Agile solutions

Ergonomic solutions for hot desking environments

There are three key solutions that can be installed in office environments to aid flexibility of workstations for ergonomic wellbeing.

Sit/stand desks are increasingly popular as these not only allow the user to adjust the height of the desk when seated, but also to vary between working in a seated and standing position. However, the cost of these desks can be an obstacle for specification in some environments and not all office workers want or need sit/stand functionality.

Use of an ergonomic chair is an important factor too, because the chair supports the spine and encourages a good seating position. A good chair should also be height adjustable and provide options for neck, back and arm support.

For hot desking environments, selecting the right monitor arm is perhaps the easiest and most effective measure for adapting workstations for different users quickly and easily. For example, CMD’s Reach Plus monitor arm, which attaches to any desk with a universal C clamp fixing, enables fingertip movement of the screen position to enable the user to adjust a single or double screen configuration to the optimum height and position for them. The monitor arm can support combined monitor weights of between 6kg and 15kg but the user can easily move them up, down, sideways or forwards and back.

Monitor arm development is constantly evolving and CMD will be launching the Miro monitor arm in 2022, which will be capable of supporting any monitor from 1kg to 10kg and allow the user to adjust the height of their screen quickly, with a patent pending mechanism that allows synchronised movement of both arms, enabling them to open upwards and close downwards in a smooth and simple vertical action.

Many agile working models involve people working from laptops at home and bringing them into the office, so office workstations that enable rapid ergonomic set up of a laptop alongside a monitor are also key to providing the ease of set up and adaptability workers need. Look for ergonomic workstations which can be configured to include monitor and laptop support. These can provide ease of adjustment for both the monitor and laptop screen with the use of a separate keyboard, to allow rapid set-up and positioning, avoiding the temptation to hunch over a laptop.

Adaptability

The statistics show there has been a physical deterioration amongst staff over the past two years, with the HSE(ii) reporting that of the 470,000 workers suffering from work-related musculoskeletal disorders in 2020/21 an estimated 85,000 reported that this was caused or made worse by the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic. However, as workers return to the office it is important to note that prior to the Coronavirus pandemic the main causes of work-related musculoskeletal disorders from the Labour Force Survey(iii) were manual handling, working in awkward or tiring positions and repetitive action or keyboard work. This goes to show how workstations that can adapt to individuals are just as essential as individuals who can adapt to changing work routines.