Is your office layout impacting your IT?

Multiple IT aspects are affected by how an office is designed. Layout can influence staff productivity and effectiveness, but can also impact IT security, network connectivity, availability and organisation of equipment.

Read on to assess if your current set-up is having a negative effect on your IT, and learn about considerations for common office layout choices.

Cabling and connectivity

An open layout can simplify network access and cable management if it’s planned properly, but requires attention to cable aesthetics and organisation.

Classic cubicle layouts create cabling challenges when they aren’t designed with correct infrastructure for wires to run. Bad layouts can lead to cables tangling, network access difficulties and potential connectivity disruptions.

IT equipment accessibility and placement

Having more central IT areas streamlines equipment upgrades and maintenance, while decentralised IT equipment often provides quicker user access, but requires more distributed support if it isn’t planned properly.

PCs and other IT equipment should be positioned for adequate ventilation to avoid overheating, while routers should be placed high up with no large metal objects in the path of signals, such as metal filing cabinets.

Data security

An open plan layout usually requires extra security steps to protect private or sensitive data because of the increased visibility of screens at workstations. Having well-defined access points is important to manage the physical security of office IT equipment.

At 127 Solutions, we provide complete IT support that helps you optimise the use of the office technology you own while promoting best cybersecurity practices. Contact us today to ensure your IT systems are correctly configured for productive processes.