The high cost of new cubicles, for one thing, can put a damper on your dreams of new office furniture domination. To take an example, new Herman Miller Eames shelves may cost you upward of $3,000 a unit. Extrapolate that to other new Herman Miller products, and you might end up spending a pretty penny and not yet furnish the whole office! (Imagine that – you blow your whole budget on new cubicles and you only have enough just for the sales department.)

The trick is knowing where to save costs – buying new cubicles manufactured from virgin resources may not be a wise move. But dumping new cubicles doesn’t mean that you compromise on quality – not all cost-conscious options are quality downgrades. Used cubicles can be just as effective – looks- and function-wise – as new office cubicles. You just have to know where to look.

Used cubicles with that new-cubicles look. Buy used cubicles from a trusted dealer, and you’ll find your whole office stocked with furniture in a flash. Many businesses, when going out of business or moving locations, don’t take their cubicles with them when they go. With an ample inventory to choose from, you’ll likely find old cubicles with the new cubicles feel very easily from a supplier you can trust.

Unlike used cars, cubicles aren’t usually let go because of wear and tear. So it’s relatively easy to set a high bar for quality even when you’re perusing the used cubicle inventory. In fact the standards are much the same compared to those of new cubicles – durability, price, and function are just as important, and shouldn’t be overlooked.

Thinking about the like-new cubicles’ color, for example, will get you brownie points in the future for productivity and sensitivity to your employees’ needs. As with new cubicles, the wide selection of used cubicles means you aren’t lacking for choice in the color, style, or design department.

Buy new – but in bulk. You may still get the new cubicles you want, assuming you have a large enough order that can justify a lower unit cost. Many office furniture suppliers will be happy to bend backwards to meet your large order for new cubicles – you just have to ask nicely.

Just a word of caution – make sure that the new cubicles – or the like-new cubicles – that you select fit the workforce you have. New cubicles for secretaries or managers need to have more storage space and more capacious cabinets. New cubicles for sales or reception, on the other hand, require more desk space or space for phones.

Any new cubicles you select should also be scrutinized for their effect on the spaciousness of the work floor. Some cubicle walls need to be low, in order not to block the view of a window.

## Article first published as The New-Cubicles Look for Less on Blogcritics.

New cubicles don’t have to be a new challenge, though, if you follow the tips we lay out in the next few paragraphs.

Pay attention. Before you enter your new cubicles, you’ll probably undergo an orientation session with the HR department. Keep your ears open at this point: you want to reach your new cubicles with your head full of useful information. Find out how they do things in the office; this can give you a taste of the office politics and work environment in the space surrounding your new cubicles.

Ask questions. Wrack your brain for important, or less-than-important, questions that you may need to ask – in these few shining moments as the fresh guy in the new cubicles, you’re free to ask embarrassing questions without looking stupid. (This supervisor’s checklist might give you some ideas as to the questions you can pose.) You might ask questions about:

-    decorating and personalization rules for your new cubicles
-    employee benefits
-    sexual harassment policy
-    attendance policy
-    dress policy – casual Fridays

Make a good impression. Again, you want to hit your new cubicles running: your appearance and way of speaking can set the tone for your new colleagues’ expectations, and for sure you want people’s expectations of you to be positive ones!

Get the lay of the land. When being given the office tour, make sure you discover more about the place than just your new cubicles. Find out where the lunch rooms and break rooms are in relation to your new cubicles, and find out if there are any rules with regard to the use of these facilities.

Get to know your new colleagues. Getting to know people in your office is like breaking in new office furniture – you want to take it easy, and find your comfort level at your own pace. The people surrounding your new cubicles will have their own pecking order and an established relationship that you’ll have to ease into. Do this carefully, as a positive first impression on new colleagues will reap great dividends in the future.

Break in your new cubicles. This may be the most important step in the process – after all, you’re staking a claim on your personal space in the new workspace, and your new cubicles can, within limits delineated by office HR policy, be personalized to suit your tastes.

You’ll need to clean your used cubicles – spray disinfectant over the work surface, and clean the keyboards with a cheap keyboard cleaner gadget. After cleaning your new cubicle, go wild (or as wild as your HR permits). Remember, you’ll be spending the bulk of your working life in your new cubicles, and you want it to be as comfortable as possible.

At the very minimum, find something that reminds you of a positive memory, and put it in pride of place in your new cubicles.

With that – welcome, new guy, to your new cubicles and your new surroundings – the best of luck!

The manager’s chair furniture included in this promotion come in two levels of customizability and comfort, from a darling of office chair reviews with a more-than-standard amount of adjustability, to a day-to-day manager’s chair with a modicum of features together with a good helping of comfort.

The Manager’s Chair (model 4008) by OpenPlan Systems provides a feature-rich executive chair configuration with a surprisingly low price tag. This manager’s chair is almost completely adjustable, providing ergonomic support that can go toe-to-toe with any manager’s chair contending on the web’s office chair reviews.

Let’s start with this manager’s chair swivel tilt with 2-1 synchro tilt control, tilt tension, and lumbar support: these features ensure that your lower back will stay in excellent shape even after hours upon hours of sitting in this manager’s chair’s embrace.

This is incredibly important, this focus on long hours – studies show that office workers spend thousands of hours sitting in their office chairs, and managers aren’t exempt: they need a manager’s chair that can take their posterior for hours on end, without punishing them needlessly.

Seat slider, adjustable back height, and adjustable arms on this manager’s chair also ensure that your other bodily parts get the same customized treatment as well. Finally, smooth glide-free motion for this manager’s chair is provided by quality engineered polyurethane casters.

The Manager’s Chair (model 4008) is handsomely engineered, and comes in both black and yellow body colors.

What about the price? We were just getting to that part – from an original retail price of$425, Cubicles.com is offering you the OPS4008 Manager’s Chair for a low summerwide price of $199! Plus, if you buy more than twenty units of this chair, you can get this quality manager’s chair for the super-low price of $175.

Manager’s Chair (model 4008)

• Back: 21″w x 23″h
• Seat: 21″w x 21″d – 24″d
• Weight: 52 lbs

A better budget option – for managers who prefer their executive chairs less feature-rich – is the Manager’s Chair (model 4019), offering basic features for an even lower price. This variant on the manager’s chair offers swivel tilt, adjustable tilt tension, and tilt lock: an adequate feature lineup for the manager on the rise! This is ideal for offices who need large orders of manager’s chair furniture; Cubicles.com can keep up easily with this requirement.

This manager’s chair, originally retailing at $272, can now be sourced from Cubicles.com at the low summer price of $125.

Manager’s Chair (model 4019)

• Back: 20″w x 23″h
• Seat: 21″w x 21″d
• Weight: 40lbs

Do remember that summer doesn’t last forever – in this case, September 21 is the last day you can enjoy a sweet summer deal on these manager’s chairs, earlier if supplies run out. Click Here to find out how to get a piece!

The era of the cubicle worker puts you in close, sometimes uncomfortable contact with your fellow cubicle mates. Not all interactions with your fellows are bound to be pleasant; close cubicle contact is bound to bring out the worst in some people.

Phyllis Davis, the President of Executive Mentoring and Coaching, has heard all the cubicle horror stories – she lays them all out in the video above. “The most common complaints about cubicle-mates is if they use speaker phones instead of using headsets,” she explains. “And then if a cubicle mate in the office has music on while they are on hold – that’s really annoying.”

“Shouldn’t you be doing that at home” issues are also a big bugbear for cubicle dwellers, in Davis’ experience – “People clipping their nails in the office cubicle, or having deep coughs in the office cubicle instead of going in the washroom, or people having fights with their spouses on the phone are also big annoyances.”

Before you nod in smug recognition, you should be aware that you’re just as visible to your cubicle mates as they are to you – for all you know, your own impression isn’t so hot to your fellow cubicle mates!

Whatever impressions you make on your fellow cubicle mates are based on how you interact with them. Your professionalism is judged depending on how effectively you can work while remaining considerate of their feelings. The cubicle ideas that follow should help you navigate this difficult, though ultimately rewarding, task.

Eating in your cubicle. Not everybody loves the smell of cheeseburger wafting through the cubicle maze. Not everyone appreciates the sounds of potato chips being crunched in the next used cubicle over. But some companies permit this – if in doubt, ask.

“It’s appropriate to eat in an office cubicle if that’s part of your corporate culture,” explains Ms. Davis. “People complain a lot about people that create a mess and a smell that causes bugs to come in, so it’s okay to eat in your office cubicle as long as you clean up well.”
Come on, feel the noise. The cloth-covered cubicle walls may absorb sound to a point, but you do not sit in a soundproof chamber when you’re in your cubicle. Your voice/cellphone ringtone/MP3 collection carries further than you think it does!

Don’t use your speakerphone in your cubicle. The speakerphone is one of those cubicle accessories beloved by everyone except your neighbors – for good reason!

You don’t want your cubicle mates to hear you telling your doctor about that wart that’s got you worried, or about the deal that’s falling through. Don’t give those occupying a neaby used cubicle ideas about your personal life, based on your loud phone conversations. If you have to talk on your phone, keep your voice down.

Use a headset to listen to your music. Not everybody’s a fan of Black Sabbath, and not everyone within listening range of your cubicle is willing to give your music a listen!

Keep your cellular phone on vibrate when in your cubicle. Better yet, turn it off. Some cubicle ideas are meant to be kept to yourself!

Invading space. Even for a cubicle with no doors (with some exceptions – cubicle doors make handy cubicle accessories), privacy must be respected. Knock before entering a colleague’s used cubicle, and don’t interrupt them when they’re on the phone or even just thinking. Don’t hang about and make them feel uncomfortable.

Don’t just borrow staplers and other cubicle accessories without permission – that’s just asking for trouble.

Remember, that cubicle isn’t really yours (unless you bought the used cubicle and you’re paying the electricity, cubicle accessories, and other expenses to keep your office going). You share it with a lot of other colleagues who want to work in peace and coexist tranquilly with cubicle mates like yourself. Following these cubicle ideas and cubicle etiquette rules may help make a great impression on your cubicle mates and keep the office cubicle atmosphere conducive to producing great work.

Give some thought to the impression your office furniture makes on clients. A firm of accountants needs different styles of cubicle furniture from an ad agency; a call center shouldn’t have the same kind of cubicle furniture as a law firm! The impression you make depends largely on what your clients need from you. A design firm wants its cubicle furniture to look adventurous and creative; an accounting firm needs cubicle furniture that helps it look solid and dependable.

You should also be mindful if the style of cubicle furniture you’re selecting is timeless, or is bound to go out of style in the next few years. Sure, your cubicle furniture looks great now – but in five years, will the new employees be as squeamish in their office furniture as they would be wearing 1970s-era leisure suits?

Ergonomics: Form or Comfort? Ergonomic cubicle furniture and cubicle accessories – chairs, keyboards drawers, monitor stands and mounts – help increase productivity and employee morale. Ergonomic chairs allow employees to adjust their armrests and other chair parts;  the height of their keyboards and work surfaces should be adjustable as well.

Ergonomics can be less of a priority if your employees spend most of their working day out in the field; but if they spend most of their day seated at the same cubicle, then do invest in ergonomic cubicle furniture, it’s an investment that pays off in spades over time.

Future-proofing – static or expandable? Ask yourself how easy it would be to expand the office layout with the cubicle furniture you have in mind. If your enterprise is the kind that would experience workforce fluctuations or constant technology upgrades, then you’ll need cubicle furniture that can accommodate constant change.

Will your employees be able to move their desks and other cubicle furniture around themselves? Or will you need professional help to dismantle and rebuild cubicle furniture to any future specifications?

Toughness: Disposable or Durable? You want cubicle furniture that’s worth the money you pay for it, and the best way to ensure the best bang for your buck is to check if the cubicle furniture under consideration meets ANSI-BIFMA performance standards.

The Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturer’s Association releases ANSI/BIFMA Safety and Performance Standards every five years, using guidelines set by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). These standards can tell you how well your cubicle furniture performs where safety, durability, and structural adequacy are concerned.

You can also ensure great value on your cubicle furniture by only sourcing office furniture that comes with a warranty or promise of after-sales service. Even used cubicle furniture these days (from select furniture dealers) come with these guarantees!

The corner office, though, is more and more becoming a thing of the past. Real power can reside from a corner office cubicle, not an oak-panelled corner office.

Hizzoner Works from an Office Cubicle

Consider the mayor of New York City. Michael Bloomberg got rid of private offices and settled on an open office cubicle design that mimicked a Wall Street trading floor. “Walls are barriers,” Bloomberg told Time Magazine, “and my job is to remove them.”

A 2007 renovation upgraded the bullpen, adding a sweet flatscreen TV to the mix:

A new state-of-the-art, 103-inch plasma television […], which was donated by Panasonic, will be used to monitor 311 call-center statistics, traffic, and breaking news. According to the manufacturer, it sells for $70,000.

A Corner Office Cubicle for a CEO?

Andy Grove, former CEO of Intel, started the trend of putting top executives in an office cubicle setup (beginning with himself). His own workspace in Intel was a small corner office cubicle, with only a window view as a sop to his position as master of Intel.

Grove encouraged the open-office cubicle environment (beginning with assigning himself to an eight-by-nine office cubicle) to strengthen a corporate culture that still exists today: one that encourages open and honest communication from the bottom to the top.

Asked whether [his office cubicle is] adequate for his needs as CEO, Grove replies, "Absolutely. . . . I need a conference room for private meetings, but most of the time I can read, work at my computer, or have phone conversations very nicely in my office -- even if Pam [Pam Pollace, Intel’s then-vice president for worldwide press relations, Grove’s office cubicle neighbor] often does overhear me."

[…] Senior Vice President Ron Whittier observes that Grove fosters open communication by encouraging staffers and others to say what's on their minds. "People here aren't afraid to speak up and debate with Andy," he notes.

Grove and Bloomberg get several key benefits from implementing an open office cubicle design for their top officers.

Egalitarianism – it improves morale to see the boss doing what everybody else is doing, down to working from an office cubicle like the rest of the workforce.

Accessibility – the boss can be easily seen by his people from his office cubicle, and his colleagues have less fear to ask him questions or approach him if he’s working from an office cubicle, instead of a corner office with a secretary standing guard.

Access to Information – because the office cubicle leaves him un-insulated from the back-and-forth in the office, the boss can find out what’s going on in the office without having that information filter in from his secretary.

Personalize your cubicle with these cubicle accessories, and not only will you come across as a more interesting person, those fabric walls won’t feel like they’re closing in much.

Image courtesy of Jailbreak Toys. All rights reserved.

App Magnets. Can’t afford an iPad? Use these magnetic cubicle wall accessories from Jailbreak Toys to transform your magnetic whiteboard into the next best thing. No, you won’t be able to use these to surf the web, find your location, look up movie schedules, or improve your sex life… but can a real iPad secure those notes and bills to the wall? We didn’t think so.

Each App Magnets cubicle accessories set comes with 18 individual epoxy magnets, each measuring 7/8″ x 7/8″, and retailing for $12.99 (less $486.01 compared to the real thing).

(Continue reading about these indispensable cubicle accessories)

Image courtesy of KlearGear. All rights reserved.

Can of Whoop Ass. Boss on your case? Cubicle neighbor talks too loud on the phone? Pushed to the wall? Then let ‘em know – “I am cubicle worker, hear me roar!” Literally open a Can of Whoop Ass, and be the cube warrior you were always meant to be!

Of course, we don’t really mean that you go postal on your colleagues – just open this 17-ounce metal can and show them you mean business. Got no Whoop-Ass to put in your can? No worries – in place of Whoop-Ass, this can also provides storage for jellybeans or paperclips, which sadly do nothing for your hallway cred. One Can of Whoop-Ass cubicle accessories retails for $12.45.

Image courtesy of Convenient Gadgets & Gifts. All rights reserved.

Cubicaller Cubicle Doorbell. Ain’t a lot of cubicle accessories out there that increase your privacy levels in the office – cube walls notwithstanding, the open door practically invites people to come in and chat with you. So what kind of barrier can you set up to let people know they oughta buzz before entering?

A Cubicaller, of course. Keep one of these handy cubicle accessories on the wall, and only the really rude and obtuse will barrel in on you without buzzing. The Cubicaller keeps it interesting, by providing 12 different sound effects, including bird chirps, old car horns, “ding-dong” doorbell, a “Sproing!”, fading laser, door knocking, fog horn, big band, “quack-Quack”, ring tone, cat meowing, and Chimes.

With respect to your cube neighbors, the Cubicaller’s volume can be adjusted to three different levels. The Cubicaller retails for $13.95 at Amazon.com.

Image © 2007 Dream Cheeky. All rights reserved.

USB Missile Launcher. When it’s “Def Con 2” in your office space, make sure you’re armed and ready for battle with Dream Cheeky’s USB Missile Launcher. These warlike cubicle accessories aren’t just for show – each launcher contains three foam missiles, and is connected to your PC by a four-foot cable and a USB 1.1 connection.

The Missile Launcher can be controlled on your PC, firing each foam missile up to 15 feet at a fast clip, accompanied by pre-recorded sound effects. You’ll need a PC with Intel Pentium 4 or compatible processor operating at 2.4GHz or faster, 128MB or more RAM, and 100MB of available hard drive space – plus one available USB port.

You’ve been warned – arm yourself with these cubicle accessories, cubicle war is hell. Of course, you’ll need something more substantial when the inevitable office zombie apocalypse rears its ugly head:

Refurbished office cubicles are not just cheaper than brand-new, they’re often not much different from brand-new.

It’s not a small benefit, as office managers seek to balance cost, function, and appearance. These days, refurbished office cubicles are the best way to reach that balance.

As used cubicles cost almost half of its new counterparts, it wins hands-down in the price department. As function goes, refurbished office furniture performs as well as brand-new, so office managers suffer no sacrifice in that area.

And as far as appearance is concerned, only the most eagle-eyed of office workers will be able to spot the difference between refurbished and brand-new.

More good news after the jump. (read more)

Refurbished Office Cubicles – Appearances Matter

The restoration process is essential here. While not as extensive as remanufacturing, refurbishing puts a lot of “new” back into the old, with newly-laminated worktops and fresh paint and fabric put in.

The finished product comes in a wide range of designs and configurations. With the glut of used furniture out there in the wild (thanks, sadly, to the recession that seems to be receding behind us), recyclers and remanufacturers have a lot of raw material to work with. And much of that raw material has hardly been used, too!

Used Cubicles = Earth-Friendly Cubicles

This ties back to the best reason to buy refurbished office cubicles – it’s a big green initiative. Buying used cubicles reuses core structural components and reduces the release of harmful pollutants into the environment; hardly a small gesture for the earth!

Buying refurbished furniture offers several key benefits to the environment:

Conserved resources. By sucking up much less raw materials from the environment, energy and natural resources are conserved. In place of new, raw material, refurbished office cubicles use materials already in circulation. The wood, steel, plastics, and aluminum that go into refurbished office cubicles have already made their impact on the environment in the past.

In real terms, estimates the Office Furniture Dealers Alliance, each pound of natural resources used in remanufacturing conserves the equivalent of up to nine pounds of original materials.

The refurbishing process also conserves energy, requiring up to 95% less energy to create furniture compared to building furniture from scratch.

Reducing pollution. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are an unavoidable byproduct of the manufacturing process. Refurbishing used office furniture reduces the amount of VOCs released in the atmosphere, reducing the risk of global warming, acid rain, and the other aftereffects of air pollution.

Reducing solid waste. The solid waste stream would be clogged with bits of furniture, if not for the valiant efforts of recycling and remanufacturing professionals. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, approximately 3 million tons of office furniture are thrown out every year. Furniture refurbishing keeps this number low, saving on landfill space and returning still-usable refurbished office cubicles back to where they belong – in the workplace.

Refurbished Office Cubicles – A Growing Business

Since the 1980s, office furniture remanufacturing has grown by leaps and bounds to contribute up to $1.2 billion of the $13.6 billion commercial furniture industry. The demand is significant, and the benefits to both businesses and the environment are solid. There are a lot of good reasons to choose refurbished office cubicles, and the old objections to buying refurbished hardly apply anymore. The choice is clear!

Image © Tim Patterson / Creative Commons

If you’re a facility manager checking out cubicles for sale, count yourself lucky. At no other time in cubicle retail history, since Herman Miller’s Bob Propst invented the office cubicle in 1968, has stock been so high and price points so low. But how will you choose from the wide selection available in the market? Simple – consider the factors presented below.

Collaboration potential. According to a 2008 Steelcase Workplace Satisfaction Survey, making connections with coworkers represents a huge quality-of-work issue to a majority of respondents – 98% believe they require access to the right people, compared to 97% who believe they need access to the right technology and tools.

This affects your choices when checking out cubicles for sale – do your cubicles permit collaboration? Do individual cubicles have space for colleagues to come in and discuss? Do you have specialized cubicles specifically for group work, absent a readily available conference room? In a work environment where consultation is key to productivity, these may be make-or-break questions when considering cubicles for sale.

More criteria after the jump. (Read more)

Modularity. According to Today’s Facility Manager, modularity is becoming de rigueur in today’s modern office. “Modular interior construction is finally beginning to realize its potential,” says OM Workspace’s Mark Paul. “Many buildings use movable walls, raised floors, sound masking systems, and indirect lighting fixtures to [facilitate easily reconfigured space.]”

Modular office cubicles for sale these days offer three signal benefits: adaptability – allowing reconfiguration to serve a variety of job functions, or disassembly in times of downsizing; compatibility – allowing managers to mix and match existing office cubicles with new product from the same manufacturer; and customization – the ability to meet the needs of different professionals.

Quality Finish. The look and feel of most cubicles for sale may boil down to the finish it uses. Natural wood – even if it comes in the form of wood laminate- provides a warmer feel, while plastic laminates may look more modern (and come at a cheaper price point too!). Modular office cubicles with fabric panels offer mild noiseproofing ability. While cubicles’ low walls means that complete noiseproofing is impossible, acoustically enhanced panels are designed to reduce background noise to manageable levels.

Low Price. Low-priced refurbished cubicles for sale are easy to find, but you may be worried that buying “used” could mean compromising on quality. That may have been the case 10 years ago, but the present glut of used office furniture has fueled the stock of remanufactured office cubicles for sale – used office equipment that is put through a comprehensive remanufacturing process that involves the following steps:

• Panel fabrics are stripped and replaced, keeping the indestructible acoustically enhanced panel core, which are stripped and repainted;
• Overhead storage / binder bins are stripped and repainted;
• Old work surfaces are completely replaced with new laminate work surfaces;
• New below the surface pedestal files and electrical wiring componentry added to the ensemble.

The remanufacturing process creates office cubicles with all the functionality and durability of brand new office furniture, with prices that may be up to 80% cheaper than comparable brand new furniture!

Environmental Impact. Remanufactured cubicles for sale, mentioned above, offer a second key advantage – the remanufacturing process is very eco-friendly, using green procedures to replace and recycle parts. For example, low-VOC coatings are often used in the remanufacturing process, limiting the amount of toxic emissions released into the atmosphere.

For great examples of remanufactured office cubicles for sale that offer both low prices and reduced environmental impact, as well as great performance in the other factors mentioned above, look no further than Cubicles.com’s wide selection of office cubicles.

Armless office chairs are usually the last choice for many office workers. No surprise there – why give up the comfort and great optics of an office chair with arms?

Still, armless office chairs have a role to play in the office. A supporting role, true, but an important one nonetheless.

Armless office chairs are ideal for offices with little space to spare and only a tiny budget to work with. Sometimes the two go together; tenants of small office spaces generally don’t have much overhead to splurge on the latest Herman Miller office chairs for the whole crew. So armless office chairs can, and do, fill the slack.

Because of the lack of arms, armless office chairs can be slid under the desk with little trouble. And the lack of arms doesn’t get in the way of most armless office chairs’ appearance: they come in a wide variety of designs and colors, one of which is bound to suit your office needs.

Even with armless office chairs, you still need to do your due diligence with regard to comfort and adjustability. Your armless office chair should be adjustable, and work well with your body frame.

If you’re in the market for armless office chairs, you should test more than one before settling on your final choice. (In our opinion, Cubicles.com’s seating department is a great place to begin choosing.)

This is crucial – there’s a high correlation between comfort and productivity, and you don’t want your armless office chair to get in the way of working effectively!