For Immediate Release
|
Donald Lehr
Nolan/Lehr Group
212/967-8200 |
ENGINEERS SURVEY
PREDICTS WORKPLACE OF THE FUTURE:
COMPUTERS, MONITORS (AND CAMERAS) EVERYWHERE

Illustration -- Please
Credit: "Kurt McNally - National Engineers Week"
The workplace of the future will be
smaller, safer, and contain less people, according to a recent
survey conducted by the National Engineers Week Committee, but most of all it will
likely be marked by increased use of robotics, lots of monitors, and, of course, cameras.
Among the predicted changes:
- More natural light, reducing energy
usage.
- Virtual picture "windows" that
can be turned into live views of famous locations worldwide, or of forests, underwater
scenes or whatever workers may want at the moment.
- Monitors on each worker that keep track
of their location through Global Positioning System (GPS) access. Monitors may also allow
for hands-free communications away from worksite.
- Ergonomic office furniture to reduce
physical stress.
- Allergen-free carpets and furnishings.
- Reduced size office files and libraries,
with more and more records digitalized.
- Electronic room monitors alert workers
to hazards in the air, fire warnings and other health and safety concerns.
- Cleaner air filtration, air conditioning
and heating systems.
- Cameras everywhere to track worker
performance, aid in communications.
- Super lamps which provide more light and
use less energy.
- Window treatments that ensure a maximum
amount of daylight with no harmful ultraviolet rays, also lessening energy costs.
- Teleconferencing -- a meeting being held
with six individuals working in different locations -- four off-site, two in-office.
- A vast increase in work from home, using
various techniques such as teleconferencing, e-mail, and other digital communications.
- Increased use of robotics -- in this
case, an electronic window washer.
- Almost everything that is now on paper
will go digital including in/out boxes, datebooks and calendars.
- More computer voice activation for data
input and retrieval, meaning less hand-manipulated input, and related stress injuries.
- More fingertip control and less brute
force.
- Ergonomic keyboards that reduce carpal
tunnel syndrome and other stress- related injuries.
- More recycled materials in building
construction and furnishings.
- Smaller offices mean more remote, often
rural settings, and localized energy generation.
###
[_private/boilerplate.html]
|