even if you just do a very rough sketch to show what you mean.

An Elliptical Boardroom Table in a melamine finish, with
two glass inserts and cable management inserts.
Now, there are so many different materials that you can choose from for your table.  If you want a simple, cost-effective table, you could go for a table in a melamine finish.  Melamine finishes offer a lot of choice; they are carefully matched so that they look fantastic, and it is easy to acquire other furniture pieces in exactly the same finish so that everything matches.  


A barrel shaped veneer boardroom
table with  special veneer inlays.
If you are looking for a wooden finish, but want something more expensive, you could have a look at some real wood veneer boardroom tables.  With veneers, you can have a plain finish, but you could also add some special veneer detailing to make your table less generic.  

You could opt for a border around the table top in a contrasting veneer, or you could add special veneer inlays to the table top.  There are many standard shaped inlays, including the diamonds you see within the table top to the left, but you could also go for something more bespoke.  


Boardroom table with veneer inlay.
Of course, the pricing will change depending on these different options, so ask your furniture supplier to give you a range of different options along with pricing to see where you are, and which options suit you best.


You should also consider whether you will need to accommodate cable management within the 
the table.  Will staff be using laptops during the meetings?  


An example of flip top socket housing.
If so, then it might be important to incorporate power sockets and cable management options in to the table itself.  There are innumerable options available, including cable inserts, flip top socket housing, shuttle modules and cable splines.  These options are designed to offer cable and power management solutions which are subtle.  




If many external visitors will be using your meeting room, you might want to stun them with a beautiful glass boardroom table.  Now, it is rare to find glass boardroom tables which are manufactured solely in the UK- they more often come from countries like Italy, which means that they generally have longer lead times.  However, these glass tables are certainly worth the wait!
  
An etched glass boardroom table with silver legs.
You can opt for either a clear glass table top, or have other effects such as crackled or etched glass- these effects make people's legs much less visible when seated at the table, though choices like this can affect price.  Even things like the leg options on a table can have a big effect on price, so ask your furniture supplier to go through the types of leg options, and have a look at how things like that change the price.  


Good glass boardroom tables will be manufactured with high grade glass and will have specially engineered frames that are extremely strong.  These tables really are the 'creme de la creme' of the boardroom, and can suit almost any setting!  


Now that we've dealt with tables, you might want to look at other furniture for your boardroom- credenza storage units are particularly popular because you can easily incorporate mini bar fridges in to them.  Most boardroom table ranges will also offer complimenting furniture which will match your meeting table perfectly both in terms of style and finish.  We also have a fantastic variety of meeting room chairs on our website, at many different price points to suit your every need.  




If you have any questions, or would like some advice on boardroom furniture, please don't hesitate to contact us on: 08450 69 79 89 and we'll be happy to help you.

Friday 18 February 2011

The Wasted Triangle!

The Wasted Triangle!
How to maximise the space of your office desk.



Let me take you back to a simpler time, where we meet an old friend- the old desktop PC.  Now, when these PCs roamed the country's offices, office furniture such as corner desks were specially designed to accommodate the enormous monitor screens, whilst also leaving enough room to work comfortably from, with extra room for the keyboard and mouse.

But what happened when the flat screen computers invaded?  Good question.  Nowadays, offices still use the old corner desk clusters, though the new flat screen monitors leave a large of unused space behind the monitor.  We call this unused space the wasted triangle!  It is not just the corner desk clusters either- the next time you head in to the office, have a look around for desk space that is being wasted.  It is a lot more common than you would expect.


Beware, the red triangles of waste!
How can you maximise your desk space?


Monitor arms and mounts are now available, so that your monitor can be attached to the screen or even to the desk on a pole.  The mounts can also be clamped to the desk, or can be set through the desk- they incorporate cable management which makes everything look a lot tidier.  
This saves an incredible amount of desk space, and the monitor arms also make it a lot easier to adjust the screen as and when needed.  Most monitor arms also allow you to adjust the height of the monitor screen, so that it can be used and modified comfortably by everyone.


If you have a battle with endless stacks of paperwork on your desk, you might be interested in the letter trays we offer.  Letter trays can be easily attached to screens, and they help you to organise and store your paperwork out of the way, so that you have room on your desk to complete the paperwork!  




Other trays are also available, including CD trays and accessory trays to keep your pens in.  You can also get pen trays that can be placed in the top drawer of your pedestal, to save you extra space at your workstation.


If you would like some advice about ways in which to maximise your office's desk space, give us a ring on: 08450 69 79 89 and we'll be more than happy to help you.

Wednesday 16 February 2011

How to create a good reception for your business!

Verve is the Word!
Reception Desks, Counters, Systems and Seating Galore!




The company reception is one of the most important elements for a business- particularly for those businesses who deal with customers on a frequent basis.  The reception area will normally be the first thing that your customers or clients see when they enter your company's premises and their first impressions of your company will be shaped by the reception area.  


Your business will have its own style and presence, and the reception area is a perfect setting in which to encompass it.  When deciding how to decorate and furnish your reception, think carefully about your business and how you would like to present it to your customers.  The simplest designs are usually the most effective, so it is usually best to choose simple colours and styles which will give the room a clean, innovative atmosphere that welcomes the customers, rather than overly busy designs which can be distracting.


For example, a doctors or dental surgery might want to create a relaxing setting for their patients, through the use of calm colours and soft seating- this will help to put the patients at ease and will make the experience of going to the doctors or dentists much less disconcerting.  

 We can offer a wide range of reception units- the most popular being modular reception counters, because there are so many different choices of shape, sizes and finishes whilst still being extremely cost effective.

Whether you need a small island reception counter, or a large enclosed unit that incorporates storage devices, we can offer something for everyone.  We have around 13 different melamine finishes to choose from which look absolutely fantastic!  


If you are looking for the ideal seating options for your reception, why not take a look at our reception seating ranges?  There are so many different styles and types of seating available, including bench seating, sofas, chairs and stools.  Think carefully about whether your clients would be comfortable sitting next to each other on a sofa or whether it would be more suitable to have individual chairs.  

If you have any queries, or would like some advice or ideas for your own reception, please don't hesitate to contact us on: 08450 69 79 89 and we'll be happy to help you.  

Friday 4 February 2011

The Importance of a Good Back Support or Ergonomic Office Chair...

If you are sitting uncomfortably, I shall begin...







Here is a useful video about the importance of a good back support chair and how it can help you when you are working.  For more information about how to choose a good back support chair, why not have a look at my previous article, 'What should you consider when choosing a new chair?'?  


It should give you a good idea of things to consider when choosing a decent chair that will suit its purpose brilliantly.  Enjoy!