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The How To of Conference Room Planning

There is more to creating a powerful conference room than simply finding the right fit and size for your room. It requires quality, style and personalized service to order a new table.

This conference room planning guide is offered as an efficient tool that can help you get started on the process of selecting and buying your conference room furniture. There are practical size & code requirements for fitting conference furniture into a room. The most important consideration is the size of your room because the conference table’s size, its shape, the size of the chairs and any ancillary storage credenzas,  must be planned according to your room’s capacity.  It is very important that the room does not appear cramped or crowded.

The charts and guide lines provided here are a starting point. You must know what size table you are going to need in order to obtain accurate quotes.  When you look at a photo and see 10 chairs around a table generally you’re looking at a 10’ table with four chairs on each side and one chair at the ends of the table.  A quick way to find the appropriate size table is take the length of the room and subtract 10 feet. This allows 5 feet at the head of the table for walk space. If you have a 22 foot room a 12 foot table is a great fit. Yes, you can go for a larger table if you are willing to sacrifice walk way space. But remember that there are code minimums that need to be considered Not all conference tables have the same kneespace clearance and you might have to settle for fewer chairs around the table than the standard guide lines that are listed here permit.

Spacing Guidelines:

• Allow 48″ between table and wall for minimum clearances
• Allow 56″ between table and wall for more comfortable space
• Allow 16″ to walk sideways between chair and wall
• Allow 24″ to walk between chair and wall without turning sideways
• Allow 30″ side to side per chair
• Allow 32″ to 34″ between table and back of chair to rise from chair
• Allow 38″ to 40″ between table and back of chair to rise from chair when confined by other sitters
• Allow 56″ between table and visual display board
• Allow 36″ bending space to use under counter cabinets or lower shelves of bookcase
• Allow 72″ between table and wall for 24″-deep storage towers and credenzas
• Allow 30″ between table and back of chair to use keyboard
• Allow 24″ to 30″ for standing and presenting material on wall
• TV or monitor viewing recommended at 30 to 45 degrees from center of the screen.

Size and Seating Capacity “Cheat Sheet”

Conference Table Size Seating Capacity Suggested Room Size Minimum Room Size 72″ (6′) L x 48″ W 4-6 15′ 4″ x 13′ 4″ 14′ x 12′ 84″ (7′) L x 48″ W 4-6 16′ 4″ x 13′ 4″ 15′ x 12′ 96″ (8′) L x 48″ W 6-8 17′ 4″ x 13′ 4″ 16′ x 12′ 120″ (10′) L x 48″ W 8-10 19′ 4″ x 13′ 4″ 18′ x 12′ 144″ (12′) L x 48″ W 10-12 21′ 4″ x 13′ 4″ 20′ x 12′ 150″ (12.5′) L x 48″ W 10-12 21′ 10″ x 13′ 4″ 21′ x 12′ 168″ (14′) L x 48″ W 12-14 23′ 4″ x 13′ 4″ 22′ x 12 120″ (10′) L x 58″ W 8-10 19′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 18′ x 12′ 10″ 144″ (12′) L x 58″ W 10-12 21′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 20′ x 12′ 10″ 150″ (12.5′) L x 58″ W 10-12 22′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 21′ x 12′ 10″ 168″ (14′) L x 58″ W 12-14 23′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 22 x 12′ 10″ 180″ (15′) L x 58″ W 12-14 24′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 23′ x 12′ 10″ 192″ (16′) L x 58″ W 14-16 25′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 24′ x 12′ 10″ 240″ (20′) L x 58″ W 18-20 29′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 28′ x 12′ 10″ 288″ (24′) L x 58″ W 22-24 33′ 4″ x 14′ 2″ 32′ x 12′ 10″

Seating Capacity: Chart suggests a range from comfortable seating to full seating.

Suggested Room Size: Allows 56″ to walk between wall and chair back, 32″ to rise from table, and 24″ to walk.

Minimum Room Size: Allows Minimum of 48″ to walk sideways between wall and chair back, 32″ to rise from table, and 16″ to pass.

Storage: If you are adding credenzas and storage remember that most storage is 20” or 24” deep. You must also take door swing clearances into consideration.

Need help planning a conference room? Click Here

New Arrivals

• Stunning Modern Table

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• Grand Clipper Table

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• Grand Mariner Table

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• Pristine Landscape Table

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• Ambient Black Table

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• Black Crescendo Table

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• Stark Cross Table

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• Skiff Table

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Disclaimer: These guidelines are offereds for general reference purposes only; each space planning project is different and should be managed with the guidance of an experienced professional. Ambience Dore offers these services, please inquire for details. Ambience Dore assumes no liability for consequences resulting from data errors, or potential misinterpretation or misapplication of the information presented on this web site.

Pay attention to the room entrance, the windows and any columns that will  impact the placement and size of table and chairs.  If you have any questions make a quick sketch of your room layout, fill in the measurements and email the sketch to [email protected] . We’ll be happy to help you with your conference room space plan.

You got this! How to Buy Furniture for a New School

Congratulations. If your school just received funding to build a new school or purchase new furnishings, it’s an exciting time. But getting from green light to grand unveil will involve a heap of decisions, including how to buy new school furniture. Fear not.

Welcome to our first blog in a series meant to simplify the furniture buying process. As a leading pre-K-12 school furniture manufacturer, Smith System® has decades of experience with new builds. Here’s a condensed 10-step guide to placing a school furniture purchase order (P.O.).

Pause. Breath. Begin Best Practices.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone, says Bill Stoyke, an experienced regional sales manager with Smith System. He’s on a mission to lessen the learning curve for schools facing the budgetary responsibility of furnishing the spectrum of one or two classrooms, to entire new school buildings with makerspaces, media centers, commons and more.

“When I say to superintendents, ‘Here are my recommendations for the types of activities you’ll want to consider engaging in, and a timeline to help meet your goals,’ their eyes light up. Now they have a roadmap.” What follows are Stoyke’s best practices. He’s shared his most helpful gems on decision-making, budgeting, process, timelines, tips and pitfalls.

Foremost, he stresses to never underestimate the role of classroom design and furniture in learning (up to 25 percent, according to one study).

“Smith System® wants to help schools understand how improved classroom design can positively impact student outcomes. Schools are the education experts. We are the furniture experts. Together, we can develop highly functional, future-proof spaces that will outlast any one administrator, teacher or student.”

A Sample Scenario

Let’s start with this example: A bond referendum has passed and a superintendent is heading up the construction of a new public elementary school that opens in 18 months. A well-organized furniture selection process can often take around nine months, depending on the size and scope of the project.

STEP ONE: Establish project team and assign roles.

This will vary by district size, but a typical team often includes:

JE Group Product Page

• Superintendent – establishes team, project vision and consistency with district goals, timeline; this person is the ultimate decision-maker
• District Business Manager – budget and procurement
• District Facilities Manager – quality assessment
• Principal – articulates school’s goals, manages teacher representative group activities

PITFALL: Roles aren’t clearly defined or communicated.

 

STEP TWO: Team Visioning.

1. The team creates a vision for key areas of the new school with staff from each area. (You’ll want to share this with your eventual furniture partner at the outset of the project.) Answer essential questions:

• Group sizes and teaching strategies used?
• How do teachers want to re-imagine their classrooms?
• The role of technology?
• Storage needed?
• Budget?

2. The team creates a list of current furniture challenges and needs/wants by area:

• Classrooms
• Library/media center
• STEM/makerspace
• Commons
• Specialized areas (intervention, special education, etc.)

TIP: Put furniture needs into four categories to keep it simple: student seating, student desks/tables, teacher items (desk or landing areas, storage), and overall storage.

PITFALL: Leadership makes assumptions without engaging staff, which can lead to going down the wrong path. The result is wasted time or, worse, purchasing furniture that doesn’t achieve your goals.

STEP THREE: Vendor Selection.

The superintendent drives this process. It’s influenced by whether you’re already working with a specific manufacturer, a local furniture dealer, and/or your architectural firm’s interior designer. Keep the evaluation period short (30 days start/finish), so that you can use your chosen vendor to guide you the rest of the way. Consider:

• What qualities are you looking for in a vendor partner? For example, the ability to meet summer delivery and installation timelines, types of services offered, services provided (free vs. paid), specific vendor reps involved?
• What projects have they successfully completed that are similar in scope to yours?
• How will you find and invite vendors to participate?
• What contract vehicles are available through each vendor vs. bidding out the furniture purchase?

PITFALL: Letting price alone drive all decisions, rather than a blended mix of important criteria including price, functionality, durability, ergonomics and aesthetics. An established vendor who specializes in K-12 furniture can help you accomplish your goals – and spare you massive time and energy drain.

STEP FOUR: Begin implementation.

Once you’ve chosen a vendor, let your vendor representative conduct a few initial meetings (one with leadership only; separate meetings to interview staff) to understand your needs in greater detail. Give the vendor your:

• Vision
• Budget
• Spaces to be furnished – prioritized in case of budget changes
• Building layout with dimensions
• Specific furniture items to be evaluated, based on your needs

COST NOTE: Some furniture dealers may charge for layout and design services, while others may not. It often depends on whether the school commits to buying its furniture through a dealer as its chosen vendor partner. (Smith System provides free visioning, needs assessment, concepts, budgeting and in-service furniture education for administrators and teachers.)

STEP FIVE: School Tours.

Based on your goals, along with some initial education about furniture, your vendor can help arrange tours of a few schools, depending on geography and staff availability. These field trips (yup, adults get them, too) will show real-world use of furniture that may align with your vision and goals.

STEP SIX: Sit, Touch & Try, Furniture Visit.

Everyone on the project team should attend this to hear the same message at the same time. Based on your stated needs, your vendor will:

• Show furniture samples – brought to your school or you’ll go to the vendor’s showroom
• Conduct a large group presentation on features and benefits of different styles
• Allow your team to get hands-on with the product – sit, touch, try
• Conduct one-on-one or small group Q&A to address specific needs

TIP: Do this as a team. It’s valuable to hear one another’s questions and comments in real time.

STEP SEVEN: Plan and prepare for a trial classroom.

Based on outcomes from Step Six – "Sit, Touch, Try", the team should narrow down a list of furniture items to test in a trial classroom or two. Try several shapes, seating styles and heights (grade dependent). Be sure to allow for manufacturing lead time, delivery and installation.

TIP: The principal should select a pilot classroom with an energetic teacher interested in the exciting changes ahead. Consider rotating furniture to other classrooms, too. This gives your trial classroom the best chance for success (translation: great feedback for the vendor).

PITFALL: Selecting only one style of desk or student seating. Try a few styles and sizes. They might surprise you with their versatility or functionality.

STEP EIGHT: The trial classroom experience.

After the test furniture arrives, have your vendor conduct a quick refresher with the teacher(s) to review how each piece functions. Allow teachers (and students) about a month to experience the furniture, then have the vendor return to answer questions. This is a great time to fine tune selections, like shapes, sizes, accessories and options.

TIP: It’s unlikely that dealers and manufacturers will provide a full classroom of furniture for free. But they may give you a one-time low price to try the furniture, for which you’ll get to choose all the finishes and own. In this case, it’s not incremental to your existing furniture budget, but rather helps your existing budget go farther.

PITFALL: Piloting furniture that is out of budget, thereby setting false expectations with staff and wasting valuable time.

STEP NINE: Design, budgeting, and lead time planning.

Narrow your team to the superintendent, business manager and principal. You’re now ready to compile furniture specifications, quantities and a line item budget for each room. Lay out each room (or a representative room if all classrooms are the same size and you have a common furniture “kit of parts”) to ensure the furniture will fit and function right.

Allow enough time to make revisions (construction costs may have dented your original budget.) Your dealers and manufacturers will coordinate lead times and advise your choices, based on your deadline. Most manufacturers require a P.O. by a certain date to allocate inventory and commit to a delivery date.

TIP: It’s important to have a cohesive plan for furniture colors and finishes. Factor in school-spirit colors and the need to differentiate spaces, but also consider coordinating color by grade levels where you have common furniture sizes so that furniture can be moved from room-to-room if/when classroom populations change over time.

PITFALL: Letting each teacher choose different furniture pieces and colors. That may make current teachers happy, but it does not future-proof the furniture, should those teacher(s) leave the school. This is where leadership should consider staff input, but ultimately make decisions based on the best long-term interests of the district.

STEP TEN: Finalize P.O. Homestretch!

The final step is to finalize and receive board approval (if required) on your furniture list, finishes and cost. Then place your P.O., and congratulate your team on a furniture-buying mission accomplished.

Check back soon for the next blog in this series. Until then, learn more about partnering with Smith System® at How to Buy or Request a Smith System® catalog.

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Lecture Room Chairs.