Any business knows that productivity is key to growth, let alone staying afloat. Whether you are talking about a production line, a traveling salesperson, and yes even your office space; productivity is going to be the main driving factor which will allow your business to not only stay in business, but also experience growth year over year, month over month.

Here we are going to describe 23 ways to improve office productivity which will in turn allow you to realize higher profits, more output, and less money being wasted to lost productivity.

First on the list? Improving office productivity through computer applications:

Science proves that taking more breaks allows us to be more productive.

How does that work if we technically will have less “work time” by taking all these breaks?

It gives us time to collect our thoughts, time to let our mind roam, and even some time to talk and bounce ideas off of others.

So, instead of making employees hate working because you limit them to one break a day; let them take a short one every hour or two and watch the ideas and productivity outputs increase!

Not only should you be organizing your desk, but also the entire office.

A cleared out area allows for a clear mind to work at much higher levels of clarity. Whether you have a cubical office design or a more open concept; requiring all areas of the office to be clear on either a weekly or daily basis should be a must.

Sure, not everyone likes to clear. But, if you give employees 10-15 minutes to clean their area at the end of every day I’m sure most people will be happy to do so (especially if you explain it is part of your initiative to improve productivity in the office)!

Some people have a habit of checking their email every 10 minutes while they are waiting for someone important to get back to them.

In reality, the likelihood of them replying back right away even if you get back to them quick is slim. On top of that, it seems down right desperate.

By implementing 2-3 time periods (again, depending on the department) that people should check their email; you will end the constant refreshing of email pages by a lot of your work force. This allows people to get back to work and pay much more attention to their work at hand.

There can be multiple things wrong with your lighting system that might be throwing off people in the office.

First of all, if you have fluorescent lights then you might just have a few (or a lot) of lights in your office that flicker or even worse, buzz. This can cause eye stress, annoyance, and a general distraction.

On top of that, you may have either an under-lit or over-lit office. Both are bad, and it’s up to you to find the optimal light output for your office. This can be done by surveying employees on your lighting system and going from there.

Lastly, low quality light can be an issue. An easy way to not only improve the quality of light but also get rid of flickering and buzzing light issues is by upgrading your reduce your energy usage by up to 30% or so. Sounds like a win-win situation here!

Not only will they help with productivity, but they will also clean the air of toxins which will keep the air fresh and not-so-stuffy.

Stop making it so difficult to get around. Make it easy to get to the bathroom, to the trash, or even to an outlet.

Time is money, and if people are having to spend time just to get to the most basic things you aren’t setting up your office for success (literally).

Using office design to increase productivity can be difficult, sure. But it doesn’t have to be all that complex. You could even get some people together to brainstorm what could be done to best optimize the space you have to best serve efficiency in the office. So while there will never be the “best office design for productivity” hack or tip (due to all offices being different), you can always use some general guidelines and common sense to help you out.

Wherever the noise may be coming from, while it may not effect everyone it may be effecting some people.

Now, this can be an easy fix if the noise is coming from within the office. To solve this issue, all you need to do is address the area of concern and fix it. But, what if the noise is coming externally on a frequent basis?

Well, you can do either of two things. Firstly, you can try to address or confront the external noise producer and see if there is anyway for it to stop at least during your time of work. If that doesn’t work, then you might need to install sound proofing technology into your walls. This can get pricey sure, but you’ve got to weight the benefits of having less noise in the office versus the cost it is going to be to make the upgrade.

Although you might think that you won’t be able to get everything in if you shorten meetings, you would be mistaken!

In fact, having shorter meetings make them much more focused and thus; more productive. Even if you have two meetings over one a week because they are shorter, it is much better to have two 10 minute meetings over one 30 minute one that lacks purpose.

On top of that, do you really need to have a meeting? Or, are you just holding meetings to “have a meeting?” If it is the latter, try scheduling meetings only when they are needed, rather just out of habit.

Looking for ways to motivate the office into getting stuff done? 43Folders.com and it’s a simple concept: work for ten minutes, break for 2, then repeat this 5 times (or an hour).

You might say, “are you mad?! No way I’ll let my employees take a break every 10 minutes.” But here it out…

Maybe you shouldn’t implement this tactic specifically, but make a variation that works for your needs but still allows for productivity to be most optimal. And yes, there will be times when extreme concentration is required for more than 10-20 minutes, and obviously this doesn’t have to be a “set in stone” type deal. Instead, make it a generally accepted practice to partake in such method of break and work balancing.

(We already talked about more breaks in #3, but we thought this hack was worthy of its own).

Have you ever listed a job listing opportunity with one of the qualifications as “multitasking?” If so, you’ve got it all wrong. In fact, you should be listing a qualifications as “the ability to be laser focused on one thing at a time.”

Multitasking Parkinson’s law” in short says that we will fill whatever time is allotted to complete a given task.

Why do you think people with a 3 month deadline to get a presentation done still find themselves struggling to get it ready to go last minute? Because they will fill the entire time they are given to finish it. This goes with any task, and if you shorten the time allotted to finish tasks you will see more getting done because people will work to fill the allotted time given.

This of course can be used too far and not given enough time to get things done with all the proper due diligence required. Finding a good balance of long enough but not TOO long will be difficult, but start looking into deadlines and what exactly defines how far out they get set and start thinking about setting shorter (yet still doable) deadlines.

Studies show that standing will not only improve health, but it will also improve productivity. Focus goes up and thus more work can get done.

call center workers showed that pollution in the office reduced productivity levels. As you can imagine, pollution is a major issue in a lot of places, especially in bigger cities.

A Look Back At 2011

Texas residents suffered damaging and costly electrical problems in 2011. Three major blackout incidents, two of which happened in the winter months of February and December respectively, left residents without heat and without power for hours and, in some cases, days at a time. Equally distressing was the 71-day drought that had Texans begging their local Dallas electrician for relief, as 100-plus degree heat waves weakened the power grid once again and left residents without air conditioning or electricity.

2012: Not Much Better

Unfortunately, 2012 does not seem to be the year for relief. Experts warn that several factors point to an even more severe blackout and power grid problem in the state of Texas for 2012.

 These factors translate into miserable, costly blackouts and power grid failures throughout North Texas.

Dallas Electrician Company Provides Solutions

There are some solutions for customers looking stay ahead of the game when it comes to protecting their home and appliances from the inconvenient and sometimes dangerous conditions that stem from power grid failures. With the help of a knowledgeable electrician, Dallas residents can acquire an indoor generator, which can serve as an effective emergency power source for your home or business in the event of a blackout.

One of the most convenient features of these indoor generators is that there is no need to use electricity to recharge the battery bank that runs the generator. Without the mess of a fuel-powered engine generator, customers can count on reliable and steady power output and a quiet supply of power for your appliances. Furthermore, the convenience of a solar-power or wind-power battery charge ensures that customers need not worry about using electricity to recharge generator batteries.

Surge protection is part and parcel of every electrical system and many devices such as HDTV’s and computers are plugged into surge protection devices. However, it’s not necessary to have individual devices to protect the different appliances or equipment in your home. It’s possible to get a centralised surge system installed into your property’s main electrical panel; this turns your home into a single large surge protector.

This kind of a system offers a significant amount of convenience. Most homes nowadays have a large number of appliances and equipment ranging from washing machines, dishwashers, electric stoves, ovens, refrigerators, HVAC systems, home PCs, printers, scanners, pool equipment, hot water systems, outdoor lighting, irrigation system, home entertainment and music system and more.

Based on the number of equipment and appliances you want to protect, a centralised surge protector can be much more affordable than just getting individual surge protectors installed. This also extends protection to all the other larger appliances in your home, that don’t already have any surge protection adapters. The different types of surges that can occur are:

The long and short of it is that surges can occur at any point of time and this is what makes it important to have a centralised system that will provide protection to all the equipment and appliances in your home.

If you notice the lights in your home flickering, that is generally caused by an electrical surge. Typically, these types of surges won’t burn out your appliances and devices, but they do have a negative impact on the longevity of this equipment. When it comes to getting surge protectors installed, the high-cost of the damage caused by electrical surges to our electronic equipment and appliances should be the topmost priority.

Current day home appliances such as ovens, dishwashers, refrigerators etc. are becoming increasingly sophisticated and operate on smart technology. They have a large number of closely intertwined, sensitive components; an imbalance or impact to one of them has the potential to impact the rest of the components too. This holds true for larger systems such as the hot water and HVAC systems too.

Even when these systems aren’t being used, major electrical surges can cause heavy damage to them and will shave years off of their operational lives. Without you realising it, this can result in thousands of dollars of losses in the duration you live in that home. In some cases, a massive power surge can cause irreversible damage to your HVAC or hot water system, and replacement becomes the only option you are left with.

Keeping all these aspects in view, it becomes extremely important to ensure that you have a high-grade, reliable surge protection system installed in your home. We at Allround Electrical can provide excellent electrical upgrade maintenance solutions to commercial and residential customers.

We will survey the space, make note of all the equipment and appliances on your property and will provide solutions that are best-suited to your needs. For more information, contact our friendly team at this number – 1300 169 263. Alternatively, you can also write to us at this email address.

Thanks for reading,1300 169 263

When you have a young child running around the house, safety is your number one concern. There are hazards everywhere and electricity is one threat that can go unseen. Electrical shock can cause burns, stop your heartbeat and breathing, as well as cause loss of consciousness. Make your home a safe place for your child with these electrical precautions.

Unused electrical outlets are easy access for children trying to stick things into them. If one of those items is made of metal, it can cause serious injury to the child as well as the socket. Use safety plugs to cover up holes and prevent any mishaps.

As with adults, it’s important that there are no electrical devices around areas with water, like the sink or bathtub. By bumping a radio or phone into a sink or tub that the child is in, it could cause serious shock and injury. Also after bath time, make sure your child is completely dry before letting them loose. If they come into contact with any unsecure electrical cords or devices, the water will create an unpleasant shock.

Don’t leave disconnected electrical devices, such as a hairdryer or iron, in the on position when they are not being used. If your child has the urge to put the cord in their mouth, there may be a residual electrical charge that could cause injury.

When unplugging electronics and appliances, don’t simply pull the plug out and leave it on the ground. Children can play with the cords and the tampering can result in an electric shock. Wrap up your cords when you’re done and place them out of reach for little hands. In addition, secure all cords so they are not loose for a child to trip over or pull at.

Electricity is useful in our everyday lives but can also be very dangerous. To keep your children safe, take the necessary precautions to secure your house from any electrical hazards that they could come in contact with. It is better to be safe then sorry.

GE, Osram, Sylvania and Philips are some of the big names of lighting business. Look at how the market for modern energy efficient lamps is developing and one wonders if the lighting Industry is going the way the computer industry did.

When computers burst on to the scene, they redefined efficiency measures. A new computer was a considerable investment but it more than made up for its cost by increasing productivity or by reducing cost. Companies using computers could also use this fact as a branding tool – defining themselves as progressive corporations.

The demand for energy efficient lighting products has meant that incandescent bulbs now belong in a museum and not in homes and offices. LED lighting technology is quickly decimating old records of energy efficiency and long service life. The improvement in this technology render peak light output data obsolete every year. Energy efficient LED bulbs and tubes cost more up front but like computers more than make up for their cost through energy savings, lower maintenance costs and green branding.

This is how the computer business unfolded.

Given its strong technological capabilities, IBM was once the undisputed leader in computers. Then IBM made a decision that some call a strategic blunder. They outsourced their software development to Microsoft, which was then a small start up. Chip development became the forte of Intel. Soon IBM clones flooded the market. It was possible to buy chips, software and other components from different manufacturers and assemble them. These conditions created a fertile ground for entrepreneurs and many computer assembling and selling businesses came up quickly. Simultaneously, a host of software companies came up for developing specialized products like desktop publishing and anti-virus programs. Consumers benefited but IBM lost its dominance of the computer market.

Look at what is happening in the lighting industry.

This is how the LED bulb you love reaches your light fixture.

1.       Scientists in Universities, government funded labs and private companies work to break new ground in light output and longevity. They experiment with new semiconductor materials and manufacturing technologies to produce the best product at the lowest price.

2.       Using the knowledge generated in the labs, specialized companies like CREE produce High luminous output LEDs.

3.       Companies like ‘Seesmart’ excelling in fixture design assemble high quality LEDs into fixtures of suitable wattage and light output. They ensure that operating temperatures are low and light spread is even by marrying the best LEDs, optical diffusers and heat management systems. They also ensure that the lights are in accordance with UL testing guidelines.

4.       MyLEDLightingGuide understands LED lighting and brings these super efficient lights to buyers. We sample lights from multiple manufacturers and select those that make for the best price performance combination.

5.       Our secure e-commerce platform enables consumers to choose the product best suited to their needs from the comfort and safety of their homes and offices. They do not need to go through tons of brochures printed on paper or drive down to retail outlets. The chosen product is shipped to the buyer and helps him improve the performance of his/ her business or reduce home energy bills.

As with computers, new tech companies are coming up with pioneering technological products for remote lighting management and intelligent lighting controls. The parallels are too many and the business will probably develop as the computer industry did – adding efficiencies, earning foreign exchange and establishing world leading best practices in the bargain.

That LED light bulb manufacturers shall be the stalwarts of the new age of eco-friendly lighting is beyond doubt. GE, Sylvania, Phillips, Osram and other big names of the lighting industry are trying their hand at marketing LED lights. However, these big name lighting companies are going to face a lot of competition from smaller manufacturers and customer focused retailers like MyLEDLightingGuide. The reach of our E-commerce platform renders their distribution muscle redundant negating one the main advantages enjoyed by these big players. Intelligent customers do not choose brand name products blindly. Instead they like to see, study, analyze and understand evidence about the benefits of the product they have chosen to invest their money in. This is where our ROI calculator, data analysis and knowledge articles prove to be of great value.

The world of lighting seems ready for democratization.