May 1, 2020
When we start returning to our offices, social distancing, protective equipment, and sanitation guidelines will be in place, among other rules.
To follow these guidelines, your office must be equipped with the right tools and resources.
Beyond that, it will also be on employers to prove to both existing and potential employees that they have a safe and healthy work environment.
So in this post, we’re going to review the types of signage, equipment, office supplies, and educational resources you’ll need to put in place to equip your office for work in the post-pandemic world.
If you’ve been into a grocery store lately, you’ve seen the floor signs or markers in checkout lines. These signs make it easy for you and others to keep six feet of distance between one another. This is the distance the CDC recommends for reducing the spread of COVID-19.
The same type of signage will be needed for other places of business when they open up.
But floor signage can do even more than just indicate distance. It can also help you control the flow of foot traffic in your office to make maintaining social distance easier.
This is common in hospitals, where directional signage is placed to encourage employees to walk in a counterclockwise direction, minimizing the risk of close contact with others.
Another critical type of signage, particularly in areas where food is made or lots of people congregate, will be sanitation signage. These signs can provide simple reminders for employees and customers to wash their hands. According to the CDC, frequent handwashing can help protect you from the virus.
Or they can help keep unauthorized personnel out of a certain area while it’s being sanitized. In any case, whatever type of signage you might need, an ARC Service Center near you can help you get it printed and installed.
Any employee who physically interacts with many people throughout the day faces a heightened risk of infection. So it’s on employers to ensure these people have extra protection. You can use clear protective shields, which are also a common site at grocery stores, to provide this protection.
Barriers are something the CDC has recommended for clinics so they may be useful for offices as well.
Another similar problem is presented by open offices with lots of communal space. In these offices, it’s not uncommon for employees to use many different spaces to do their work. The problem here is that virus particles can live on surfaces for extended periods.
But with disposable surface coverings, you may be able to reduce the risk of infection.
In Cushman & Wakefield’s 6 Feet Office, this idea is already being put to the test. Workers are encouraged to use a paper placemat for their desk which they’re supposed to throw out at the end of the day.
Accurate, clear, and consistent information is a potent weapon against the spread of any pandemic. But today, with social media and our evolving understanding of this new virus, misinformation is a serious issue.
Educational materials, such as leaflets, can help combat myths and rumors about the virus. Employers—and society at large—will benefit greatly if they can get their workforce on the same page.
ARC has leaflets available that provide information from health experts about symptoms and personal hygiene to arm your employees with the knowledge they need.
Even the strongest social distancing and sanitation methods aren’t as effective at reducing the spread of COVID-19 as simply limiting face-to-face contact.
But to do that, you need to equip your employees with the supplies and tools they need to be as productive at home as they are at the office. This means addressing the print and office supply needs of both remote and onsite workers.
While someone occasionally working from home can get by without a printer or certain office supplies, that’s not the case when someone showing symptoms must self-quarantine.
Also, both onsite and remote workers can benefit from conferencing tools such as a Smartscreen. Remote workers can share their screens on large screens and onsite workers can interact in-person with the screen itself. Though it’s important to keep equipment like this well-sanitized.
You can find just about everything you’ll need to equip your office for the age of social distancing at an ARC Service Center near you. You can also work with our friendly service staff to create custom-branded signage as well.
Just head over to our store locator to find the Service Center closest to you. And for more information about how we’re changing our services to keep you and our employees safe, read this post.
To support you during this time, we have created a special COVID-19 Customer Resources Page, visit here.