Office pods for open-plan offices: where they help, and where to put them

What pods fix, and what they do not

Pods solve a specific problem: people on an open floor have nowhere private to take a call, run a 1:1 or concentrate. Each pod gives one to four people a closed door, up to 25 dB (±3 dB) of separation from the floor, and its own light, power and air.

They do not reduce the general noise of the floor. If the problem is that the whole floor is too loud to work in, that is a question for ceilings, flooring, acoustic panels and seating plans. Pods help indirectly, because the calls that move into them are no longer adding to the noise outside, but they are not a replacement for treating the room.

Where to put them

• Close to the people who will use them. A booth at the far end of the floor gets used less than one a few steps from the desks. If calls happen all day in one team, put the booths there.
• Off the main walkway, but visible. People should be able to see whether a pod is free without walking to it, and the door should not open into a busy route.
• Near a socket. Each pod plugs into a standard wall socket. Placing pods near existing power avoids leads across the floor.
• Clear of fire exits and building services. Keep exit routes, fire equipment, aircon returns and access panels clear. Your building admin will have rules on this.
• Out of strong afternoon sun. The pods are glazed and ventilated by fans, not connected to the building’s aircon. A spot against west-facing glass will be warmer inside than one in the middle of the floor.
• Under enough clear height. All three stand 2.30 m tall. Check under sprinklers, ducting and light fittings, not just the ceiling.

How many do you need?

There is no reliable rule of thumb, and it is better to measure your own floor than to borrow someone else’s ratio. Two simple ways to estimate:

• Count the calls. For a week, note how many people leave their desks to take calls at the busiest times of day. That is roughly how many booths would be in use at once.
• Count the queue. If your meeting rooms are booked days ahead, look at what the bookings are. Rooms booked by one or two people are demand for Solo and Duo pods.

Then start below the number and add. Pods can be added one at a time and moved when the floor is reorganised, so there is no penalty for starting small. For several pods at once, see multi-unit orders.

Which sizes

On most open-plan floors the demand is mainly one-person calls, so Solo Pods make up most of the order, with a Duo or Team Pod for interviews, 1:1s and small meetings. Phone booth or meeting pod goes through that choice in more detail.

Checking the floor

The floor planner shows how many pods of each size fit in an area you describe, at the walkway width you choose. It is a rough check, not a fit-out drawing: it does not know about your columns, doors or fire routes. Before delivery, the lift and the building admin are the things to sort out; what to check before a pod reaches your floor lists them.