When looking for an on-the-money description of something bland, corporate and erring on the naff side, office flooring used to be up there with the biggies. But those days are gone. Flooring is now where you will see some of the most innovative materials and design aspects of the most creative of workspaces. No longer there just to hide coffee spillages and contend with high footfall (although it still does both of these), office flooring is now a useful tool in brand-carrying, defining areas with different functions – or zoning – and also playing an important part in employees’ wellbeing.
“In general we see that the perception of flooring has changed during the last few years and is much more the centre of attention in office projects today. If flooring in the past was the last piece of the puzzle for the architect, it’s now the material the architect starts with, or at least includes early in the process as a design element to communicate the values of the company,” says Helen Emanuelsson, chief marketing and sales officer at Swedish flooring manufacturer Bolon.