More than 65% of Romanian employees consider their office to be only partially safe for health in the context of the pandemic, according to a new survey commissioned by Genesis Property. 

One year (and almost a half) since the pandemic outbreak, business leaders across the world are still struggling with a million-dollar question: how to safely bring their teams back together in the office and fully restart business? With the hybrid model taking shape and employees slowly returning to the workplace in different scenarios, companies are looking to deploy frameworks for the healthy way of working of the future and some are already considering health performance indicators to confirm they are on the right track, writes Darren Allen, Development Manager at Genesis Property and Director of the Healthy by Design Building Institute, in an opinion piece for Property Forum

Building H3, part of West Gate Business District, in Bucharest, got the highest certification level of the IMMUNE Building Standard. The offices, owned by Genesis Property, are fully occupied by telecom company Ericsson.

Close to 88% of the employees in Romania believe that offices will exist in the future, but most say that the post-pandemic workspace needs to be transformed, according to a survey commissioned by Genesis Property. 

Indoor air and water quality is not something many people give too much attention to when it comes to the office buildings where they work and spend most of their time during the day. At home, they invest in products like air purifiers and water filtration systems; at work, they rely on their employer or building owner and, most of the time, they take what they get without sometimes even considering if it may or may not affect their health, writes Dr. Darren Allen, Director of the Healthy by Design Building Institute, in an opinion piece for Property Forum

Close to half of employees in Romania would like to return full-time to offices, while more than one third would opt for the hybrid model that combines remote and in-office activities, according to a new survey by Genesis Property. 

FUTURE Designs, the UK based designer and manufacturer of high-quality luminaires and bespoke lighting solutions, has obtained the first IMMUNE Building Standard certification in the world for an industrial building, awarded by the Healthy by Design Building Institute (HDBI). The factory and headquarters achieved the label IMMUNE - Strong following the company’s successful implementation of the set of health and safety measures for its employees.

COVID-19 has fundamentally challenged and modified the way the global workforce interacts, socializes, and collaborates. Flexible working practices, including working from home, have been heavily adopted as the recent pandemic has forced a trial run of remote working for industries, businesses, and individuals across the entire world. As a result, sentiments towards office space, its value, role, and contribution to the operation of daily work tasks are now being reconsidered both by employees and employers. While the pandemic has boosted the shift towards integrating flexible workspaces into corporate real estate portfolios, the fear that the office will lose its relevance is not realistic. Rather than becoming obsolete, it will become an increasingly valuable asset in facilitating collaboration and driving business growth, writes Gavin Bonner, Vice President of Romanian office developer Genesis Property in an opinion piece for Property Forum.

Romanian entrepreneur Liviu Tudor has announced plans to revamp Novo Park, the office park he owns in northern Bucharest. The office facades will be refreshed and solar panels will be placed on top of each of the seven buildings in the complex. 

The workplace of the future needs to prioritize health, says Darren Allen, Development Manager at Romanian office developer Genesis Property. He talked to Property Forum about the IMMUNE Building Standard, a global certification standard to certify the built environment’s level of immunity to withstand present and future health challenges.