The Corporate Call Center Is More Important Now

By Author: John Tang
Total Articles: 512
Comment this article

Call Center Furniture; The corporate call center has become an important component of the office landscape. The use of call centers is increasing as businesses expand their product offerings and their services become more complex. Call centers provide a diversity of services to companies such as order entry, customer service, and technical support to customers. Since call centers are generally high pressure, high density, high tech environments, they require the comprehensive understanding of many factors to achieve successful design solutions. Office Furniture must take into account the ergonomic, lighting, electrical, telecommunications, and acoustical issues in creating a quality call center for a staff often working in on-going shifts 24/7.

When purchasing systems furniture, there are a number of critical aspects to consider. A call center's facility should be designed with its staff, technology and an effective layout that targets work flow in mind. Workstations should be large enough to accommodate the responsibilities of its occupants, while small enough to maximize the facility floor space. Many call centers now ...
... want workstations that encourage teamwork and open communication. Companies need to develop panel height requirements based on the delicate balance between interaction and privacy needs, and not on standard available panel heights dictated by monolithic furniture. Office furniture that offers lower panel heights, stacking and de-stacking capabilities, floor to ceiling capabilities and partial glass panel options should be considered before others. Special features like off-modular capabilities, desk height power and data, and top to bottom lay-in cabling, give designers and facilities managers the tools they need to make the call center furniture functional, and beautiful. And as the work force grows or tasks change and evolve, the furniture systems should have the ability to change quickly and cost effectively.

Vital to the function of a successful call center is the ability to accommodate its leading edge technology. Corporations spend a great deal of their budget on the most effective hardware and equipment, so it become essential that power, data and phone cables all be easily accommodated and accessible in the call center furniture. Office Cubicles should offer generous channels for wires and cables and allow for connections between stations. The MAiSPACE system revolutionized the contract furniture industry by developing and patenting an integrated standards compliant plug-and-play cable management system in our stackable panel system. Our patented zone distribution system includes plug-and-play connectors, lay-in cabling and the largest capacity in the industry. With a 4 Circuit, 8 Wire system, it not only supports any network or power requirements you have today, but is designed to grow and change as you do with remarkable ease. Managing voice, data, and power cabling is a snap with MAiSPACE because cable runs are laid in behind lift-off panel segments, not bundled and fished through structural elements. Reconfiguration of the floor plan can take place in hours instead of days without disrupting the entire local area network. Moves, adds, and changes can be mastered by in-house personnel after a minimum of training.

MAiSPACE conforms to telecommunications industry standards for horizontal cabling systems in open offices and call centers. Standard belt line access and easily accessible consolidation points provide an interconnection between work area outlets and telecommunications closets to create a zone distribution system. Unrestricted cable pathway access simplifies adding capacity or rerouting networks. Factory-terminated and tested modular cable assembles in copper or fiber support plug and play office reconfigurations. Category 7 cabling surpassing all proposed industry standards is available for data-intensive or video applications.

Another important criteria for call enter furniture is its ability to be ergonomically sound and be customized for the agent. The MAiSPACE systems furniture is flexible and adjustable to meet individual preferences. The user creates a comfortable environment by determining the optimal placement of panel-hung components, adjustable at 1 inch increments; having flexible non-handed orientation for the workstation; and curvilinear work surfaces with cascade edges. Keyboard trays and tool rail tiles allow for easy access to work tools. Incorporating the effectiveness and well-being aspects of ergonomics into office cubicle furniture purchases can produce cost benefits in terms of significant reduction of workman's compensation, insurance expenditures and absenteeism and most importantly increased productivity through worker satisfaction.
Finally, the entire facility should have a warm, appealing aesthetic. In a recently completed MAiSPACE project of call center furniture, College Loan Corporation of California felt the look of the work environment was paramount to the facility success. We wanted an inviting atmosphere conducive to hiring and retaining a highly qualified staff of loan consultants, says CLC's Vice President of Human Resources, Heather Hole. Call centers are frequently characterized as suffering from high turnover, and we sought to change that by providing a modern and attractive working environment while incorporating the conservative and stable image. Turning a warehouse into such an environment called for making the space warmer through the use of colors and bringing the disparate parts of the facility together into a more integrated whole. Incorporate inviting fabrics and finishes in aesthetically pleasing colors, proper lighting, and space-efficient traffic patterns gave CLC the look and feel they needed. MAiSPACE's design incorporates flexibility and function to allow workspaces to look attractive while being completely efficient. The ability to stack and de-stack panel frames provides staggered wall heights and enhances the office workstation layout. With over 15 tile options, including three types of glass, on 3 1⁄2 thick panels, MAiSPACE call center furniture promotes visibility and privacy, simultaneously. You can get the architectural feel of substantial systems furniture, without feeling boxed in.

For those who need call center furniture to further the corporate business goals, they can be assured that by using MAiSPACE their financial goals can be met beautifully as well. You no longer have to choose between function, frugality and fabulous. Our in-house design service can show you how. In order to more fully develop actual product specifications and costs, MAiSPACE will provide a professional in-house design team to produce the best and most cost effective layout, not only to satisfy your current call center staffing demands, but also to help you plan ahead. Our designers understand your facility issues and employ the most appropriate call center furniture product applications. They can offer suggestions for our fabrics and finishes that will make your office beautiful and functional.