Chapter 5

Office Environment

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
1 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Elements of the Office Environment

Lighting Acoustics

Condition of the
Color Scheme
Air

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
2 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Study of the relationship of
Ergonomics employees to their physical
environment.
Integrates several
disciplines

Psychology
Physiology
Sociology
Communication theories
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
3 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Impact of Not Paying Attention to
the Office Environment

Employee productivity decreases.

Employee morale decreases.
Absenteeism and tardiness increase.
Error rates increase.
Physical well-being of employees may be jeopardized.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
4 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Repetitive motion injuries are becoming
more common

Carpal tunnel syndrome is most

prevalent of these injuries.

CTS results from the long-term

irritation of the tendons connecting
one’s hands and arm.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
5 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Electromagnetic radiation is caused by video
display terminals

Is thought to cause a higher-than-average

rate of miscarriage, cancer, birth
defects, and heart disease.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
6 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Computer vision syndrome is a result of
video display terminals

Occurs when the viewing requirements of the task

being performed exceed the visual capabilities
of the person performing the task.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
7 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Indoor air pollution results from improperly
designed building ventilation systems

Often results from a ventilation system

that has outgrown its capability.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
8 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Lighting
Physically Affects Psychologically
Employees

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
9 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Characteristics of Lighting Systems

Equivalent Spherical Measures the effective-

Illumination ness of lighting systems.

Visual Comfort Is a direct-brightness

Probability ratio.
Measures the quantity
Task Illumination of light at the work
surface.
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
10 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Equivalent Spherical Illumination

Is influenced negatively by glares and reflections.

Is affected by the degree of contrast between the
work surface and the materials with which the
employee works.
Provides a measure of lighting uniformity.
An ESI of 40 or higher is recommended.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
11 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Visual Comfort Probability

Is affected negatively by visible bright light or

visible reflectors.
Should be at least .70 for routine office work and
.90 when computers are used extensively in
the area.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
12 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Task Illumination

Is expressed in raw foot-candles, which is the

amount of light produced one foot from a
candle.
Most office work requires 100 to 150 foot-candles of
light.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
13 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Types of Lighting Systems

Direct

General diffuse Semi-direct

Semi-indirect Indirect

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
14 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Direct Lighting

90-100 percent of the illumination is

directed downward to work surface.

Creates glares, reflections, and shadows.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
15 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Semi-direct Lighting

60-90 percent of light is directed down-

ward, with remainder directed upward
and then reflected back downward.

Shadows are less of a problem with

direct lighting systems.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
16 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Indirect Lighting

90-100 percent of light is directed upward,

which then is diffused and is reflected
downward.

Eliminates most shadows and glares.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
17 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Semi-indirect Lighting

60-90 percent of the light is directed up-

ward and then reflected downward.

Remainder of light is directed downward.

Shadows and glare are more problematic

than with indirect lighting.
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
18 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 General Diffuse

40-60 percent of light is directed to work

surface with remainder reflected down-
ward.

Shadows and glare are more noticeable

than with semi-indirect.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
19 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Task/ambient Uses lighting fixtures mounted
Lighting in the furniture.

Illuminates the work Task Is frequently

surface. directed downward.

Illuminates the area Ambient Is frequently

surrounding the work directed upward.
surface.
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
20 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Kinds of Lighting

Natural Not very dependable.

Continues to be the most common
Fluorescent type of lighting system.

Incandescent Is not as efficient as fluorescent

lighting.
High-intensity
Sometimes distorts colors.
discharge
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
21 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Kinds of Automatic Light Control Systems

Measures the amount of illumina-

Photocell tion in an area and adjusts
accordingly.
Senses the presence of people
Sensor in an area and turns lights on
automatically.

Computer Technology turns lights on and

off at predetermined times.
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
22 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Has both a physical and
Color psychological impact on humans.

Psychologically, color
affects

Productivity
Fatigue
Morale
Attitudes
Tension
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
23 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 In designing a suitable
color scheme, consider

Color combinations
Effect of light on color
Reflectance value of color
Impact of color

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
24 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Acceptable Color Coordination Schemes

Opposite each other on

Complimentary
the color chart.

Split Colors on either side of a

Complimentary complementary color.

Three colors equally

Triad distant from one another
on the color chart.
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
25 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Effect of Light on Color

Different types of artificial lighting have

different color spectrums.
Fluorescent lighting does not enhance reds and
oranges.
Incandescent lighting does not enhance purple
and blue schemes.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
26 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Reflectance Value of Color

Various colors possess different reflectance

values.
Lighter colors tend to reflect a greater percentage
of light than do darker colors.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
27 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Impact of Color

Colors tend Cool colors create calm and

retiring moods.
to create
Warm colors create warm and
different moods cheerful moods.
Natural tints are mildly
stimulating.
Deep purple and pale violet can
create depressing moods.
Gray has a sleep-inducing
Administrative Office Management, 8/e effect. ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
28 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Is the unit measure of sound and
Decibel is the smallest change in sound
detectable by the human ear.

Maximum decibel in an
office should be 90.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
29 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Ways to Control Office Noise

Proper Includes controlling airborne and

Construction structural sounds.
Includes proper use of ceiling,
Sound-absorbing floor, wall, and window-covering
Materials materials.
Sound-absorbing Includes putting covers on
equipment that creates consider-
Devices able noise.
Masking Includes blending office noise that
Technique creates considerable noise.
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
30 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Conditioning of the Air Considerations

Air Ideal working temperature is

Temperature 68 degrees F.

Humidity Optimum level is 50 percent.

Level
Circulation of Adequate exchange rate is 25
cubic feet of air per minute per
the Air person.
Cleanliness of Involves installing air purification
systems that remove germs, dust
the Air and dirt.
Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.
by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
31 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Benefits of Music

1. Helps increase job satisfaction and

productivity.
2. Helps reduce boredom and monotony.
3. Helps relieve mental and physical fatigue.
4. Helps reduce nervous tension and strain.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
32 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Components of an Energy Conservation Program

Energy Conservation
Committee
Energy Efficiency
Study
Conservation
Goals

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
33 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
 Office Security Dimensions

Protection of the Protection of the

organization’s organization’s
physical property. vital information.

Administrative Office Management, 8/e ©2005 Pearson Education, Inc.

by Zane Quible Pearson Prentice Hall
34 Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458