In many companies the office desks are connected via a booking system. MORE FLEXIBILITY INSTEAD OF OLD HABITS The desk is becoming intelligent: In the offices of tomor- row, only a few employees will still have a fixed personal desk. Teams will be formed depending on the project, and desks will be used flexibly. Booking systems for desks and workplaces will steadily increase and become the norm. And what is more, artificial intelligence will find its way into the office. Let us imagine the following scenario: Christian works in marketing and has two meetings with the sales department for the industrial sector on Monday. His calendar also includes editing some technical literature. He arrives at the company and the system assigns him an appropriate workstation in direct proximity to collea- gues from technical support in the industry sector. This allows him to quickly exchange information with the re- levant colleagues when it comes to the technical details in the data sheets. He is also a short distance from the respective meeting room. The assigned desk is familiar with his habits and automatically adjusts to the optimal sitting and standing height and regularly reminds him to stand. Christian has set this information in his profile. And at the end of the working day, the desk is automa- tically moved upwards into cleaning mode so that it can be disinfected and cleaned better and more easily. data is already being collected, such as steps and calories being counted via wearables and smartphones. Such data collection will increasingly infiltrate our working li- ves. Employers will not be able to shine simply by offering fruit and beverages or paying subsidies for fitness stu- dios. For employees, it will become the norm to behave in a quantifiably healthy way at the workplace, through exercise, alternating sitting and standing and through different challenges, such as the „healthiest employee of the month“. The intelligence in the height-adjusta- ble desks will, among other things, provide the data for All this requires intelligent technology in the desk con- trols. This intelligence could even go much further. Quantified Self is a fitting keyword here. So much of our 5
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