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Signage and the New Workplace
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blog
Businesses of all sizes are changing the way they look at their “in-office” workforce. Amazon, Google, and Apple have adopted some form of hybrid approach to where people work, allowing employees to split time between working from home and working in the office. That’s caused those companies, and many others around the country, to re-evaluate their use of offices and work areas.
Pre-pandemic, companies had office spaces that were usually occupied by one person. For example, Susan’s office was over there, Jeff’s office was down the hall, Steve’s was on the second floor, and so on. But COVID has changed the way we use office spaces in a profound way, as many office employees grabbed their laptops and headed home to work remotely.
As the world opens back up and workers return to the office, it’s becoming clear that some employees would prefer a hybrid approach and the opportunity to continue to work from home for at least a portion of the week. And a significant number of companies are agreeing to do just that. But what does that mean for the traditional office space, and how will that impact your business?
The Move to Modular
Companies are rethinking their workspace in ways that didn’t seem practical a year ago. Instead of an office or cubicle being assigned to one employee, modular spaces or “hoteling” are becoming a popular choice to make better use of on-site environments. Employees can reserve offices and cubicles for days they’ll be on-site, giving them a place to work and set up for the day or week.
And the trend of modular workspace isn’t limited to buildings owned and operated by a particular company. Office buildings in metro areas that were once occupied by small firms or businesses are also joining the “modular” trend. Remote workers still need an office or conference room on occasion for meetings, so office buildings are renting space by the day or even hour to give those workers a gathering space outside the home.
With the shift to modular workspaces, there will be a need for new or updated signage. And those signs will need to be easy to change or modify yet still have a professional look.
Coordinated Look and Easy to Update
Frame systems, like those found in the Simply Frames line of products, offer an uncomplicated way to create a cohesive signage look that spans desk and wall plates, wall-mounted room identification signs, and wayfinding signs. These frames accept inserts from 1/8” to 1/16” thick, making them ideal for engravable sheet stock such as Rowmark’s LaserMax product line or some sublimatable sheet materials.
In addition to the ability to coordinate several types of frames depending on the customers' needs, these frames make it extremely easy to change inserts. This makes them an ideal choice for a modular office setting. Inserts simply (pun intended) slide into the metal desk and wall holders or rest in the metal desk sign bases. For plastic frames and holders, the inserts can be held into place with low-tack double-sided tape and be quickly removed with a small suction cup. These sign frames work well with cubical wall hangers, such as the Simply Clear Plastic Cubicle Hanger. These clip to the top of a cubicle wall and have a flat surface to which you can secure a wall plate or sign frame. Hangars similar to this also make it easy to move the signs from one cube to another.
Other mounting options that offer a contemporary, modern look and work well in a modular setting are stand-offs and sign grippers. This type of sign mounting hardware is mechanically fastened to a wall or rigid surface while allowing for the sign inserts to be easily updated or changed. Stand-offs and sign grippers offer more flexibility in the thickness of the sign insert, making these options ideal for customers who print signs to thicker acrylic, wood and sublimatable hardboard, and metals such as sublimatable aluminum panels.
The Changing Office
As the workplace changes, so will the need for new and updated signage. Whether it's the shift to shared offices and communal workspaces, or a need for interchangeable signs that can be changed at a moment's notice, office spaces are undergoing a transformation to fit the new way of "going to the office."
Johnson Plastics Plus has a wide range of sign mounting options to choose from, including our popular Simply Frames and Holders line to our economically priced Simply standoffs. Our in-house sign experts are here to help you find the right solution for your customers and your business. You can contact them via the chat function in the lower right-hand corner of any page on jpplus.com.
To get a closer look at our signage products, watch our Simply Frames product line overview video below.