Quiet without building walls
High backed booths that give acoustic and visual separation without construction. Includes Brixworth bench booths in single and two tone. In an open plan office these solve a problem that adding more desks does not.
The problem they actually solve
Open plan offices have plenty of places to sit and almost nowhere to concentrate or take a private call. People end up in stairwells, empty meeting rooms, or booking a six person room for a one person task.
A booth gives that back without planning permission, construction, or losing a meeting room.
The high back is the working part
It blocks sight lines, which stops the visual distraction of movement across the floor, and it absorbs sound at head height, which is where conversation happens. A low backed sofa in the same position does neither.
They are not soundproof. Somebody on a loud call in a booth is quieter, not silent. For genuine acoustic treatment of a whole room, see acoustic solutions.
Where to put them
Against a wall or at the edge of a floor, not in the middle of a walkway. And near enough to the desks that using one is not a production, or people will not bother.
They pair naturally with the rest of the Brixworth collection if the surrounding breakout area is being furnished at the same time.