Fitting out an office is a different exercise from furnishing a home. You are buying for people you have not hired yet, in a space you will probably outgrow, on a timeline set by a lease. The furniture decisions that go wrong are rarely about aesthetics. They are about density, cable management and the assumption that headcount will stay flat.
This guide covers how to plan workstations, meeting rooms and storage for a commercial fit-out in Noida, Greater Noida and the wider NCR.
Start with area per person
Before choosing any furniture, work out how many people the space can hold comfortably.
| Workspace type | Carpet area per person |
|---|---|
| Dense call centre or BPO layout | 50 to 60 sq ft |
| Standard office | 75 to 100 sq ft |
| Spacious or design-led office | 100 to 150 sq ft |
These figures include the person’s share of circulation, meeting rooms, pantry and reception, not just the desk. If a 3,000 sq ft floor plate is being planned for 60 people, the numbers are already telling you something.
Workstation sizing
The desk size you choose multiplies across the whole floor, so a three-inch decision becomes metres of space.
- Compact: 1200 x 600mm — adequate for a laptop-only role, tight for dual monitors
- Standard: 1350 to 1500 x 600mm — the workhorse size for most offices
- Generous: 1600 to 1800 x 750mm — for design, engineering or trading roles with multiple screens
- Manager cabin desk: 1500 to 1800mm with a side return and a pedestal
Allow at least 900mm of clear circulation behind a seated person, and 1200mm where it is a shared walkway between two rows of back-to-back desks. Skimping here is what makes an office feel cramped even when the desks are generous.
Linear, cluster or back-to-back?
- Linear (straight run against a wall or spine): highest density, simplest cable spine, easy to expand by adding seats
- Back-to-back with a central raceway: the most common configuration; power and data run down the middle and serve both sides
- Clusters of four or six: good for team-based work, slightly lower density, more visual interest
- 120-degree pods: comfortable and private-feeling, but expensive in floor area and awkward to reconfigure
Cable management is the whole game
Nothing dates an office faster than cables draped across the floor. Plan for it in the furniture, not afterwards.
- Vertical raceway in the desk leg or spine, carrying power and data from floor or ceiling down to desk level
- Horizontal cable tray under the desktop, running the length of the workstation run
- Flip-top or pop-up power module in the desktop, with at least two power outlets and one data port per person, plus USB charging
- Separation of power and data within the tray, to reduce interference
- Grommets where cables cross the desktop, so the desk surface is not drilled ad hoc later
Decide the power point positions before the flooring goes in. Retrofitting floor boxes into a finished floor is disruptive and expensive.
Screens, storage and acoustics
Desk screens
Low screens at 300 to 400mm above desk level give visual separation without isolating people. Fabric-faced acoustic screens also absorb some speech noise, which matters in an open plan with hard floors and a glass perimeter. Full-height partitions turn an open office into cubicles and are usually a step backwards.
Pedestals and storage
The traditional three-drawer pedestal under every desk is increasingly wasted space in a paperless office. Two alternatives work better:
- A mobile pedestal that doubles as a visitor stool, shared between two people
- A bank of personal lockers near the entrance or pantry, with the desks left clear
Lockers also make hot-desking and hybrid working possible without a redesign.
Acoustics
Offices in NCR commercial towers usually have hard floors, glass facades and gypsum ceilings, which means speech carries. Fabric-faced screens, an acoustic ceiling raft over meeting areas, and upholstered seating in break-out zones do more than most people expect. Budget something for this rather than discovering the problem after move-in.
Meeting rooms and cabins
| Room | Typical size | Table |
|---|---|---|
| Huddle / 4-seat | 80 to 100 sq ft | 1200 x 800mm |
| 6 to 8 seat meeting room | 140 to 180 sq ft | 2400 x 1200mm |
| 12 seat boardroom | 300 to 350 sq ft | 3600 x 1400mm |
| Manager cabin | 100 to 150 sq ft | Desk with return plus two visitor chairs |
Allow 900mm of clearance behind each seat for chairs to pull out, and plan a power and data grommet in the table centre for laptops and video conferencing. A common regret is a beautiful boardroom table with a single socket on the wall behind a credenza.
Small huddle rooms tend to be the most heavily used space in any office and the most frequently under-provided. Two four-seaters usually beat one eight-seater.
Reception and break-out
The reception desk is the one place where a bespoke piece earns its cost, because it carries the brand. Keep the counter at 1100mm on the visitor side and 750mm on the staff side, with concealed cable routing for a monitor, phone and card reader.
Break-out and pantry seating should be sized for the peak, not the average. A pantry that seats six in a 40-person office guarantees a queue at lunchtime. High tables with stools take less floor area per person than a dining arrangement.
Materials that survive commercial use
- Worktops: 25mm prelaminated board with a 2mm PVC edge band. Thin 0.45mm edging chips within a year in a busy office.
- Legs and frames: powder-coated steel for anything that will be moved or reconfigured.
- Storage carcasses: moisture-resistant core for anything near a pantry or washroom wall.
- Finishes: matt laminates hide fingerprints and scuffs far better than gloss in a high-traffic environment.
- Upholstery: commercial-grade fabric with a stated rub count, not residential upholstery.
Plan for change
Two questions worth asking before ordering:
- Can this be extended? A modular workstation system lets you add seats to an existing run. A set of standalone desks does not scale neatly.
- Can this be moved? If the lease is three years, favour systems that dismantle and reassemble over built-in joinery, except at reception and in cabins where the impression matters.
Frequently asked questions
How much space is needed per employee in an office?
Between 50 and 100 sq ft of carpet area per person including circulation and shared spaces, depending on how dense the layout is. Around 75 to 100 sq ft suits most offices.
What is the standard office desk size?
1350 to 1500mm wide by 600mm deep is the common standard. Roles with multiple monitors need 1600mm or more and a 750mm depth.
How long does a commercial furniture fit-out take?
It depends on quantity, finish and whether workstations are standard or bespoke. Manufacturing lead time is the main variable, so share your possession date early and lock the layout before production starts.
Can office furniture be manufactured to a custom size?
Yes. Bespoke sizing is often the only way to use an irregular floor plate efficiently, and it typically costs less than losing usable seats to a standard module that does not fit.
Commercial fit-outs from a Greater Noida facility
InterCraft Furniture manufactures workstations, cabins, conference tables, reception counters, storage and pantry units in bulk at its own Greater Noida facility, which keeps sizing flexible and lead times under one roof. See our bespoke furniture capabilities and modular furniture range, or talk to us about a site survey for your office.
