As businesses have begun their return to work (and some have found themselves under renewed restrictions), employers are beginning to come to terms with the reality of a longer-term need for precautions and additional safety measures. While some of the make-shift ideas around creating a place of work that is safe for employees and guests allowed companies to “make it work” for the initial phased return, an understanding that we may be facing another year or more of Covid safety needs has begun to set in. With some luck we may see a vaccine approved in early 2021, but it will certainly be several months after that before a significant amount of the general population has been able to receive it, which leaves us with those “make-shift solutions” for longer than many anticipated. The alternative is to make the best of that need and perhaps improve on those solutions in both function and appearance.
The cheap plastic sneeze-guard has become an unfortunate cliche, which itself is better than draped plastic sheeting often used for larger spans. While not only being a constant ugly reminder of a pandemic we’d rather forget, they’re often fragile and not ideal for how we’d like our spaces to work. That unsightliness is bad enough in a workplace where we might spend half of our waking day, but in a place where we welcome guests into what we hope is an inviting experience, it becomes even more problematic for the bottom line. Compounding these issues is a pre-pandemic desire for openness in interior spaces which resulted in a limited ability to separate those occupying a space.
The aforementioned guards and sheeting were a static (fixed) set of solutions suited to counters and desks but what about entire rooms? A real solution might be an operable wall that is translucent or even transparent to maintain the openness and light we’ve been striving for in workspaces. Operable walls come in many forms in terms of functionality and design. While they can act as a room divider, when specified well they can keep a unified, flowing feel to a space that actually enhances it. Room dividers with these benefits made a lot of sense before Covid, but make even more sense now where we want and need to be out amongst others but are required to have some separation.
With the ability to create a cool, modern look or a warm and richly textured style, Raydoors can blend with a variety of aesthetics to become an integral part of a design. Numerous custom options take the tailored-to-your-space possibilities even further. Most importantly, Raydoor can work in most interior settings to add versatility and help safeguard people. A moving divider can be designed to completely disappear when not in use as with our Sliding Pocket Wall, they can have a swinging egress door for office meeting rooms or dining spaces as with some of our Stacking systems, or they can simply fold out of the way. A Sliding Wall allows doors to telescope outward easily with only the need to pull the leading door, and all of our systems eschew the need for a floor track with innovative, patented guiding hardware.
Our range of offering includes premium, long-lasting laminates that are easy to clean, contemporary wood veneers and resilient acrylics that allow for lighter, easier to move panels. And beyond our panels that move, we also have our Barrier line of products for when you do need something that sits atop a desk or counter or just freestanding on the floor. Raydoor Barriers utilize the same elegant finishes as our doors and our unique techniques for building panels for some added sense of permanence and style when upgrading from your temporary sneeze-guard.
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Raydoor is in a unique position to help with phased re-opening – we’ve been in the business of dividing spaces for 20 years. In our 2 decades of experience, we’ve taken a tack towards room division that is different than others. Our approach has been one of putting aesthetics and versatility first. That’s not to say that we’ve ignored the other aspects of space division and operable walls – we have innovative, patented hardware and doors that are lightweight and easy to operate. But with our drive for enhancing the spaces our products are used in, we’ve spent a lot of time making sure that open spaces continue to feel open through the use of translucent and transparent materials. Instead of making an industrial piece that simply serves a function, Raydoor Sliding Walls and Doors offer levels of customization not found elsewhere, to offer a refined and tailored solution that blends seamlessly into your environment. We also have the ability to make a statement piece should you so desire; beyond the impressiveness of having an entire wall that moves to join or separate spaces, it can aesthetically become a centerpiece of your design with vibrant colors, patterns and materials.
This era of pandemic and safety protocols has brought with it unsightly reminders of our need to separate from one another. Raydoor provides an opportunity to take this necessity and elevate it to something artistic and inviting. Beyond sliding systems, we have stacking, folding, swinging and even simple pocket doors. And our newest offering, Barrier, takes advantage of this breadth of knowledge in aesthetically dividing spaces to create a product suitable for desks, countertops and freestanding needs.
Why settle for an ugly sneeze guard when you’ve invested so much creating a stylish space? Health needs may dictate precautions, but that doesn’t mean they must come at the expense of aesthetics. While many have settled for temporary materials, a phased re-opening means that these products will be with us for awhile. And while make-shift solutions may have allowed us to at least re-open doors to our staff and guests, we don’t need to live and work surrounded by ad-hoc answers.
Contact us to find out how Raydoor can help, with truly beautiful solutions for offices, retail, educational and hospitality environments (and more)!
]]>We are now slowly beginning our return to the workplace for “non-essential” businesses. While some states have outlined a more aggressive resumption of activities that were restricted in the early days of the pandemic, other states have taken a slower and more measured approach. Many companies (and the design firms they work with) have been hoping for clearer guidance on how to address their needs for a safer workplace for their employees and customers, whether they are an essential businesses and have been at their place of work all along, or they are a company that is resuming work or looking to do so in the near future.
In anticipation of what those guidelines would look like, many companies needed to act to create immediate solutions. The design community speculated that open office spaces (and other open plan spaces) would be drastically altered, all the while maintaining that we would not return to cubicles. The hospitality community pondered the viability of restaurants at reduced occupant capacity, hotels without breakfast areas or gyms, and events where some participants would join “remotely”.
Many of those concerns and questions remain unresolved, but what we do have now are CDC guidelines to outline to business owners, designers and operators what they will need to consider in planning for safe occupancy while the pandemic continues. The CDC addressed many expected areas such as social distancing, ventilation, cleaning, etc., but in doing so raised some new questions. If we are to maintain 6 feet of distance between people, how do we use elevators? If we can’t open windows (or are in a climate that is not conducive to it), will we be required to upgrade ventilation systems? They recommend reduced use of public transit and possibly reimbursing employees using other ways to get to work like single-occupancy rides if they can’t drive in to work themselves, which has left many urban-based employers and employees scratching their heads.
While the guidelines leave much for state and municipal health departments to decide on actual requirements, there are some useful suggestions like “Install transparent shields or other physical barriers where possible to separate employees and visitors where social distancing is not an option”. Beyond some of these more basic suggestions, it will be tough for small and medium-sized businesses to act (budget for and spend) on some of the broader ideas. Larger businesses that have flexibility in their work-from-home capacity have been continuing to do so where they can. Maybe unsurprisingly, tech companies have grabbed headlines by announcing a more permanent shift to remote working for many of their employees.
All of these things will have a dramatic effect on how we use our real estate and even how much of it is needed when it comes to traditional offices. We may look back on this period in a few years (hopefully with a vaccine and more effective treatments for the virus available), and think this was a knee-jerk set of reactions and that long-term, workplaces will look much like they did in 2019. It seems we could just as easily arrive at a place where the digital trends that allow for remote working, shopping and other activities were seen as just being accelerated by the pandemic and that some of shifts we are taking part in now were inevitable with or without our current crisis. Only time will tell.
]]>All of our workplaces are facing change amidst the rapid spread of COVID-19 and concern about exposure is spreading just as rapidly. For those that have the ability to work remotely, being out of the office and staying home is clearly one of the best ways to help diminish the risk to yourself and others. For everyone else that must be in the office, the CDC has issued guidelines for safe workplaces, and amongst the directions for hand washing, disinfecting and encouraging people to stay home if they or a family member are sick, are recommendations for separating people as much as possible. When separation isn’t possible, as in a group meeting, they recommend distancing between individuals and a well-ventilated space (i.e. opening windows where possible).
So what about those places of work? While open spaces in work settings have been the trend for several years, being in those spaces now most likely leaves people wishing there were more chance for dividing themselves from the people they normally sit shoulder to shoulder with. As the peak and subsequent dwindling of this virus eventually comes, people will be returning to offices in greater numbers, even while the remnants of the virus still linger. This has already begun in parts of China, and while there are still strict guidelines and recommendations for hygiene, sanitizing etc., concerns for health and well-being abound. Other countries will undoubtedly face these same concerns as they, in time, begin their return to work.
All of us, regardless of where we live and work, are likely to return to a changed environment. The proverbial mingling at the office water cooler will be gone, at least for awhile. Facilities management and human resources will face questions from employees as to how they are protecting their workforces. Shared desks and other more casual or informal work spaces may quickly become the least desirable settings for work. Separated work spaces, even if only by something like a cubicle wall or room divider, could find increased popularity and are likely to factor into future, post Covid-19 work. Settings that allow for straight-forward cleaning and disinfecting and even materials that offer anti-microbial properties will factor into the discussion in designing or re-configuring offices and other workplaces. We will all be too familiar with how vulnerable we are to germs and contagion despite the medical words best efforts, and sneeze-guards and disinfectant will be seen as only the most basic steps in protecting us in places where we gather. Workplaces will need to respond in substantive ways to not just the concerns but the genuine need for reasonable solutions.
While more employers will have had their eyes opened to the possibilities of working from home, most will of course prefer to have their employees return to offices and other workspaces. The genuine limitations of remote working will have been thoroughly revealed, as will be the potential to remotely manage teams, especially for those who have just been thrown into the deep-end without prior experience operating in this format.
The return to work will see immediate changes the companies can effect upon re-opening their doors. and other long-term answers will be expected in the near future of work.
]]>We are happy to announce the launch of Raydoor Barrier – a new line of products to help protect against the transmission of germs. We have all now experienced sneeze guards, cough shields and cashier panels in places where they didn’t exist a few months ago. Our new normal is dictating social distancing and safeguards for employees, customers and others, so we’ve developed a set of products to address these new needs.
Raydoor Barriers are separation screens that enhance the look of a space while at the same time providing some protection for its occupants. We’ve drawn on our 20 years of experience in room dividers and operable walls and developed new partitions that can either be free-standing or that sit on a worksurface or counter. They can be combined to create wrap-around shields for receptions desk, between workstations or to separate foot-traffic or seating areas. To complement the nearly endless number of ways you can arrange Raydoor Barriers, we offer a variety of high-quality finishes, including some with anti-microbial additives to help between cleanings. Our new partitions can be had with translucent and even transparent inserts when you need protection but would prefer openness and visibility.
Along with being aesthetically pleasing and functional, Raydoor barriers are made in the USA for short leads times and easy customization. The intense focus on finish and quality that we have applied to our sliding and folding doors now extends to this stationary product. We believe that the return to public spaces and workplaces that is just beginning will be met with relief and excitement, but also some apprehension. One way to let people enjoy being back amongst others, interacting, working, shopping and doing the millions of other things we do in a normal day, is to provide some measure of safety like virus-screens and partitions. These, along with other safety protocols, will allow us to enjoy the company of others once again. We’re looking forward to it.
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