HEATWAVES are resulting in more staff going to the office to escape the weather and have made air conditioning “a key requirement” for a growing number of businesses, commercial property experts have said.
Derren Jennings, Head of Sales at Maslow’s, an office provider in London, said “we have noticed a significant uplift in the number of people who are trying to escape their hot residential working environment”.
Chris Meredith, CEO at London-based ADAPT Workspace, an office space search and advisory firm, also said air conditioning is boosting office attendance as people seek to get away from the heat.
He added: “Most of the office providers we work with have been reporting double-digit increases in occupancy on the hottest days, particularly in cool, modern, air-conditioned buildings with strong in-office amenities.
“The office is no longer just somewhere where people have desks. During a heatwave, a cool, comfortable workspace becomes a genuine employee benefit.”
Meredith added that this year’s heatwaves have meant more and more businesses are seeing air conditioning as non-negotiable when searching for a premises: “Businesses are increasingly asking about higher-quality, flexible workspace, with air conditioning now a key requirement.
“We’ve seen more companies reviewing their workplace because of poor cooling, and questioning whether they need larger or better-equipped offices as a result.
“We’re currently helping two large London businesses find space and it was the air conditioning not working in the June heatwave that prompted both of them to get in touch.
“One has already stopped paying their office provider because of the issue and wants to get out of their contract. And the other is looking to take a temp space and charge back to the landlord as their staff had to stop coming into work due to the heat.
“Companies are investing in better workplaces that give people a reason to come into the office, and extreme weather is definitely accelerating this change.”
