Tea matters (130/365)

[white_hart]

The trouble with architects is that they seem to see buildings as primarily artistic, and not functional. Which is why every time we have a meeting about our new building it ends up overrunning with lots of people asking questions such as:

Where are people supposed to make tea?

Will there be a quiet space for people to sit and eat lunch?

If the kitchen is in the open foyer area, how do we make sure that people don't take other people's food, or personal mugs, or wine that's cooling for receptions? And who is going to tidy things up when (inevitably) people don't put their cups in the dishwasher?

Yes, but really, tea is actually important, and it just feels like it's been shoved in here as an afterthought. And no, saying "but there will be a cafe in the building" doesn't help, because who wants to pay through the nose for a teabag and some indifferently hot water?

And that is why this afternoon's committee meeting overran by 45 minutes and left me incapable of spending the rest of the day doing anything other than filing my email. Which, to be fair, did need doing.

Comments

[white_hart]

I fear that the architects are just thinking about winning prizes, and the senior people are thinking about having a stunning building that looks fantastic in publicity, and no-one is actually speaking up for the people who will have to work there. I spent the first few architect meetings last year pointing out over and over again that staff who work in the building full-time need external windows and not to be overlooking an atrium, so I suppose if I've moved on to tea it's kind of progress.

[conuly]

WHY DO ARCHITECTS HATE WINDOWS SERIOUSLY.

[girlyswot]

Either that, or they make EVERYTHING out of glass with not a moment’s thought for those of us who are scared of heights.

[tree_and_leaf]

Either way, they hate windows that open.

[girlyswot]

Oh, yes. Who needs fresh air?

[white_hart]

I have raised openable windows several times at meetings about our building, but I'm still slightly worried that we won't have them.

[conuly]

Apparently, the problems with windows that open are threefold.

1. If you want to make your building energy-efficient, you actively need to thwart the people who are using it, who are bound to open windows and suddenly drop your efficiency down to nil.

2. If your building is too high, openable windows do not mix with open-plan offices, the phrase "wind tunnel" came into play, and while nobody likes open-plan offices nobody is willing to just close them up because what the heck do the workers know?

3. God forbid somebody jumps out, whoever owns the building is on the hook for that.