Material Bank announced plans to launch its services in Japan in 2022, marking the sampling platform’s first rollout outside of North America. The expansion will be led by the newly appointed CEO of Material Bank Japan, 18-year industry veteran Go Nakazawa, who will oversee the branch’s strategic direction alongside founder and CEO Adam Sandow. The news follows Material Bank’s recent hiring of Philippe Brocart, the former director of Maison & Objet, with the aim of exploring the European market.

Flexible working has become the norm for many workers since the COVID-19 pandemic began, but it can actually lead many to work longer and harder, with work encroaching on family life. A new book by Professor Heejung Chung from the University of Kent’s School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research explores how workers’ wellbeing and gender equality may in fact be jeopardised by flexible work, rather than providing a better work-life balance.

Professor Chung argues that ‘freedom’ to control when and where to work results in workers working harder and longer in our current work-life balance culture, where working long hours beyond contracted time is seen as the ‘ideal productive worker’. Norms around gender roles and intensive parenting cultures pushes women to exploit themselves at home by increasing time spent on childcare and housework.

Apple has announced plans to bring employees back to the office starting on April 11 after deferring the date indefinitely as the Omicron variant spread across the country.

In December, Apple deferred its return-to-work effort and gave all employees a $1,000 bonus that it encouraged them to spend on remote-working equipment. It had previously targeted February 1 for corporate staff to return to physical workspaces and was piloting a hybrid-work arrangement where staff could come to the office one or two days per week.

If you build a shiny new office building, will your employees show up to work in it? 

 

Many U.S. companies are banking on it because they believe working in person is better for collaboration and training young employees. So even though most employees are still working from home offices and dining room tables today, some companies are willing to spend big on showplace headquarters.

Businesses recognize there is a place for offices despite the fact that they plan to give workers more flexibility to work from home and might see cost savings from limiting their real estate holdings.

In a sign of how committed companies are to keeping offices, some 57% of the more than 2,300 office projects that giant architecture firm Gensler is now working on were started last year, in the middle of the pandemic. But as they’re building, companies are tweaking designs to reflect that offices may become spots that workers visit primarily to collaborate with others, instead of places where they toil all day, every day.

The first quarter of 2022 is shaping up much like late 2021 when it comes to office vacancy in Houston.

Inscape Thursday announced its results of operations for the three and nine months ended January 31, 2022.

 

Total sales revenue for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $10.2 million, compared to $11.6 million for the same period of fiscal 2021. The reduction in the current quarter related primarily to the impact of supply chain disruptions, which limited the availability of height adjustable bases and medium density fibre board, and negatively impacted the Company’s ability to fulfill orders. During the quarter, Walls sales were relatively flat, while Furniture sales declined by 15.3% over the same quarter of prior year.

Total sales revenue for the nine months ended January 31, 2022 was $27.7 million, compared to $30.2 million for the same period of fiscal 2021. Sales volumes for the period were relatively flat compared to the same period of the prior year due to a slower-than-expected North American economic recovery, supply chain disruptions which were more pronounced in this fiscal year than the prior period and the effects of a strengthened Canadian dollar on the Company’s primarily US dollar denominated sales.

 

Net income after taxes for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 of $4.8 million or 34 cents per share compared to net loss of $1.0 million or negative 7 cents per share resulting from extraordinary gains derived from the substantial completion of management’s initiative to sell real properties. During the quarter, the Company completed the sale and leaseback of its Holland Landing property, realizing net gains of $13.0 million.

 

Net loss after taxes for the nine months ended January 31, 2022, was $1.2 million or negative 8 cents per diluted share, compared to net loss of $1.4 million or negative 10 cents per diluted share for fiscal 2021. The marginally improved performance in the current fiscal period was largely driven by an extraordinary gain of $13.0 million from disposal of the Holland Landing property, partially offset by deferred tax expenses of $3.5 million, lower sales revenues of $2.4 million and a net decrease in other non-operating income of $6.9 million.

DIRTT Environmental Solutions Ltd. announced that it has filed a summary judgment application in the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta, Action No. 1901-06550 (the Action), seeking an expedited, pre-trial, final determination of its liability claims against Falkbuilt Ltd., Falkbuilt, Inc., Mogens Smed (Smed), Barrie Loberg (Loberg), and others.

In the Action, DIRTT seeks, among other things, an order restraining the defendants from competing with DIRTT, a judgment for its losses and damages, and an accounting and disgorgement of the defendants' gains from their wrongful misconduct.

In the summary judgment application DIRTT filed an affidavit tendering over 1,200 pages of evidence supporting its liability claims in the Action.

In the deal for Los Angeles-based Western Office Interiors, Catalyst Workplace Activation absorbs one of its biggest Seattle-area competitors and gains Western’s expertise on Knoll products.

 

Catalyst Workplace Activation, the Seattle region's largest office furniture dealer, has acquired one of its major local competitors, Western Office Interiors.In the deal for Los Angeles-based Western Office Interiors, Catalyst absorbs one of its biggest Seattle competitors and gains Western's expertise on Knoll products. Catalyst is not disclosing the financial terms of the deal. But the dealer now projects its 2022 revenue to surpass $90 million.