With work-from-home ending soon the office premises to be made Covid-safe by the companies

To minimise the spread of virus the developers and facility management firms are devising and implementing course of actions and also ensuring that the facility meets the Covid protocols.

Large technology firms and commercial parks are expecting 100 percent occupancy in office and full swing office operations after two years since Covid hit the world. To keep the virus at bay the developers and facility management firms are taking extensive steps and coming up with plans to meet strict protocols to provide safe working environment.

Since the worldwide concerns are lowering against the Omicron variant the companies are opening offices across the country in a phased manner, But soon the pace will pick up and organizations will be operating in full stack mode.

From sanitizing high-touch areas frequently to introducing contactless doors and elevators, developers and facility management firms are trying to eliminate all chances of virus spread. They are also bolstering traditional desks by introducing technology-aided features, including robotics and wearables to welcome the employees at workplaces.

“Corporates and IT/ITeS industry is gearing to ramp up the employee count at office in the next couple of months and the industry is likely to see around 60% of the workforce back in office by the fourth quarter of 2022,” said Sameer Saxena, general secretary, Global Association of Corporate Services, which represents over 6,000 corporate real estate professionals across the country. “This time, the companies are expecting acceptance of the back-to-office at an improved pace.”

“As we welcome companies back to work across 47 million sq ft of our office portfolio in India, we have ensured business continuity for tenants, with elevated health, safety and sustainability standards,” said Alok Aggarwal, MD, Brookfield Properties India. “With the changing landscape of work and the workforce, we have utilized this period for a national-level asset upgrade programme so that 400,000 employees working at our offices are back to well-amenitised campuses and business parks with green open spaces that promote collaboration and well-being.”

Touchless management of common areas, dedicated medical facilities and isolation chambers to MERV filters for cleaner air and automated RFID-based vehicle management system are among key initiatives undertaken by Brookfield.

As mid and large-sized organizations sketched their plan to resume work from office for all employees, Simpliwork, a co-working firm has seen an upsurge of demand in the last two quarters of year 2021.

“We are also trying to introduce more greenery into our interiors while designing our workspaces to relieve people of the quarantine fatigue and the stress induced by high exposure to computer and mobile screens,” said Kunal Walia, co-founder of Simpliwork.

The IT firms had plans to call back employees from January this year but the third wave of Omicron put their plans to rest and most of these companies’ extended work-from-home (WFH) policies till March. Now with the scare going away and the world opening up the plans to return to work seems to be becoming a reality.

“Health and safety have become crucial, now more than ever, after the world has faced a pandemic,” said Vinod Rohira, CEO, Mindspace Business Parks REIT. “Our primary focus has been on air quality management, public spaces, emergency protocols and enhancing amenities and recreation to deliver the best user experience. The well-being of our tenants is at the core of our initiatives, resulting in upgrades of all public areas to deliver the best user experience.”