The modern office plant

The office plant not only looks good. It cleans the air of pollutants and increases well-being in the office. This makes plants a modern and sustainable design element, as long as the choice and care of plants is right.

Request plant concept

1. Office plant as a design element

Office plants are often used as a design element in both traditional and modern architecture. There are mutliple reasons for this:

Plants increase well-being

Plants can increase well-being because theycalming effecthave and contribute to the fact that people feel comfortable in their environment. This effect is also referred to as "biophilic design".Biophilic designis a concept that aims to strengthen the connection between people and nature indoors and in buildings. Plants, natural materials and natural patterns are used in architecture and interior design.

Plants increase mental fitness

according to studiesthe microbes found in the soil activate our neurons in the brain, which are responsible for the production of the happiness hormone serotonin. Therefore, office plants combined with the smell of the earth lift our spirits at work and reduce anxiety.

Plants increase the attractiveness of the workplace

This point is probably obvious - we all like plants!Many companies want to make their buildings more attractive with office plants to attract future talent, provide a welcoming work environment for employees and delight customers.

About Oxygen at Work

Since the company was founded in 2017, we have specialized in scientific plant concepts to bring the diverse benefits of nature into the office. So far we have been able to realize over 120 projects with SMEs and large companies from Switzerland, Germany, France and America...

2. Office plants as a natural air purifier

Plants have long been considerednature's natural lungsKnown for removing approximately 25% of man-made CO2 emissions from the atmosphere each year. However, plants should not be reduced to just CO2 absorption. Because they break down almost all pollutants in the air. And this makes plants a functional element for healthy office environments.

Filtering of air pollutants

In addition to carbon dioxide, there are a variety of pollutants that occur in office air and can be filtered by plants. Some examples are:

Benzene:This is a toxic hydrocarbon compound found in tobacco smoke, gasoline, and other industrial products. It can cause headaches, dizziness and nausea.
Formaldehyde:This is a chemical compound used in many products such as building materials, cleaning products and textiles. It can cause respiratory problems, eye irritation and skin irritation.
trichlorethylene:This is a chemical compound used in cleaning products and solvents. It can lead to headaches, dizziness and fatigue.
xylene:This is a chemical compound used in paints, cleaning products and other industrial products. It can cause headaches, dizziness and nausea.
Ammonia:This is a chemical compound used in detergents and fertilizers. It can cause respiratory problems, eye irritation and skin irritation.

It's important to note that the ability of plants to filter pollutants from the air depends on various factors, such as the size and number of plants, humidity and air circulation in the room. It is therefore important to have multiple plants and ensure they are well cared for to achieve the best results.

Increase in relative humidity

In addition to filtering air pollutants, plants have an influence on the relative humidity through transpiration.Around 90 percent of the water that is supplied to the plants gets into the air via their leaves.Especially since the outbreak of Covid-19, this effect has increasingly come into the public eye. Research has shown that a constant relative humidity of between 40 and 60 percent can significantly reduce the levitation and survival time of viruses. The reason for this is that the droplets containing the virus are heavier in the air, fall from the air faster, and the virus itself is inactivated by a physico-chemical reaction.

Exploitation of the natural influence on air quality

In connection with room and ventilation specifications, the plant species, their placement and the greening density are determined in order to achieve the best possible effect on the air quality in the individual case. The air improvement is also tangible for end users via the analysis software. In real time, the air data is aggregated and visualized in such a way that managers understand the status of health, safety, well-being, compliance with (inter)national ESG standards and workspace occupancy. Based on these evaluations, automated suggestions for improvement are generated by the algorithm developed by Oxygen at Work. These help companies to benefit from the full potential of natural air purification, which optimizes ventilation system runtimes and saves energy. In practice, the ventilation energy has already been reduced by up to 84 percent.

3. Office plants as a functional room divider

Plants can be used as room dividers in offices to visually separate rooms and/or to optimize room acoustics.

For subdividing office zones

Plants can be used to separate office zones for a number of reasons. First, plants can serve as a natural barrier separating different areas in an officephysicallyseparates. This can help create a sense of privacy and is particularly useful in open plan offices where there may be few other options for subdividing the space. In addition to physical separation, plants can also helpvisual separationbetween different areas of an office. This can be particularly effective when using different types of plants or different arrangements of plants to create a unique look and feel for each area.

To improve room acoustics

Plants can improve room acoustics in offices by absorbing and reflecting sound. This ability depends on various factors, such as the size and material of the plants, the type of sound, and the architecture of the room. Some plants have structural properties that can absorb and reflect sound. For example, larger plants like palms and ficus trees have thick, green leaves that can absorb sound. Other plants, like ivy and Boston fern, have long, thin leaves that can reflect sound. In order to improve the acoustic performance of plants in an office, it is important to choose the right plants and place them in the right areas of the room. It can also be helpful to use the plants in combination with other acoustic materials such as curtains or carpets.

Why green with Oxygen at Work?

We offer an all-inclusive package so that you can enjoy the many advantages over the longer term.

01

Analysis of the office plan and your requirements

02

Creation of an individual plant concept

03

Greening and installation of air sensors

04

Regular and professional plant care

05

Optimization of air quality via web app

Companies that we were allowed to green

discover projects