Houston startups should take care in office design — it makes a difference

houston voices

The design of your startup office matters. The lighting, the acoustics, the vicinity of rooms; every little thing plays a role. Miguel Tovar/University of Houston

If you want a work environment conducive to a nice flow of ideas, creativity, freethinking, and finding a work groove, then your startup design and workspace matter.

When it comes to a startup's office design, you want to create spaces with a purpose. You need to be certain what you want with your office's design. Moreover, you need to be certain what you want with every square foot. Yes, you have to be that detailed. Think about it. If you go into the design of your startup's office nonchalant, you'll have spaces without purpose. When you have spaces without purpose, they become susceptible to employees using them as they please. Suddenly, the open area near the creative space becomes the snacking spot. The open space by the window becomes "spot where everyone gathers to birdwatch." You get the picture. It becomes chaotic and confusing. That's why you have to make sure you know what purpose to ascribe every area of your startup.

Here are three features of startup design that help create a mood or ambiance.

Sound check

Some bigger companies hire an acoustics engineer to set decibel levels for every area and room in a workplace. They might set higher levels for a dining area where people are encouraged to interact and enjoy themselves. Lower levels will go to conference rooms and work areas. However, not every startup has a budget to bring in an acoustics engineer. But you can still apply the same principles to your startup design.

When you walk into a library or doctor's office, there's a tacit understanding that you should speak with a lower voice. You don't need an acoustics engineer to set the figurative and literal tone for what kind of behavior employees should exhibit in each area.

It is assumed, for example, that a dining area has more leeway for louder noise. So next to the dining area you can design a work area where one can assume being a little more amplified is allowed. You can have music playing in an area where people are encouraged to mingle and talk. Music is a great cue to signal that casual interaction is encouraged.

For quieter spaces, a tighter design for a room tucked away can send a signal to anyone to keep voices low. Also, if a room has an echo, people are naturally inclined to stay quieter. People tend to interpret spaces with echoes as spaces where they need to be quieter, since an echo carries voices.

Lighting

Exposing your office to natural light creates a positive mood that encourages interaction, collaboration, and an overall "lighter" tone for having a good time at work. Dimmer lighting can be used to create a sense of thoughtfulness and encourage workers in this area to brainstorm, lost in their thoughts.

Work in color

We all know by now that colors convey moods. Blue is pacifying (think Pacific Ocean), warmer colors like red and yellow encourage a more gregarious nature. Knowing what color to design each area of your startup workspace will go far in presenting the mood you wish to create.

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This article originally appeared on the University of Houston's The Big Idea.

Rene Cantu is the writer and editor at UH Division of Research.

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Houston company awarded $2.5B NASA contract to support astronaut health and space missions

space health

Houston-based technology and energy solution company KBR has been awarded a $2.5 billion NASA contract to support astronaut health and reduce risks during spaceflight missions.

Under the terms of the Human Health and Performance Contract 2, KBR will provide support services for several programs, including the Human Research Program, International Space Station Program, Commercial Crew Program, Artemis campaign and others. This will include ensuring crew health, safety, and performance; occupational health services and risk mitigation research for future flights.

“This contract reinforces KBR’s leadership in human spaceflight operations and highlights our expertise in supporting NASA’s vision for space exploration,” Mark Kavanaugh, KBR president of defense, intel and space, said in a news release.

The five-year contract will begin Nov. 1 with possible extension option periods that could last through 2035. The total estimated value of the base period plus the optional periods is $3.6 billion, and the majority of the work will be done at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.

“We’re proud to support NASA’s critical work on long-duration space travel, including the Artemis missions, while contributing to solutions that will help humans live and thrive beyond Earth,” Kavanaugh adde in the news release.

Recently, KBR and Axiom Space completed three successful crewed underwater tests of the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) at NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) at Johnson Space Center. The tests were part of an effort to help both companies work to support NASA's return to the Moon, according to a release.

KBR also landed at No. 3 in a list of Texas businesses on Time and Statista’s new ranking of the country’s best midsize companies.

UH receives $1M grant to advance research on rare pediatric disorder

peds research

The University of Houston has received a two-year, $1.1 million gift from the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation to advance research on a rare genetic disorder that can lead to both deafness and blindness in children, known as Usher Syndrome.

The current grant will support the research of UH biomedical engineering professors Muna Naash and Muayyad Al-Ubaidi, who work in the Laboratory for Retinal Molecular and Cellular Biology and Gene Therapy in the Cullen College of Engineering. The professors have published their findings in the journal Nature Communications.

Naash and Al-Ubaidi’s research focuses on mutations in the USH2A gene, which is crucial to the development and maintenance of the inner ear and retina. The work was inspired by a chance meeting that changed Naash’s life.

“Our work began more than two decades ago when I met a young boy who had lost his both his vision and hearing, and it made me realize just how precious those two senses are, and it truly touched my heart,” Naash said in a news release from UH. “Thanks to the generosity of the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation, we can now take the next critical steps in our research and bring hope to families affected by this challenging condition.”

The grant from the foundation comes in addition to a previous $1.6 million award from the National Eye Institute in 2023, which helped create a research platform for innovative gene therapy approaches for the condition.

Usher Syndrome affects 25,000 people in the U.S. and is the most common genetic condition worldwide that impacts both hearing and vision in children. Currently, there is no cure for any of the main three types of the condition. UH believes support from the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation will help elevate research, advance real-world solutions in health and improve lives.

“What makes UH such a powerful hub for research is not just its own resources, but also its location and strategic partnerships, including those with the Texas Medical Center,” Al-Ubaidi said in a news release. “We have access to an extraordinary network, and that kind of collaborative environment is essential when tackling complex diseases like Usher syndrome, where no single lab can do it alone.”

Members-only coworking club Switchyards to open first Houston location

Where to Work

An innovative take on the coworking space is coming to Houston. Switchyards will open its first location in the Bayou City on Monday, September 29.

Located in the former Buffalo Exchange at 2901 S Shepherd Drive, Switchyards is well located on the border of Montrose, River Oaks, and Upper Kirby. Founded in Atlanta, the Houston location will join 30 outposts in cities such as Austin, Dallas, Denver, Kansas City, and Nashville.

Unlike WeWork, which caters to companies looking for office space for groups of employees, Switchyards pitches itself as a club for individuals who want to get a little work done away from their home offices.

“Working from home all the time is pretty lonesome,” Switchyards creative director Brandon Hinman says. “It feels good to have places to get out and mix it up. To change paces and change scenery.”

Switchyards facilitates that change of scenery with an environment that blends touches of hotel lobbies, college libraries, and coffee shops. As seen in the photos of the company’s other location, the furniture is a mix of desks, comfy chairs, and couches for individuals or small groups. It’s a far cry from the cube farms of the Office Space era.

“They tend to be historic, textured, layered,” Hinman says about the company’s locations. “A lot of really good furniture. Really thoughtful for getting a couple hours of work done.”

Each location features fast wi-fi, plenty of electrical outlets, and good quality coffee and tea. All 250 members have 24/7 access to the space. And by choosing the real estate they lease carefully, Switchyards keeps its membership price to $100 per month.

“Packaging it together like that and opening in these neighborhoods where people actually live has been pretty magical,” Hinman says. "The big opportunity, I think, is that 90 percent of our members have never had a shared space before. It is unlocking a new thing for people.”

Those who are interested in learning more can sign up at switchyards.com/houston-tx to get early access to memberships and an invite to a sneak peek party.

Memberships go on sale Thursday, September 25 at 10 am. Switchyards notes that the last 14 clubs have sold out on day one.

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This story originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

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