0 Modern Workers Need Walls for Max Productivity

Posted on August 21, 2018 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Bisnow

Open offices are not the solution to all our problems.The greater population needs some level of quiet workspace to perform their tasks and not face the endless interruption.

A study from Ethan Bernstein and Stephen Turban of Harvard Business School and Harvard University notes the following:

[in open office spaces] “you are constantly on view and worried about being seen talking, or having your conversations overheard, people chose to email or use a messaging system instead…And because people were emailing and messaging more rather than speaking face to face, the quality of interactions declined and productivity suffered.”

Additional information on the study is available at Bisnow, here.

0 Modern Office Tenants Redefine how Commercial Buildings are Measured

Posted on November 22, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boma

Why are office building measurements getting redefined? In short, buildings are creating more common areas and outdoor amenities to accommodate today’s tenancy. The changes put forth this past October by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International are designed to account for the way young talent is seeking out and utilizing outdoor space – like rooftop terraces, balconies, etc.

From Seeking Alpha:

“The 2017 standard really reflects the changes that are happening in the marketplace,” BOMA International Chair Rob Brierley told VTS. He’s also an executive vice president at Colliers Boston. “There has been such an increasing demand for well-appointed exterior amenities like balconies, covered galleries and finished rooftop terraces. If the tenant is taking advantage of it, the rationality is they should also now include it as part of the rentable square footage… It’s a more clear and accurate representation of how tenants are actually using space.”

“Over the last decade, the amenity packages that folks are asking for is changing so quickly,” Brierley added. “Today if you don’t have a roof deck or patio, you’re definitely at a disadvantage in many ways…. The reality is if you go out to any building that has a patio or roof deck, everybody’s using it. It’s not just the millennials. It really has been an extension of their respective offices, which is one of the reasons this change has occurred.”

0 Nap Rooms and Wellness Metrics Reshape Office Space

Posted on November 22, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Crain’s New York

When listing amenities for buildings, beyond bike rooms and common area Wi-Fi, is a new addition: nap rooms. Soon to occupy space in Class A office towers around Boston, the new commercial real estate staple is quickly becoming adopted to cater to our changing workforce. By 2020, millennials will make up 40-50% of the working population.

Due in part to the increasing focus placed on the impact of work on occupants’ physical and mental well-being, a new scoring system has been devised to quantify office buildings’ use of wellness amenities.

From Crains New York:

Similar to LEED certification, which measures a building’s environmental sustainability, Fitwel’s system tracks various factors, from signs encouraging workers to take the stairs and wash their hands to more particular features such as lactation rooms and air purification systems. The availability of natural light is also considered a plus because it helps tenants keep their circadian rhythms in sync.

“Of millennials, 78% rate the quality of the workplace as one of the most important benefits of working at a particular company,” [Joanna Frank, president and CEO of the Center for Active Design] said. “They want to be working where there’s an overt emphasis on quality of life. Companies are realizing they need to offer it to attract and retain talent.”

0 Boston Law Firms Employ Modern, Tech-forward Office Space

Posted on October 27, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Laws firms are dramatically changing the way they use space.

Credit: Bisnow

Out are:

Law libraries
Assistant for each lawyers
Large Private Offices

In are:

Flexible office partitions
Abundant Wi-Fi
Less square feet per employee

From Bisnow:

“There are typical functions each firm has — a good amount of conferencing, support areas, dining for associates, work for attorneys, administrator space, etc. What we’re seeing is tech is having a significant impact on the way firms are using space,” [said Stephen Bay, CBRE Vice Chairman and National Law Firm Broker].

The removal of the physical libraries and having fewer assistants on staff has resulted in office downsizing. As the average decade-long lease ends, firms are reducing their square footage per employee and making the office more flexible in a move to “future-proof” the workplace and remain competitive.

0 Boston Continues to Lure Large Corporate Tenants

Posted on September 18, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Courant

Boston continues to win large corporate tenants from our neighboring states.

In an article on the Courant, Alexion said “its headquarters would move from New Haven to Boston to support plans for growth…[noting] Boston will provide access to a ‘larger biopharmaceutical talent pool and a variety of life-sciences partners to further support future growth initiatives.’”

The full article is available on the Courant.

Related Office Space Listings
Seaport Office Space for Lease

0 South Boston Office Space Planned for 105 W. First Street

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

Southie is looking to have a new office building at W. First Street totaling 266,000 square feet.

A recent BBJ article notes the South Boston building’s proposal includes “space for a retail, cafe or restaurant; a “convener” space that could host a co-working-style office; and an enclosed pedestrian connector that will connect West Second and West First streets in South Boston.”

More information is supplied in the complete article on the Boston Business Journal’s website, here.

0 Nissan Promo Showcases Self-Parking Office Chairs

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Wil Catlin

Technology has changed our lives in ways many of us could not have imagined. The influx of this has required us to have a constant demand of charging systems and adapters. Nissan’s self-parking office chairs are a great example of cool technology, but I can’t imagine charging offices chairs along with my phone.

Ubergizmo posted the video (below) displaying the Nissan technology in which “simply by clapping hands together, office chairs will be able to self-park at their respective desks. This helps create a neat and tidy look, something that offices don’t typically look like at the end of the day when everyone is done with work and just can’t wait to rush back home for their dinner…According to Nissan, these are modified Okamura chairs that are tracked by four motion cameras mounted on the walls and are controlled by WiFi.”

0 Map out the Inside of your Office Buildings

Posted on November 19, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Bisnow

Maps are no longer just about city streets and highways, they are for indoors as well. Look to Google and Apple to see what’s on the inside of a building near you.

From Bisnow:

Google uses a rucksack contraption to create indoor maps of large venues like the British Museum in London. Apple is also getting in on the action with its “Indoor Survey App,” which allows users to map interiors by “dropping points,” CityMetric reports. And while Google and Apple offer nice 2D maps, Harvard University and Redlands, CA-based SmarterBetterCities are taking it to the next level. They’re working together to create 3D interior maps of Harvard’s campus, using ESRI’s arcGIS platform.

0 Rent Boston Office Space by the Month

Posted on October 27, 2015 by Wil Catlin

LiquidSpace

Office space in major markets is now available on an hour, daily or monthly plan. If you’re a startup, pick your market and pick your plan.

From Globest:

LiquidSpace has launched monthly rentals, enabling those startups and growing teams to rent a primary office space by the month. Monthly space is available in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Orange County and Boston, with plans to roll out monthly office space across the global LiquidSpace network by the end of 2015. LiquidSpace has had its sights on expanding into monthly space for a while, but it considered how to accomplish that in a way that improves on the traditional approach while also extending a new, flexible option for building owners to monetize the excess space.

Mark Gilbreath, founder and CEO of LiquidSpace, tells GlobeSt.com: “We’ve definitely struck a chord with both building owners and occupiers who have vacant space to share. Millions of square feet of small, high quality office spaces sit idle, robbing owners of potential revenue and asset value growth. Now for the first time, there is a simple and cost-effective way to monetize these 500- to 5000-square- foot spaces, by connecting directly to growing startups and corporate occupiers with satellite teams.”

LiquidSpace allows landlords and tenants to list space online on an hourly, daily or monthly basis, with LiquidSpace taking a 10% cut of monthly rents, providing differing rates for daily and hourly leases. The LiquidSpace network allows space providers to create and manage custom profiles as well as communicate directly with growing companies and manage all aspects of a transaction.

0 Congress Sq. Project Adds Seven-Story Office Tower in Boston Financial District

Posted on September 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

rendering of the new Jewel Box in the Congress Sq. Project

Credit: Bizjournals

The revitalization of the old continues as 40 Water Street makes its debut.

Scott Pollack, principal with Arrowstreet, said in a BBJ article, “It seemed like a real opportunity to serve an interest in the market that otherwise really isn’t being served at the moment.” The block of buildings is situated near Post Office Square, in between Milk Street and State Street — a relatively “dead” block, Pollack said, but one that could be jump-started with new activity…“It is amazing for someone who walks back and forth on this one block from Milk Street to State Street how dead it is,” Pollack said. “The intention of this project is to open it back up and really reconnect these two significant parts of the downtown.”

Jump over to the Boston Business Journal to read the full article.