Buying quiet, not just dividers
Screens that mount to a desk or stand on the floor, giving visual separation and absorbing some noise. Open plan offices are loud, and hard surfaces make them louder. Screens are the most direct thing you can do about it without construction.
Height is the whole decision
A 400mm screen stops papers spilling between desks and gives a sense of personal territory. It does almost nothing for noise or for eye contact. A 1200mm screen genuinely separates people and cuts sound, but it also blocks daylight and makes an office feel like a call centre.
Most offices land between the two, and it is worth walking the floor and deciding per area rather than picking one height for everywhere.
Screens absorb, they do not block
A fabric screen takes the edge off nearby conversation. It will not stop someone on a video call being heard across the room, and selling it as if it will leads to disappointment. For genuine acoustic separation you need privacy booths, or broader treatment from our acoustic solutions range.
Absorption also works better spread around a room than concentrated in one place, so a mix of desk screens, wall tiles and ceiling baffles beats a single large panel.
Match the screen to the desk system
Brackets are not universal. Desktop and bench screens and Impulse Plus screens are designed against specific frames, and a screen bought separately often needs drilling to fit.