Rank: Forum user 
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Hi forum
I'm currently looking into the safe occupancy calculations for our properties. I understand that for the office space it is the total "useable" volume divided by the density factor of 6.0 (as per table in building regs).
My question is, what does this density factor include? Has it already accounted for the volume taken up by the desks? Or do I need to subtract desk volume and then divide by 6? I'm leaning towards the former but I'm unclear about what makes up that density factor hence the confusion.
Many thanks
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Davey, would it not be easier to use the calculations in the Workplace (Health, Safety & Welfare) Regs. 1992 which to paraphrase asks you to calculate the total volume (maximum 3m high); divide by the number of people who normally work there & see if it meets the minimum 11cu metres per person rule? You also have to factor in aisleways etc. for evacuation purposes as well as office furniture, etc.
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Rank: Forum user
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And factor in any likely special needs e.g. use of wheel chairs, crutches etc. which require room to safely use
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Rank: Super forum user
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Oh dear I promised I would stop doing this once I'd retired.... The 11m3 'limit' does NOT apply if the workplace was NOT a factory before the introduction of the workplace Regs. (READ the Regs - the schedule which includes the 11m3 figure is only to relevant if....). So it's not helpful to refer to the Workplace Regs which require only that the space is 'sufficient'.... It is my recollection that Building Regs calculations are for area - not volume - and that they are considered to include most normal furniture etc... So bare room area, divided by 6 - gives 6m2 for each workers workspace to include desk, chair filing cabinet and etc.... But be reasonable if there are lots of big archive cabinets - allow more per person.... This will generally give MORE space per person than the Workplace Regs - which take little account of the reality of most modern workplace requirements.... Don't forget to then calculate maximum exit capacity - sometimes this can severely limit the maximum permissible in each room or on each floor.....
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 1 user thanked Steve e ashton for this useful post.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Steve, I have re-read the original posting & am struggling to see how you have come to the conclusion that the Workplace Regs do not apply in the situations described - perhaps you would like to explain without the need to have words in capital letters, I.e." READ the Regs" which is a tad condescending. Edited by user 09 February 2017 20:20:05(UTC)
| Reason: Additional info
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Rank: Forum user
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Thanks all. Yes, my apologies, I meant area (m2).
This all started out with me calculating an assembly hall for a trading event. I had to verify capacity and exit capability. This meant identifying the area and then the useable area. Then I moved onto an office area. But for some reason I found myself double accounting. I was working out the area of the desks and subtracting that from the main area. But then I started to wonder if I was double accounting. It appears I was since the 6m2 is already factoring in the desk space.
Needless to say that me calculating a 12m2 office in the hope that the manager can squeeze 4 people in didnt go down too well when I came up with the number "2" as the answer. It has been a fascinating lesson though. Understanding occupancy v exits etc. Every day is a school day.
Thanks all :)
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Rank: Super forum user
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Sorry Ziggy, I was not trying to be condescending - but I have posted this same information many times over the past years, and many still don't seem to get it - I get frustrated that there are several 'myths' prevalent in H&S - and this is one of the most pernicious. I didn't say the workplace regs don't apply - they do. But Reg 10 - which is where workspace is covered - is quite clear. Reg 10.1 says the workspace must be 'sufficient'... which isn't a lot of help. The problem then comes from Reg 10.2 which states:- "It shall be sufficient compliance with this regulation in a workplace which is not a new workplace, a modification, an extension or a conversion and which, immediately before this regulation came into force in respect of it, was subject to the provisions of the Factories Act 1961, if the workplace does not contravene the provisions of Part I of Schedule 1." In other words - the schedule (which contains the 11m3 figure) is only to be invoked - only applies - where the workplace is an old factory..... So offices, places which have been altered, new build etc - the schedule is not invoked and the requirement is simply the reg 10.1 requirement for 'sufficient space'...
Hope this is clear enough to explain where I am coming from....
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Rank: Super forum user
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However, the ACOP to the regulation 10 states that:-
96 Workrooms should have enough free space to allow people easy access to and from workstations, to move within the room with ease and not to restrict their movements while performing their work. This includes ceilings being high enough to allow safe access to workstations unless the work is only for a short duration. Obstructions such as low beams should be clearly marked.
97 In most workplaces 11 cubic metres (11 m3) of space per person should be taken as a minimum. This calculation should not take into account ceiling heights in excess of 3 m. A space of 11 m3 per person may be insufficient if much of the space is taken up with furnishing or equipment.
98 The minimum space referred to in paragraph 97 does not apply to:
- retail sales kiosks, attendants’ shelters, machine control cabs or similar small structures, where space is necessarily limited;
- rooms being used for lectures, meetings and similar purposes
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/l24.pdf
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Rank: Super forum user 
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I would most defianately agree with Jays post. The ACOP is very clear on what is and isnt covered. You CAN apply the 11cum rule to office space for example. Wheter or not building used to be a factory is irrelevant.
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