8
HR
West
Environment
Happy Environment.
Happy Employees.
Planning the Optimal Workspace
B
iophilia, the innate human attraction
to nature, is a concept that has been
recognized for several decades by the
scientific and design communities, and intuitively
for hundreds of years by the population at large.
Biophilic design has often been regarded as a
luxury for property owners who want the best
possible workplace for their employees, or
who want to showcase their efforts to be more
environmentally responsible.
In reality, improving community well-being through
biophilia can impact productivity costs and the
bottom line. Today productivity costs are 112
times greater than energy costs in the workplace -
making the idea of incorporating nature into the built
environment not just a luxury, but a sound economic
investment in health and productivity. Even small
investments involving very low or no up-front cost,
such as providing employees access to plants,
natural views and daylight provide very healthy
returns. Integrating quality daylighting schemes into
an office space can save over $2,000 per employee
per year in office costs.
DRIVING PROFIT
MARGINS IN THE
WORKPLACE
The workplace is the crux of progress in modern
society; it is where the average US employee spends
more than 43 hours per week (US Census Bureau,
2010). Professional and business employers pay
their employees an average of $33.24 an hour or
$67,880 per year—fifteen workers alone can cost
an employer over $1 million in salary (Bureau of
Labor Statistics, 2011a, 2011b). Employers hope
their employees are productive every hour, but
functioning at 100% efficiency is unlikely, given the
built environment around workers and other external
stimuli. The main causes for deficient productivity
include absenteeism, loss of focus, negative
mood, and poor health. The built environment,
though not always the cause of these stressors,
when well-designed, can be a reliever of these
unwanted symptoms.
In the last decade, American psychologists have
aggregated the five strongest requirements for basic
functioning that, if neglected, can trigger worker
comprehension problems and dissatisfaction in the
office space (Kellert, 2008). These are:
• Need for change (varying
temperature, air, light, etc.)
• Ability to act on the
environment and see the effects
• Meaningful stimuli (stagnant atmospheres
cause an onset of chronic stress)
• One’s own territory to provide safety,
an identity, and protection
• View to the outside world
ABSENTEEISM
These fundamental needs can be met through
biophilic design strategies in the workplace
(Bergs, 2002). If implemented, the resulting profit
margins contribute to the sustainable growth of
successful businesses. One example of this is
By Terrapin Bright Green
Even small investments involving very low or no up-front cost, such as
providing employees access to plants, natural views and daylight provide
very healthy returns. Integrating quality daylighting schemes into an
office space can save over $2,000 per employee per year in office costs.
