Office Layout: Types, Examples, & Tips

1. What is an Office Layout?

An office layout reflects the corporate statement of your business. More than that, it creates a wholesome environment that can make everybody at ease but efficient in their work at the same time. Hence, it is best to plan your office floor plan as per the atmosphere you want to create in your office.

The term office layout deals with the design and décor of an office. It takes into account all the equipment, supplies, accessories, and designs an arrangement needed for the proper functioning of an office. All are within the available floor space so that all procedures and personnel can work efficiently and effectively.

In simpler words, it is the blueprint of the office floor, and hence, called the office floor plan. An office layout can be practical only when it makes your employees more efficient in their tasks. Let’s say, for example, an office floor plan where all the employees in your accounts department get grouped into one area or floor depending on the space available. It will help them to carry out their tasks more efficiently as they can now communicate within themselves much better than before.

 

2. Main Objectives of Office Layouts.

There are a few aspects you need to consider while designing a good office floor plan or layout. There are some minimum standards or objectives that an office layout needs to suffice. The main aim, however, remains to be the streamlined workflow, keeping in mind employee satisfaction. The following are the main objectives of an office floor plan:

A whole amount of planning makes an excellent office floor plan needed for satisfying the high standards or objectives is always favorable to your business.

 

3. Different Types of Office Layouts.

1. Open-Plan Office Layout

In an Open-Planoffice layout, there are no walls or separators between workstations. Instead, they get defined by furniture in the office area, including cupboards, shelves, cabinets, etc. The desks may get stacked up side-by-side or replaced altogether with work-tables capable of facilitating multiple employees at one go.

Pros & Cons:

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2. Private Office Layout

A private office layout uses a cellular style workstation, with the interior walls reach up to the ceiling. It means that these parts are completely sealed off from the rest of the office floor. It is the most widely preferred seating arrangement for the senior managers of an organization. Sometimes more than one manager would share a private office.

Pros & Cons:

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3. Cubicle Office Layout

A cubicle office layout is the most used type. It is a type of open plan layout where the workspaces are separated from one another using partitioning walls to form a shape of a cube, hence cubicle. It is the most cost-efficient type of office layout. You can see this type of plan in combination with private offices for senior staff and built-in meeting rooms.

Pros & Cons:

4. Co-Working Office Layout

It is one of the greatest innovations in office layout designing in this century. These plans are best for the self-employed who generally are mobile with their work. What’s more, is that you don’t need to create this workspace; but pay a small fee and find a workstation you like or a spot on the lounge.

Pros & Cons:

5. Home Office Layout

Suppose you have space at your home, then you can design a home office layout for yourself. You have to follow no specific format to create your home office. You can use as much space as you want and anything in your office. Your home office layout must have a good chair and a work table. If you have clients at your house, you can add sofas and other chairs. Include a cupboard for files and documents, and color your walls to your liking.

Pros	Cons
A home office is comfortable. You can work and rest anytime. You don’t have to use a commute to get to your office	You can’t communicate much with your colleagues. You can easily get distracted at your home office. Always sitting makes you lazy.

6. Small Office Floor Plan

You can use a small office floor plan when there are fewer employees in your company. This type of office layout only works when your company only has ten employees. Small offices are the best for collaboration and communication between colleagues. You can only have limited space in a small office, so when new employees are at your company, you either have to change office or re-model.

Pros	Cons
Good for communication. Employees can do their tasks without wasting time. It creates a positive team environment.	Chit chats can distract employees from work. Employees get no privacy. It might give anxiety.

7. Oval Office Layout

You can use an oval office layout if you have extra space and want a big and classy office. An oval office layout is different from a general office as you don't have any straight walls to design and place the furniture. You can place sofas and chairs along with your chair and table in the middle, and the sides must be empty for people to move around the office quickly. You can decorate the office walls and use small tables to place room décor.

Pros	Cons
An oval office layout makes lots of free space around the office. It makes communication easier. It gives a calm feeling to your employees.	It wastes too much space. You can only have selective furniture in the office. It is hard to change the layout of an oval office.

 

4. Benefits of Good Office Layouts

These are just a few of the varied benefits of a proper and effective office floor plan.

 

5. Office Layout Ideas

There are many things to consider before you design your office layout. In the past, a cubical was a standard for every office layout, but nowadays, efficiency and best use of workplace is more important. You have to make sure that the office layout is best for your employees and you are optimizing the available space to accommodate all of your employees. You also need to add meeting rooms where employees will interact with clients. Please look at some of the popular office layout ideas down here, and they will help you pick a suitable layout based on your line of work.

 

6. Office Floor Plan Examples: Traditional VS. Stylish.

In this section, we will take two examples of office floor plans: one traditional and one more modern and stylish. We will analyze the various features of these two examples, the style portrayed, and the advantages each possess. Find more office layout templates.

Features:

Style:

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Advantages:

7. How to Plan An Office Layout with EdrawMax Online?

Before we plan an office floor plan with EdrawMax online, there are a few things you must note.

Now, let us see how to create an office layout with EdrawMax:

Step 1: Open https://www.edrawmax.com/online/and login with your credentials.

Step 2: Scroll down the immediate left menu bar and find the “Building Plan.” On that same page, click on “Office Layout.”

Step 3: Scroll down to find the customized and template options available for Office Layout.

Step 4: Click on “+” to start making the Office Layout from scratch or click on any of the available templates to start editing them accordingly.

Step 5: Once the entire drawing and planning are over, save it by clicking on the “Save As” option from the “File.” Select the location you want to save the file at, change the name, and click on "OK."

Here you can find detailed steps of how to design an office layout.

 

8. New Trends in Office Layout

Modern offices are more than just your workspace. They do not portray the traditional office environment. These offices are more focused on creating a wholesome and friendly environment for employees.

Biophilic designs go a long way to create a comfortable working environment. The integration of technology is another trend in 21st-century offices.

9. Office Design Software

Designing an office layout with diagramming software such as EdrawMax Online would be best. It is the best office design software as you can create your office layout in no time using it. It comes with a comprehensive template gallery. You can get professional templates and design your office layout, and it gives you lots of customization tools to make changes in the templates. With EdrawMax, you can also create an office layout from scratch by using its symbol library. If 2D doesn't work for you, you can use 3D icons to make the layout. It also gives you the option to make slides and export your diagram in any format you want.

 

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