Companies waste millions on under-utilised offices
26/02/2009
-Recession drives employers to force workers to book their desks-
With an average desk occupancy rate of 45% in most offices(1), brought about by a migration to a flexible working environment, a company with 2,000 employees can waste over £8 million a year on under-utilised desk space, says workplace management firm, RNM Systems.
Organisations with 5,000 or 10,000 employees can fritter away over £21 million or £42 million a year respectively through low occupancy levels.
Research by the company concluded that a 10m2 desk can cost an organisation in the City as much as £9,510 per annum, taking into account rental costs, heating, electricity and ventiliation (2).
Paul Statham, managing director at RNM Systems, said: “The days when large firms could afford to operate half-empty office floors have gone. We have seen evidence that many companies are taking measures to ensure that every single inch of real estate is put to good use.”
The forlorn state of the economy has driven many companies to proactively search for ways to make the most of the space they already occupy. Instead of investing in new office premises or expanding, most are tightening purse strings and cutting back on unnecessary wastage.
He continued: “Companies that traditionally operated on six floors are increasingly looking to divest their real estate so that they can function with just four floors - vacating expensive floor space and making huge savings on both rent and the cost of servicing the under-utilised space.”
“Companies have begun to embrace ‘hotelling’ - a method of supporting unassigned seating in an office environment, which will effectively evaluate how much office space is being wasted and then allow a set amount of desks to be booked as and when employees need them. The result means that companies could dispose of energy-guzzling desks and reduce their expensive property overheads without having to make redundancies or cut their staff levels,” commented Paul.
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Source Material:
Calculations:
1) Total Office Cost for a 10m2 desk in the City of London: Average £9,510 pa – Source: Total Office Cost Survey 2008 11th Edition, Actium Consult (May 2008)
2) 45% average desk occupancy rate – Source: Flexibility Limited / OGC
Notes to editors:
RNM Systems is a specialist in workspace management and booking solutions. Its Condeco software suite, recent winner of BIFM’s Technology Award, provides large enterprises and SMEs with the ability to manage the day-to-day aspects of office life with ease and fluidity.
Condeco scalable workspace management software provides Meeting Room Booking, Desk Booking, Car Parking and Visitor Management, through one centralised web based application.
For further information, please contact:
Dani Freeman/Georgina Heaume
Spreckley Partners
020 7388 9988
freeman@spreckley.co.uk
heaume@spreckley.co.uk