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The Pros and Cons of Using a glass office desk.

General Office Furniture August 17th 2021
The Pros and Cons of Using a glass office desk.

If you’re looking for a new office desk you may be wondering what type of desk is best suited to you and your office. There are so many factors to consider such as shape, size and colour. There are rectangular desks, radial desks or corner desks and height adjustable desks. Once you have worked out the layout of your office and the available dimensions where your new workstation will be located it’s time to think about the desk material.

When it comes to considering the material, your desk will be made from, there are usually only a few choices, wood or glass.

A wooden desk is usually made from 25mm MFC (Melamine Faced Chip Board) which is made from wood chips and formed into particleboard. The wood grained surface is a pattern printed on to a special paper and bonded on to the board, giving the impression of a wooden desktop.

A glass desk on the other hand is quite different in its appearance because the desktop will be transparent, semitransparent, or colored. The thickness of a glass desktop will usually vary from 6mm to 19mm, which is part of the appeal when considering a modern, contemporary look.

People often see glass desks as a statement piece because glass looks modern and sleek. By having a glass desk, it looks like you take your business and appearance seriously. A glass desk or table can also complement any modern interior design theme adding elegance and formality.

Glass office desks can also be combined with leather executive chairs and leather visitor chairs. By choosing the right type of complimentary furniture you will, in no time, be on your way to creating a stylish executive suite, meeting room or home office.

But before you get carried away with the pleasing aesthetics that glass undoubtedly offers, it’s also important to consider the pitfalls or the cons. The main one, that comes to mind, is the cleaning aspect as dust, fingerprints and smudges seem to hang around on glass desk tops.

But that is probably not a major deal breaker. So before we start shattering your expectations and aspirations of owning a slick, shiny glass desk let’s look at the pros for choosing a glass desk:

The Pro’s of using a glass office desk

1. Brightens up your space

One of the many advantages of a glass desk or table is that they can brighten up any office or meeting room. The transparency of the glass provides the illusion of a more open and lighter space. By introducing glass furniture, you can transform the smallest and darkest of rooms, making them appear uncluttered and well-lit.

2. Easy – cleaning

We know, we know, we are contradicting ourselves from what we said earlier about those fingerprints and smudges on your desktop. However, glass is a non-absorbent material, so is easy to maintain and clean, compared to wooden desks, which can absorb stains and spillages.

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3. Damage limitation

There is nothing worse than having your wooden desk scratched and chipped. It’s often difficult to repair melamine (MFC and MDF) desks and repairs can be disruptive to your working day. If your desk is outward facing, in a managerial style, with visitor chairs, you may be concerned about how your scratched chipped desk looks to potential new clients.

A chipped desk or visible scratch may impede a positive impression because it could appear that you have careless, clumsy tendencies. By choosing a glass desk you are future proofing yourself against any defects that may occur with melamine faced office desks.

4. Oozes style

Many glass desks are extremely stylish and are designed to appeal to executives. One of our most sought-after executive glass desk ranges is from the Arkitek program. The Arkitek glass top sits on a stunning leg frame, inspired by the artistic concepts and elements of architecture.

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The Impuls range is also pitched to the savvier executive, looking to make a strong but minimal impression. The glass top is available in black or white and sits on a simplistic aluminum squared aluminum leg frame. The classic chic colour and simple form gives a form of timelessness and simplicity.

Put simply: Glass = Elegance and Sophistication.

5. It’s tough

Many people think that glass is fragile and could shatter easily but these are unfounded fears. Modern tempered glass is extremely tough because it goes through a manufacturing process by controlled thermal or chemical treatments, making it four times stronger than regular glass. Although tempered glass can break, and shatter, it does so in a safe way (relatively small and harmful pieces) compared to regular glass which breaks in to large, irregular shaped shards.

The cons of using a glass office desk

Unfortunately, everything in life has a downside, and a stylish glass desk may look great, but after a while you may experience a few niggles.

Expensive

Well, we kind of expected that, as we all know that glass isn’t exactly the cheapest material. There is often a slight surcharge for buying in to the style collective, but is it worth it? In short, yes.

If you are trying to create a lasting impression with clients, you should be able to offset the expense of a glass desks against the prospect of a new client who is impressed with the professional look of your office.

Dust and fingerprints

As we mentioned earlier, a glass office desk can be prone to fingerprints, smudges, stains, dust and spills. Dust and fingerprints become notable on glass because they appear on a clear transparent surface. This means that the glass must be cleaned regularly so is perhaps a little higher maintenance than other desk top surfaces.

Noise

Glass is a very hard material and that means when anything such as files, mugs, glasses are placed on its surface, it makes a ‘clanking’ sound. This may not be a problem for some, especially if it’s one person in an executive suite. But, imagine an office full of glass desks? The noise would no doubt be deafening and would add to people’s stress levels in no time.

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Glass is heavy

Again, not really a problem if you’re planning to stay put for a few years, but if you like to change things up and move around, you may find moving your desk could be a two-person lift! Additionally, if you are moving your glass desk you have to extremely careful because if dropped, it can chip easily and really hurt your toe if you’re not wearing the appropriate footwear.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, glass is class and looks both super modern and stylish. It has a longevity too that is unrivalled against regular wooden desks. There is no doubt that by buying a glass desk you will feel elevated and professional, you may even find your thinking even becomes clearer as a result! The only problem that may initially concern you is the fingerprints and smudges but this can be reduced by using leather desk pads and coasters.

As mentioned earlier we would not recommend glass desk for a busy, noisy office because the excessive noise of the clattering and clunks would resemble a restaurant or cocktail bar!

In summary, our overall view is that a glass desk is the way forward. Glass desks create lasting impressions and inject dynamic kudos into executive suites and meeting rooms.

Go for it!

Thanks for reading.

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