When a company decides to replace its office furniture, the biggest worry is often not the furniture but the process. The business cannot close for days, client meetings continue, and staff cannot be separated from their computers. The good news is that with well-planned phased installation, the office can keep working. For that, installation itself should be treated as a separate project alongside the furniture order.
Divide the office into zones
Phased installation rests on dividing the office into independent zones. A zone can be a department, a room or part of an open-plan area. In each phase only one zone is changed while the others work as usual. Staff from the zone being refitted move temporarily to a spare meeting room, to empty desks in another zone, or work remotely.
The order of phases needs thought too. It makes sense to start with the least critical part of the office, or one that can be emptied temporarily, because the first phase also tests the process: it shows how long delivery, installation and reconnecting equipment really take. Reception, management offices and meeting rooms are scheduled so they do not coincide with days of important meetings.
Choosing the timing
Moving the noisiest and most space-hungry work outside office hours reduces disruption for staff. Installing wall-mounted cabinets and shelves involves drilling, and removing old furniture takes over the corridors. Agree in advance with the installers whether this work can be done at weekends or in the evening. Quieter tasks such as assembling desks and chairs can be done during the working day.
Check the building management's rules too. In many business centres, use of the goods lift, the loading area and the delivery of bulky items are only allowed at certain times and must be booked in advance.
Delivery and old furniture
Delivering all the furniture on one day turns the workplace into a warehouse. Phased delivery is more efficient: each zone's furniture arrives only on that zone's installation day. Labels on boxes and parts showing which zone and workstation they belong to speed up installation considerably.
What happens to the old furniture must also be decided beforehand. If it is unclear where it will go, who will remove it and where it will be stored in the meantime, old cabinets end up in the corridor on delivery day and block safety routes. Evacuation routes and fire exits must stay clear throughout.
Coordinating IT and cabling
Installing office furniture is closely tied to IT and electrical work. Desks with cable trays, desk-mounted power modules, and server and printer cabinets require equipment steps before and after the furniture goes in. In each phase this sequence helps:
- The IT specialist disconnects and labels computers and phones.
- Old furniture is removed and new furniture installed.
- Cables are routed through the desk trays and connected to sockets.
- Equipment is put back and tested.
- The employee returns to a ready workstation the next day.
If socket and network outlet positions do not match the new desk layout, this should be spotted at the ordering stage and the electrical work finished before installation.
Communicating with staff
The success of phased installation depends on staff being informed. Tell each zone's employees in advance the installation date, when personal items must be packed, and where they will work temporarily. Handing out boxes and labels for documents and personal belongings from drawers prevents things going missing. After installation, it is worth asking staff what is not comfortable at their workstations.
Final check and adjustments
When each zone is handed over, a short check is made: desk heights and stability, drawers and doors, keys for locks, cable tray covers. Collecting the small adjustments that emerge a week or two after staff settle in on one list and dealing with them in a single visit is convenient for both the office and the installation team.
Zaferoglu Mebel delivers and installs office furniture free of charge. So that the office can keep working, the installation phases and hours can be agreed when the order is placed.
