Flourishing workplaces: a multisensory approach to design and POE

ABSTRACT

How can we design workplaces which occupants thrive in, which are functional but are also expressive? Drawing on research about the senses and office related studies this paper demonstrates how buildings can be designed to allow for positive multi-sensory experiences. In order to design a creative and productive workplace, it is essential to consider how the environment is making us feel, behave and act within it. As the workplace continues to evolve, the case is made for a sensory palette framework to drive a systems approach to build environmental design enabling the integration of the multi-modal sensory relationship of people’s reactions within various environmental settings. Technological advances, in the form of wearables that monitor our physiological and stress responses offer the opportunity to capture empirical data, further enabling the investigation to see how a diverse range of environmental settings affect our physical, mental and social wellbeing. The paper goes on to develop the established conceptual theories of ‘Flourish’ proposing a move beyond comfort when designing interiors and the mechanics of facility controls, towards a sensory impacts framework that considers a whole life costing approach using the Flourish Model, setting the basis for a design and post-occupancy evaluation toolkit.

KEYWORDS:

• Workplace design
• multi-sensory
• flourish model
• health
• wellbeing

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Dr Tong Yang for her editorial assistance.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Derek Clements-Croome is Emeritus Professor specialising in intelligent buildings and cities with a focus on health and wellbeing issues.

Kay Pallaris is the founding director of Mapping Futures. Her focus is on planning for environmental wellbeing, with 18 years experience working in the development and regeneration sectors.

Briony Turner is a housing and urban regeneration researcher and professional and a member of the RCPCH indoor air quality working group. Her research interests include climate change adaptation of housing and cities and impact of the built environment on health and wellbeing.