Furniture items abound, and everyone wants to sell you something. So, before
ever stepping foot out the door in your quest for the perfect system, make sure
you have a pretty good idea what pieces you are going to require in order to
work more efficiently. Consideration should be given to the amount of work
surface space you will need, the flow and ergonomics of the layout, the amount
of lighting, the storage, the seating, and if you don't have a private
hard-walled office in your home, then possibly, a partition system.
When considering the depth of your work surface, 24” is adequate. More than
that and objects such as your stapler or paper clips could be located too far
out of your reach. Your goal is to be able to remain seated and still reach in
all directions on your desk. Your computer monitor should be in a position
about 14-16” away from you. Frequently used storage compartments should be
located to your left and right, or overhead, but as close within range as
possible to avoid standing and reaching. Reaching consistently could result in
an injury. A keyboard drawer will save on space, and an articulating platform
will help you to position your keyboard in an ergonomically correct fashion.
Identify where you will place your new workstation. Once you’ve identified a
location, take some measurements and design a coarse floor plan. Consider the
dimensions and placement of your desk, whether it is a simple table desk, a
corner system, a U-shaped workstation, a workstation with a peninsula-style
surface, or an L-shaped workstation. Decide whether you will have pedestal
drawers on the desk, or if you will purchase a freestanding, rolling pedestal
for filing. Hutches and overhead cabinetry are excellent for storage in a small
area, where the only space available is vertical. Also, consider whether you
will purchase a lateral file or vertical file for additional storage. A lateral
file is wider than a vertical file, whereas a vertical file is deeper and comes
in letter or legal size. Note the location of your filing cabinets on the
drawing.