• Take a walk, bike ride, or exercise in an open space. Your neck, back, and posture will be surprised, but will thank you. A power outage is an opportunity if it is safe outside to get off your chair and out into the open. Obviously, this alternative is best attempted during daylight so be careful doing these in the dark.


• Take a nap. Your brain needs a break. If you are at home, no one will care.

• Play a game of solitaire with REAL cards. Card games with friends and families can help to pass the time and make the inconvenience of a blackout that less obvious.


• Socialize. The computers may not work but your cellphone lines may. Pick up the cell and call a loved one. Play Words with Friends or surf the web using your 3G or 4G network.


• Read a REAL book. Candles or flashlights can aid this effort. And contrary to popular belief, you won't do permanent damage to your eyes. Even with tablet devices, reading can still be a convenient means and circumvent the need for ambient light; however, keep an eye on that battery life.


• Raid the refrigerator. The food might go bad. Use it or lose it! How long can food last? Find out at the National Center for Home Food Preservation.


• Sit by a window and people watch. It does not sound exciting but you may notice things you do not take notice of during a normal day.


• Make a shopping list. Do a stock-check around the house. Let's see, batteries, flashlight, a deck of cards, a board game or two, candles, pencil, paper, more food…


• Drive to the nearest home improvement center that has electricity. Buy a generator (if they have them) and make sure your vehicle has enough gas for the next few days. Gas lines can get exceptionally long but it passes the time.

Cornell's Stocking Hall Rehab Project is a project led by The Pike Company. The Pike Company will be showcased with a 4-6 page corporate case study in the magazine's next issue. Along with being featured in the US Builders Review magazine, the Stocking Hall Rehab Project will be also produce a digital corporate brochure.

DS&D’s contribution to the Pike Company’s Stocking Hall Rehab Project at Cornell University as their laboratory and installation vendor will help lead the creation of a new Food Science facility to allow Cornell faculty, staff and students to lead the nation in imagining and bringing to life the future of the field of food science. The Stocking Hall Rehabilitation and Addition Project is estimated to be completed sometime within 2014.

Do you feel like you're buried under a mound of paper by the end of the day? If so, join the crowd. According to available research, the average office in the US spits out more than 45 paper missives each day - adding up to a whopping 1300 sheets of paper each month.

Where does it all go? If you're eyeing your office with dismay, there's a good chance that where that paper is "going" now is on top of your desk. And in the hutch over your desk.. and next to the printer...And, Oh no! The cat just jumped up on your filing cabinet and knocked a big pile of papers onto the floor. What can you do to put an end to the clutter when paper seems to clone itself when you're not looking? Here are several suggestions:

According to Good Technology, more than 80% of working adults in the United States continue working when they have left the office - for an average of seven extra hours each week. That totals nearly an extra day of work a week - or more than nine weeks a year!

People are using their cell phones to mix work and their personal life in ways never seen before, Good Technology reported.

While 60% do it simply to stay organized, but nearly half of the people surveyed feel they have no choice because quick replies are demanded these days.

As a working showroom in the tri-state area, we have to lead by example and demonstrate the advantages of office insights and floorplan design. Although we have made our decision, many people in numerous industries are torn between the two types of workspace environments. Don’t get stuck in the middle. This featured article will not only lay out the pros and cons of both cubicles and open workspaces, but will also suggest tools to help you decide which one you believe is most effective for your space.

To Read the Featured Article Click Here.

The Virtual Workplace: A Reality Now

For many employers the virtual workplace, in which employees operate remotely from each other and from managers, is a reality now, and all indications are that it will become even more prevalent in the future. In and of itself, this represents a dramatic change in how we work, and it presents new challenges for our professions. The challenges stem from the physical separation of workers and managers wrought by such information-age arrangements as telecommuting and virtual teams. "How can I manage them if I can't see them?" is a question that many managers ask.

To Read the Featured Article Click Here.