Sliding Office Doors a New Alternative in the Corporate Office
Sliding doors have been a mainstay of commercial spaces for years, but only recently delivered the desired benefits for offices. Products like AD Systems’ OfficeSlide™ are now emerging as an ideal solution and challenging the dominance of swing doors with their ability to attenuate sound, improve space efficiency and visually complement today’s modern interiors.
A Closer Look at the Benefits of Sliding Office Doors
There are numerous ways building owners and design professionals can use sliding office doors to improve the workplace environment. Here’s a look at four key ways they can benefit modern office design:
1. Reclaim space: When you consider the swing path and approach clearance requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), sliding office doors are an effective way to reclaim critical square footage in busy offices. With space-saving benefits on either side of the wall, they can also help improve wayfinding and support freedom of movement.
2. Keep the noise down: Swing doors traditionally out-performed sliding doors for controlling sound. In large part, this was due to the difficulty of sealing all sides of a sliding door in the closed position. This is now a problem of the past, as sliding doors are available that achieve NIC (noise isolation class) values comparable to swing doors by sealing all four sides of the door leaf. Building owners can use these sliding office doors to keep noise outside enclosed offices and conference rooms at a minimum, for an overall healthier and more enjoyable working environment.
3. Enhance worker productivity: Open-concept layouts are a hallmark of the modern office. But design professionals and researchers are increasingly noting the shortcomings of these spaces. A recent study of more than 40,000 workers in 300 U.S. offices found that “Enclosed private offices clearly outperformed open-plan layouts in most aspects of IEQ (Indoor Environmental Quality), particularly in acoustics, privacy and the proxemics issues.” Sliding glass office doors can be a part of the solution to this problem. Their transparent form can maintain the desired openness while creating physical separation to safeguard sound and improve employee concentration.
4. Add modern style: Sliding office doors are fitting for the post-cubicle era with their contemporary look and simple, clean lines. They be configured as surface-mounted, top-hung barn style doors, or as pocket doors, brining form in line with function in the modern office.
