How can the physical design of the workplace enhance collaborations without compromising an individual's productivity? The body of research on the links between physical space and collaboration in knowledge work settings is reviewed. Collaboration is viewed as a system of behaviours that includes both social and solitary work. The social aspects of collaboration are discussed in terms of three dimensions: awareness, brief interaction and collaboration (working together). Current knowledge on the links between space and the social as well as individual aspects of collaborative work is reviewed. The central conflict of collaboration is considered: how to design effectively to provide a balance between the need to interact and the need to work effectively by oneself. The body of literature shows that features and attributes of space can be manipulated to increase awareness, interaction and collaboration. However, doing so frequently has negative impacts on individual work as a result of increases in noise distractions and interruptions to on-going work. The effects are most harmful for individual tasks requiring complex and focused mental work. The negative effects are compounded by a workplace that increasingly suffers from cognitive overload brought on by time stress, increased workload and multitasking. Keywords: cognitive overload, collaboration, evidence-based design, individual effectiveness, interaction, knowledge work, office awareness, workplace awareness, workplace design Comment la conception physique du lieu de travail peut-elle améliorer les collaborations sans compromettre la productivité individuelle ? L'auteur passe en revue l'ensemble des recherches conduites sur les liens qui existent entre l'espace physique et la collaboration au niveau de la connaissance du cadre de travail. La collaboration est définie comme un système de comportements qui recouvre le travail en groupe et le travail solitaire. Les aspects sociaux de la collaboration sont examinés sous trois angles différents: prise de conscience, brèves interactions et collaboration (travailler ensemble). L'auteur examine les connaissances actuelles en matière de liens entre l'espace et la dimension sociale et aussi en termes d'aspects individuels du travail en collaboration. L'auteur étudie ensuite le conflit qui est au coeur du travail en collaboration: comment concevoir avec efficacité pour arriver à un équilibre entre le besoin d'interagir et celui de travailler seul efficacement ? La littérature consacrée à ce sujet montre que les caractéristiques et les attributs de l'espace peuvent être manipulés pour augmenter la prise de conscience, l'interaction et la collaboration. Mais des manipulations trop fréquentes ont des incidences négatives sur le travail individuel du fait de l'augmentation du bruit, des distractions et des interruptions du travail en cours. Elles sont surtout préjudiciables aux tâches individuelles complexes qui nécessitent

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The increasingly collaborative nature of knowledge-based work requires workplaces to support both dynamic interactions and concentrated work, both of which are critical for collaboration performance. Given the prevalence of open-plan settings, this requirement has created new challenges for workplace design. Therefore, an understanding of the relationship between the spatial characteristics of workplace settings and the support for collaboration that is perceived by office workers is valuable and timely. Based on a study of 308 office workers in 27 office spaces, this article examines the relationship between a series of workplace spatial characteristics and the support that is perceived by the occupants for collaborations. The spatial characteristics that were examined included individual workstation characteristics that were derived from the literature and a new set of floor-plan layout variables that highlighted shared spaces that are critical for a variety of formal and informal collaboration activities at work. The key characteristics of workplace spatial settings that were associated with the support that the occupants perceived for collaboration were the distance from workstation to meeting space, the distance from workstation to shared service area, the distance from workstation to kitchen/coffee area, and the percentage of floor space that was dedicated to shared services and amenities.

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BackgroundThe elements that contribute to a healthy building are multifactorial and can be discussed from different perspectives.ObjectivesWe present three viewpoints of designing a healthy building: the importance of sustainable development, the role of occupants for ensuring indoor air quality, and ongoing developments related to indoor finishes with low chemical emissions and good fungal resistance.DiscussionSustainable design rediscovers the social, environmental, and technical values of pedestrian and mixed-use communities, using existing infrastructures including “main streets” and small-town planning principles and recapturing indoor–outdoor relationships. This type of design introduces nonpolluting materials and assemblies with lower energy requirements and higher durability and recyclability. Building occupants play a major role in maintaining healthy indoor environments, especially in residences. Contributors to indoor air quality include cleaning habits and other behaviors; consumer products, furnishings, and appliances purchases, as well as where and how the occupants use them. Certification of consumer products and building materials as low-emitting products is a primary control measure for achieving good indoor air quality. Key products in this respect are office furniture, flooring, paints and coatings, adhesives and sealants, wall coverings, wood products, textiles, insulation, and cleaning products. Finishing materials play a major role in the quality of indoor air as related to moisture retention and mold growth.ConclusionsSustainable design emphasizes the needs of infrastructure, lower energy consumption, durability, and recyclability. To ensure good indoor air quality, the product development for household use should aim to reduce material susceptibility to contaminants such as mold and should adopt consumer-oriented product labeling.