Sustainable Solutions - A Success Story

In October of last year, a company from Olympia came to B&OI with a cool project in a somewhat small space. The budget was set at around $25K and they had a few unique requests they wanted fulfilled.  

The original furniture they were hoping for, completely new, was very much out of their price range. However, the fun thing about B&OI is that we have a warehouse full of pre-owned furniture that we can reupholster and paint to make it look like new! A mix of new and pre-owned allowed them to get the solution they wanted at an amazing price in the color scheme they were hoping for.

Additional enhancements were added, such as the glass window at the top of the panels and whiteboards on the exterior of the panels. Their original offices were more of an open space style - so the addition of panels to cut back on noise was a hot button issue, as well as a sliding door feature to allow even further reduction of noise and interruptions.

The group was very happy with the results of the project. B&OI provided design, delivery and installation, refurbishment, and project management with a fast turnaround of  less than 2 months. The project officially started in October with a signing in mid-November with installation completed the last week of December.  

Beyond our amazing customer service, this is a great example of how you can use pre-owned furniture to create a successful and practical office space. Their budget was maintained because they were willing to take the old and the new - but you can achieve your ideal space with used furniture. 

Check out a few shots taken by the sales rep, Alonzo! He did such a great job!



Glass panels, white boards on the wall!





Steelcase Answer with sliding door

Tight spaces made it tricky, but they now have the privacy they wanted



Office Apparel

Good Morning!

Here at Bank & Office Interiors, we have what most people would call a more formal, professional dress at our locations in Seattle. As a working showroom, it is necessary that we all look presentable and fancy - like our awesome furniture! In one respect, I like dressing up and wearing neat clothing. The phrase, "she looks smart" makes me smile (because I hear it in a British accent). On the other side, who wouldn't want to wear a pair of jeans to work with a nice sweater or cardigan (or blazer)?

Below, our Project Manager is showcasing the latest in B&OI fashion that our guys wear while on job sites. It actually looks really sharp (smart :-) to have everyone looking uniformed while at a different location. The warehouse employees have it a little more laid back than we do up at the showroom. But since they receive very few visitors, they are given a little more leeway in what they wear.

What do you think? Does your company have uniforms? What's the tone in the office? Semi-professional? Casual? Suits and ties?

Thanks! Kendal

The Best Office Perks

If you work in an office, or have in the past, chances are you remember something cool your company did for you that wasn't necessarily in your contract. Like free coffee in the break room or a company softball team (sponsored with fun t-shirts). These office perks are a way to keep morale up and your employees generally happy. Over the past few years, the amount and extremes of perks have gone down significantly, but there are still some out there worth offering your team. Here are a few of the favorites (and feel free to let me know of any I may have missed):

 - Snacks (like fruit and granola) in the break room (along with the free coffee)
 - Tuition Reimbursement (or free school altogether!)
 - Sports Teams (nothing like team bonding over a playing field)
 - Paid Sabbaticals (who doesn't need a little me time)
 - In-House Gyms (or memberships to local gyms)
 - Good Office Furniture (never underestimate the importance of a good chair)

Check out more from Inc.'s article and Boston.com's article for some more of the best office perks.

Office Practices: It Can Be Easy Being Green



Think by Steelcase


Earth Day is coming up on April 22nd which makes it a great time to evaluate your company "green practices" and find ways to help the environment all year long.

Furniture, like the Think Chair by Steelcase, have come a long way in the types of plastics and manufacturing techniques used to create them. Think is actually the first piece to receive Cradle to Cradle certification and is up to 98% recyclable.

Don't have a budget to buy new furniture? No problem - used furniture (i.e. pre-owned) is a great way to get really good equipment at lower prices. Many local companies have pre-owned options available to their customers. Give dealers a call and see if this is a possibility. They may also have in-house services to reupholster or paint - so check into that, as well!

Additionally, recycling bins in your office (at each workstation) and in the kitchen area, will help with the most basic recycling we're taught. Using LED lighting and post consumer recycled paper is another easy way to contribute. Also, think about setting up a carpooling program or benefits for those who take public transportation or ride a bike to work. Positive reinforcement for continually doing the "green thing" is a great way to keep Earth Day going everyday!

Check out these additional articles for some more ideas.

Green office: Recycling at work
What is paper recycling?
10 Ways to go Green at Work

Spring Warehouse Sale April 9th - 13th, 2012

Review/Revamp those Resolutions!

If this is what your desk looks like,
add "get organized" to you 2012 list!

Hello. My name is Kendal and I am a procrastinator. It has been 84 days since I set my new year's resolutions and I have yet to check in and see how I'm doing. Beyond the standard "lose 10lbs, drink less, exercise more" promises I've made (and had varying results with), there were the ones I wrote on for the office: get organized, set goals and start networking.

With any project you take, evaluating the progress and success is necessary. It may also become apparent that modifying the original plan to reach a goal would be beneficial; even if that means deterring from what you thought would be best. So...let's review!

1. Get organized: I wrote on getting your papers and files under control and going through the piles that haven't been touched and recycle them. I've actually done this at both work and home, though maintain the tendency to stack and leave. This is especially true with mail I get that exists online, as well. My revamped goal is to go as paperless where possible and to stop leaving piles of papers to rediscover. Additionally, using the shredder or a shredding service as opposed to just leaving them next to the shredder for a rainy day.

2. Set Goals: My goal is to stay on track for my Master's Program and I can safely say I am on task there. I'm in the classes I need and signed up for the ones in the summer to be done in December. To revamp this, I need to stay on top of all the coursework that's adding up due to the two courses I'm taking instead of the recommended one. Staying focused on the goal and what it entails is the big issue for me - so my new goal here is to keep motivated and get the work done.

3. Start Networking: I started the new year like a networking fiend - meeting new people, hitting events, getting introductions. I finally got my calling card made, as well, and was all set to use them...and then classes started. My networking goal was like my weight loss goal - it started out with a lot of promise and has slowly fizzled out. However, I know this (like eating right) is important, so here my revamp goal: hit at least one networking event a month and make time for emails. Networking is more than one step and I always hit the 2nd...but maintaining these relationships is important and I need to give time to them.

So...how are you on your goals? Any that need to be revamped? Let us know!

Kendal

Top 5 Design & Furniture Blogs

I've been feeling a creative lapse the past few weeks and the office has been slammed with work (which means my cool co-workers have not been able to write anything up for me). In times like these, I do searches to find some innovative, smart, and sassy bloggers to help get my artistic juices flowing. In this case, I came across a blog of the top 25 design and furniture blogs (and I do recommend checking padstyle.com's full article here) as assessed by padstyle. I was happy to see I follow a few of them and added one or two of my own. Enjoy!

Design Milk: The write on architecture, art, home furnishings, interior design, style, fashion and technology. They also have a sister site for dog lovers...which makes them that much cooler.

Inhabitat: Writing on greener solutions in architecture, products, interiors, technology, transportation and more. They find some great images of sustainable concepts, as well!

Decor 8: Sometimes you just want to be crafty and create something fun and interesting. Check out this blog for fresh ideas for the home and office!
Turnstone: Though they are one of our main vendors at Bank & Office Interiors, the content they put out on their blog goes beyond pushing office furniture - and I appreciate that.

Nurture: I know, another one of our vendors - but if you're designing for the healthcare industry, this is not a bad blog to check out what's going on. They go from why clinicians should sit when interacting w/ patients to kimono robes and new hospital designs. Definitely worth checking out!

Again, be sure to check out Padstyle's full article here. And let me know if I should have a few more blogs on my list!

Thanks! Kendal