Until very recently, you wouldn’t have thought twice about touching a door handle or coffee machine button; these habits were very much on autopilot. The pandemic changed everything. Not only have we started to pay attention to how often we touch surfaces, but we’ve also been exposed to new technologies that are changing daily processes wherever we go. Have you noticed how restaurants now have you browse their menus through your own device? Times are certainly changing.  

Workplaces are ripe with opportunities for touchless technologies to make a lasting impact on health and safety, especially as we start to see major shifts in how we use office spaces. Independent research we recently did at Aura revealed that in the next 5-10 years, it will be the norm for staff to be working remotely 2-3 days per week. Another major finding from the research was that offices will transform into collaborative workspaces where employees can gather on an as-needed basis. These entirely new ways of working will require the support of new technologies; ones that can help us manage office visits, minimize touch within our environments, and facilitate regular sanitization.

We’ve done some digging to find innovative touchless technologies you can safeguard your workplace with right away. Here are our top 5 picks:

Traction Guest ZeroTouch – Contactless Visits 

Traction Guest is a company solely focused on offering unparalleled security and control for today’s enterprises. We’re in the process of redesigning the company’s office and we’ve learned a great deal about their products in the process. Their ZeroTouch concept is a proactive safety screening method that offers automatic and completely contact-less access visits to the office for both employees and visitors.

Here’s how it works:
Guests planning to visit your office receive a welcome email including a link to a pre-screening questionnaire. Currently, the questionnaire is designed around the rules following COVID19, like “have you been outside the country in the last two weeks?” and “have you experienced flu-like symptoms recently?”, although the questions can be customized at any time. When a visitor fills out the questionnaire with no major risks identified, they receive a QR code to scan when they arrive at your office; no need to wait in line. You, on the other end, receive a notification that your guest has arrived and is waiting in the lobby. Reducing risks while cutting out the hassle of lobby cues for the visitor, Traction Guests’ ZeroTouch technology couldn’t be more of a necessity for the modern-day office.

 

SmartWay2 – Workplace Scheduling

SmartWay2 is a cloud-based software that manages the booking of meeting rooms, desks, and even parking spaces. We were a fan of the SmartWay2 room panel that simplifies the process of booking meetings rooms and checking in for them. You can identify yourself through a range of methods, some of which are touchless.

Here’s how it works:
The SmartWay2 phone app helps you locate and book an available meeting room. SmartWay2 room panels are affixed to the outside of your office’s meeting rooms. When it’s your turn to check-in for your meeting, you can do so directly on the panels through facial recognition or a QR code on your phone. What we thought was neat about the SmartWay2 phone app is that it also connects to Google places. Should you arrive early for your meeting, just pull up the app to find a list of nearby coffee shops you can kill some time in.

 

TopBrewer – Touchless Coffee 

Free office coffee is a perk enjoyed by many, but now that we’re realizing just how much we touch machine buttons, creamer dispensers, and coffee pot handles, it’s time to re-think even how we enjoy our morning ritual. TopBrewer is on it with their touchless coffee machine designed to reduce shared contact points. Peep this video for an overview.

How it works:
TopBrewer provides a responsible and touch-free coffee experience to help employees operate in a hygienic environment. To use a TopBrewer machine, you’ll need to download the TopBrewer app through your smartphone, apple watch, or tablet. Much like accessing a Starbucks coffee menu, you can choose from a wide menu of premium beverages and customize your drinks. When you’re ready, all you have to do is place your mug under the machine’s tap design and use your app to start the brew. The app will even notify you when you’re within range of a TopBrewer, making your favourite drink available with a single swipe. 95% of the machine’s design is hidden in countertops or walls so that no touching is necessary. The brewer even has a two-minute automatic cleaning cycle that self-cleans during the day, rinsing it’s brewer and milk lines thoroughly to shorten daily cleaning routines. 

 

RobinPowered – Visual Distance Planning

If flu season year after year didn’t show us just how easily germs can spread in offices, the pandemic certainly gave us a wake up call. As companies apply social distancing to their office spaces, RobinPowered helps them plan for reduced capacity with visual distance mapping.

Here’s how it works:
The software helps you draft and manage your seating charts for your ideal office capacity. Simply drag and drop people on a visual map to determine distances, and calculate the number of assigned vs inactive desks. The software also comes with collaboration capabilities to make sure office re-arrangements are a group effort. With shareable seating drafts, multiple stakeholders can work on the same version before rolling it out to the rest of the company. Updating in real-time to include numbers on daily desk reservations means you can understand how your office is being used at any time.

 

CloudBooking – Desk Booking

Hot desk bookings are about to explode with several players already on the market. CloudBooking caught our eye for the way it uses RFID technology to make the booking process as seamless as possible.

Here’s how it works: 
All visitors or employees have to do to check in to their reserved desk is place their laptops on the desk. All done? Checkout is just as simple as walking away with the technology checking them out automatically. Pretty easy, right? The software also offers real-time analytics on desk usage, working hours saved, and occupancy levels. 

There’s no time like right now to start implementing technologies that can help improve the safety and security of your office.

Care to tell us which of these technologies is your favourite, or better yet, have others you’d like to share? Drop us a comment!

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