Welcome to Ecophon India's first podcast. The agenda for the Podcast is - "Sound effect on people especially in Modern Indian offices". We are joined by Mr Amit Chavan & Mr Kiran Mahambre (from Real Estate team of Here Solution) & Mr. Raghavendra Prabhu (Director Cushman & Wakefield) to understand the importance of acoustics in offices today.  

Welcome back to our podcast series, this episode is the second of our two-part series recorded at the Transitions Europe conference in September 2017 and continues to reflect upon improving learning environments with insights into teaching styles and collaboration. In this episode we are joined by education anthologist Mie Guldbaek Broens, discussing how teaching styles and classrooms differ from country to country and how the development of schools is slowly progressing towards learning spaces which consider not only the appearance of the environment but also the sound.  Mie believes "children are the most important citizens in the world and I want to work to help them become the best they can be" and because of this works as a LOOP.bz consultant specializing in learning, communication and educational environments across the globe. Lately she has focused on "teacher collaboration in open learning spaces" and on "acoustic and learning spaces". Her expertise is in the interdependency of physical spaces and social behaviour. Mie also runs a childcare facility in Sydney and has visited and observed schools all over the world. Listen in and learn more about the changes and progression within educational learning spaces. 

Welcome to the 13th podcast of our 'A Sound Effect on People' series. This episode is part one of a two-part series recorded at the Transitions Europe conference in September 2017 and  reflects upon improving learning environments for education, as we discuss the change and progression within creating the perfect educational environment with Wesley Imms, Associate Professor and Head of visual art and design education, at the  University of Melbourne. After years of researching the perfect environment for learning, Wesley Imms believes that the learning techniques in primary education years are heading in the right direction in comparison to secondary education. This is due to teachers creating exciting ways of learning for the younger generation in order to keep them engaged with their topics. Primary teachers tend to focus on collaborative work and using both the inside and outside to teach as well as moving the furniture around depending on the topic; but does this stop when students reach secondary education? He believes to create an environment which improves education you must design the area with moveable walls, smart furniture, smart storage and a balance of indoor and outdoor areas… however, a teacher must know how to use the environment to their advantage to improve the learning for the next generation. Wesley discusses his plans to move forward and his current success with encouraging schools to see the importance in learning spaces. We are later joined by Marian Mahat, ILETC Research Manager. The ILETC project investigates how teachers can use the untapped potential of Innovative Learning Environments (ILEs) to improve learning outcomes for students. The goal of this project is to identify whether there is a link between quality teaching and effective use of ILEs; and develop practical tools to assist teachers to adapt their teaching practices to maximise deeper learning.  Learn more about ILETC here. She believes creating the right space to collaborate and communicate produces a positive atmosphere for a student which provides benefits within their results. Marian Mahat discusses the recent surveys within schools in Australia and New Zealand and the research they discovered.

Stress and sick leave cause problems within the workplace not only for the employers, but for the employees as well. But can a 'healing office' increase productivity? Today we are joined by Anicee Bauer, Design Researcher, and Coen van Dijck, CEO, from Design Studio D/DOCK, both of whom are specialists in office design.  In this podcast they discuss how they were able to create a "healing office" and how they perceive productivity. Coen discovered from his research that "10 years of working only drove people away from their natural balance" and this was a negative effect on their wellbeing, leading to "people not having their lifestyle in their own hands anymore" and reaching a "breaking point". Coen and Anicee continue to discuss the new ways of working due to social media and technology, and the drastic change is leading to in the way we are creative and how we communicate. Due to technology we can be surrounded by work throughout the day and night; therefore we also need to consider how we will create the right balance of work and social life. Coen discusses further in the podcast about bringing in a level of home comfort to the office environment to recreate the ideal balance. Ecophon are later joined by Trevor Keeling, Senior Engineer, Sustainability and Physics, at Buro Happold Engineering. Trevor discusses his ideas on productivity and how we measure it when there are so many types of personalities within the workplace. He strongly believes that wellbeing includes both being able to function well and feel well and this is a main step in increasing productivity within the workplace.  How do you create a work space without limitations? What boosts your productivity at work? Stay with us and learn further about how you could create your own healing office.

Welcome back to our 11th podcast. In this episode our concept developer Shane Cryer discusses the importance of meeting acoustic standards in Offsite and Modular Construction within education – joined by guests Pete Blunt from off-site construction specialist Innovare and Peter Rogers from Sustainable Acoustics. The schools buildings that support children's education are under more pressure than ever before. Classroom need to accommodate both new technologies and teaching styles, alongside with increased group work and in some areas increasing class sizes.  However the way in which we process auditory information has not changed, with appropriate acoustics proven to be an important part of a successful classroom design. With the school age population rapidly expanding, many school projects are utilising off-site or modular construction methods to reduce project times. In this episode Shane Cryer explores the subject off off-site construction for educational environments and the importance of acoustic standards, especially in SEN (Special Educational Needs) buildings, and the benefits of considering acoustics in the early design phase of an environment. To learn more about classroom acoustics, click here. 

In the conclusion of our office mini-series we are joined by Sarah Welton from the WELL Building Institute to discuss how to create an working environment supporting technology, staff mental health, productivity and happiness.  Sarah discusses her thoughts on the need to consider not only how a building will be used but who a building will be used by. Sarah highlights how protecting your health is less expensive than healing the ill, and that taking the same approach when creating a building may require initial investment, but the positivity generated will benefit your business and your employees in the long run. We are later joined by Richard MacCowan from Biomimicry UK to explore replicating the natural world inside our buildings and the benefits of doing so. However just including plants in your building does not mean a building is healthy; and Richard explains instead we should use the outside world as inspiration throughout our designs. 

In our ninth podcast, part of our mini-series from Workplace Trends, we are joined by Nigel Oseland (@oseland) and Mike Adams (@supervideomike) as they discuss creativity and the impact of technology on the workplace.  People should been seen as a company's "best assets" due to the creativity they bring to the workplace. Yet Nigel believes people are often still expected to be seen at their desks and to look busy, despite this not necessarily meaning that people are productive and creative. Nigel explores how fostering creativity can also depend on the way the employees are treated, and how to develop that philosophy within an organisation.  Workplace technology is continuously being improved and developed to meet ever increasing demand. Mike Adams, technology consultant for VEGA Europe, believes that many "people are afraid of technology; they see it as a horror story". Mike discusses the current technology trends; wireless technology, video communication and conferencing and working remotely, and the effect this technology will have on many workplaces. 

Welcome back to the podcast. In this episode we explore how current work trends reward companies who focus on "Putting the People First". In this podcast a group of experts from the recent Workplace Trends conference discuss why companies should do more to look after the health and wellbeing of their employees, and the approach they should take.  Contributors include Nicola Gillen of Aecom, Mark Catchlove from Herman Miller, Nigel Oseland from Workplace Unlimited and Ecophon Concept Developer Paige Hodsman.  We explore the theme of putting people first, and how culture, placement and technology all needs to be considered when creating a work environment, be it in the office or when working from home. 

On March 22nd at Kings Place, Ecophon sponsored the 15th year of Workplace Trends. As far back as 2012 the conference highlighted the connections between health, wellbeing and performance in the workplace. This year, the conference looked in depth at the topics of Wellbeing and Productivity highlighting new research through case study-driven presentations from industry experts.  This bonus podcast includes short interviews with attendees and speakers from the conference, highlighting  the importance of awareness in health and wellbeing when constructing a building.  #Wtrends is about bringing people together for a different perspective of the workplace. As Nigel Oseland explains; this knowledge of the effect of improving our wellbeing at work has been discussed for many years however have only just begun to make a large impact in office designs. Each of the speakers will be featured in subsequent podcasts, where we shall explore their topics in more detail. The first of these will be released 7/4/17