Page 4 - Workplace Blog

Online Retail Award Winners for the Second Year Running!

Posted on September 18, 2014

The Workplace Depot have done it again, for the second year running, we have won the Online Retail Award in the ‘Office and Workplace Supplies’ category! Over 50 companies including the likes of: Halfords, Littlewoods, RAC, Vodafone and Very.co.uk turned up to this event, in the hope to take home an award, some of them not being as lucky as The Workplace Depot, we were nominated for: ‘Office and Workplace Supplies’ and ‘Small Size Online Retailer Site of the Year’. Unfortunately we only took home the one award, however we can’t be greedy and there’s always next year! Four members of our web team had the honour of attending the event and collecting the award on the night, Richard Bloomfield Website Editor for The Workplace Depot, who attended both the 2014 and 2013 awards added: “It is an amazing achievement to win the award for the Office and Workplace Supplies category in two consecutive years. The judges seemed particularly impressed with the giant steps we had made in sales...

Small Steps to Improving Your Office Appearance

Posted on September 08, 2014

Unless you are a lucky employee at one of the Top 5 Seriously Cool Places to Work discussed in one of our previous blog posts, you might find that your surroundings are that of an average looking office. Of course, not all establishments have the funds or space available to set up nap pods and tree-houses in their work environments, or dish out unlimited free food in the company canteen, but there is certainly other equipment available for more simple steps to making your office feel friendlier for both staff and visitors. Here at The Workplace Depot, we meet with clients in our boardroom, which contains a fridge filled with refreshments and a large TV focused in the centre of the table in order to project presentations easily and effectively. Although these are small features, we like to think they add a bit of a personal touch to this part of our office, and we might get remembered for this. Considering the fridge filled with goodies is not necessarily the most practical of products...

Top 10 Cool Office Gadgets

Posted on September 06, 2014

After crawling the internet I wanted to write something that all office workers would enjoy reading – something the majority of us envy every time we see something similar. In this case I have picked out 10 of my favourite office gadgets that would make life at your desk a little bit better and would never fail to put a smile on your face. USB Cup Warmer / Cooler This is one of my favourite gadgets I have ever seen. The ability to keep your drinks cold or warm, depending on what it is, whilst you’re sat at your desk – Brilliant! Image Credited - Designyourway Clip-on Cup Holder I know a few people that haven’t got much room left on their desk, so this would be perfect to ensure they are always able to keep a drink close by. Image Credited - Zdnet Cable Drop Some of my colleagues actually have these. These simple accessories make sure your cables don’t fall on the floor. Very simple, but very useful – saves bending and picking them back up...

Listening to the Radio at Work – Increasing Productivity

Posted on September 02, 2014

Like most people, I like to have music on whilst working; one of the few facts I like to throw around is that listening to music, particularly in the workplace, increases productivity. But one of the first, troubling choices we have to make of the day includes which radio station to listen to. Admittedly, if you work in an office for 8 hours a day, it’s hard to avoid hearing songs getting repeated (which is one of our pet peeves here at The Workplace Depot!) Consequently we like to mix up our playlists every now and again (if you are intrigued give Top 50 Workplace Songs and Top 20 Motivational Workplace Songs a read/listen). However, on the days when no one really wants to put a lot of effort in to choosing some songs to form a playlist, we let a radio station do it for us. As our main office is based in Bingham, radio stations local to us include: Capital 96.2FM Gem 106 FM Smooth Radio 106.6 FM BBC Radio Nottingham Although we are sometimes partial to a bit of Radio 1 too! Music to...

Whiteboards' History, Materials and Buying Tips

Posted on August 20, 2014

We won’t hide our love for the good old blackboard—that sweet smell of chalk, that hissing sound as you write on the board... You could write in bold by applying pressure and shade different areas of a diagram by flipping the chalk sideways and wiping it across the blackboard surface. There used to be "chalk-fights” between groups of students and I remember more than one of our teachers target-practicing on my rowdy peers with pieces of chalk; but thanks to whiteboards, we don’t see any blackboards around anymore. Invention and History of Whiteboards Why did the whiteboard become such a huge success when we already had blackboards? The answer is "convenience". Blackboards were hard to wipe clean and turned whitish after a little use. You had to wet-clean them frequently to keep the writing clear. In fact, the earlier versions of whiteboards also needed to be wiped with a wet cloth. It was for this reason that despite being invented as far back as the late 1950s, whiteboards did not become...

Top 10 Locker Room Movie Scenes

Posted on August 19, 2014

We are all accustomed to the inspirational locker room scene towards the end of a movie that is keeping us on the edge of our seats regarding who will win the basketball/hockey/football (I could go on) game – but just to remind you all of some of those heart-warming, motivational speeches, I thought I would list the top 10 locker room movie scenes that we at The Workplace Depot agree are the most memorable: Miracle – Kurt Russell Moneyball – Brad Pitt Coach Carter – Samuel L. Jackson Friday Night Lights – Billy Bob Thornton D2, The Mighty Ducks – Emilio Estevez Any Given Sunday – Al Pacino Rudy – Chelcie Ross Hoosiers – Gene Hackman Brian’s Song – Billy Dee Williams Little Giants – Rick Moranis Many of these may be familiar to you, although admittedly I wasn’t aware of some of them before I gave them a watch! If we have missed your favourite though, be sure to let us know on either of our Facebook or Twitter pages. Inspirational Although the main point of these movie scenes is that...

A True Office Classic

Posted on August 13, 2014

Being involved in my fair share of meetings, I can truly say that you can’t beat a classic. No matter how much technology comes out, nothing can replace the trusted Whiteboard in these situations. Tablets and Smartboards are being rolled out nearly everywhere these days, but I believe that you still need a Whiteboard in your workplace boardroom. The ease of scribbling notes and diagrams onto the board for everybody to see is just simple and very effective. You may say you can do the same with Smartboards, however we all know that technology can go wrong and normally does when you need it most. The simple approach of writing out what you need and then having the ability to erase it easily is brilliant. Another advantage of using Whiteboards, is that they are “green”. They are better than using paper or Smartboards, making it a perfect, cost effective, solution. Finally Whiteboards work perfectly alongside projectors. You are able to view your presentation on screen...

Giving Your Storage a Fresh Look

Posted on August 12, 2014

We’ve all thrown out furniture that we no longer want or need, but what about schools and leisure centres? Have they ever thought of getting new lockers and throwing out the old ones? Well think again. How about taking those lockers and upcycling them, giving them a new home and a new role to play? After crawling the internet for some nice looking, ex-lockers I thought I’d share with you my selected favourites. Lockers obviously come in all shapes and sizes and this one seems perfect to store your shoes in. Nicely decorated and labelled with family member’s names. Credit Pinterest Another nice way to upcycle your old lockers, is by creating a nice piece of kitchen furniture out of one – in this case a kitchen table, including plenty of storage underneath. Credit Pinterest Staying in the kitchen, this is another one of my favourite uses of an upcycled locker. Create some kitchen storage, whilst giving your kitchen a nice look...

Barrier Man – The Superhero We've All Been Waiting for…

Posted on August 04, 2014

Not quite Superman, Spider-man or Batman, but a recent Facebook post from popular publishing page ‘The Lad Bible’, has given the world an everyday superhero that may actually be a bit more of a realistic aspiration for 5 year olds! ‘Barrier Man’ gained almost 100,000 likes, over 3,800 shares and 2,500 comments on Facebook when a picture of a worker was posted with the caption ‘The Superhero we’ve all been waiting for’. Of course we shouldn’t take away from the seriousness of Barrier Man’s job and the fact that guys like him are actually providing a service to the public – much like the superhero’s we read about in comics! (Although potentially less life risking). Look closely at the picture below and you can tell that there is work being carried out next to a particularly busy area, possibly in front of a University or office block, and that the man is ensuring the barrier is correctly in place to protect pedestrians from a potentially dangerous work area, as a well as a busy road. Let’s...

Are You Sitting Comfortably? – The Importance of Office Chairs

Posted on July 10, 2014

The importance of office chairs may sometimes go unnoticed, however not only can a comfortable chair increase concentration, it is also good for your health... There are not many worse things I can think of than going to work, sitting down on the most uncomfortable chair and knowing you will be there for the next 8 hours! Although it may seem trivial, sitting comfortably at work would surely put you in a better mood and even make you feel more productive. A report from the Continuing Education Unit has found that slouching and similar seated postures can cause backaches, headaches, fatigue and poor concentration, however a healthy posture promotes greater overall comfort and improved awareness. If, like many of us, you are faced with the everyday mundane office chair, why not try one of the following ways to spice it up a bit: Add new wheels – a smoother glide across the room and added colour can make your chair more exciting. Footrest – it can be difficult to decide how to rest your...

An A-Z of Office Supplies

Posted on June 04, 2014

Here at The Workplace Depot we have supplied numerous office workstations with the necessary equipment that you would need daily. We supply everything that you would need for an office environment. Here is an A-Z of essentials that you can get from us for your office: A – Aid (first aid) B – Bins C – Conference Chairs D – Disability Equipment E – Energy Saving Labels F – Filing Cabinets G – Green Bins H – Hand Dryers I – Indoor Cable Protectors J - Janitorial Floor Signs K – Kikalong Steps L – Labels for Washrooms M – Matting N – Noticeboards O – Office Supplies P – Planners Q – Quick Build Shelving R – Reception Desk S – Shelving T – Tables U – Upholstered Seating V – Vacuum Cleaners W – White Boards X – eXtinguishers Y – Yellow Warning Signs Z – Zzz … As hard as I tried, I couldn't think of a product beginning with Z! If you can think of one starting with Z please e-mail me.

Workplace First Aid Kit - What Should It Contain?

Posted on May 29, 2014

As an employer it is your responsibility to maintain the safety of all employees within the workplace. Ensuing you provide a first aid box which meets British Standards is essential, however the decision on what your first aid box contains depends entirely on what you assess your needs to be. As a guide where the working environment is ranked as low risk (e.g. an office), HSE recommend a minimum stock should be: - a general guidance leaflet - 20 sterile plasters (of assorted sizes) - two sterile eye pads - four sterile triangular bandages - six safety pins - two large sterile wound dressings - six medium-sized sterile wound dressings - three pairs of disposable gloves It is highly recommended that you DO NOT keep medicines and tablets within a workplace first aid kit. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) only provide this as a minimum recommendation, employers may wish to refer to British Standard 8599 which provides more information on the contents of first aid kits within the workplace...