Social Distancing With Planter Box Table Dividers

We designed the table divider box to help craft business owners and their customers stay safe and comfortable in their favorite spaces. With only a few hours of time committed, several of these affordable and attractive boxes can be constructed and secured onto existing bench seating using commonly available tools and materials.

Readily available materials, basic tools, and a simple design make for a quick, easy build.

Readily available materials, basic tools, and a simple design make for a quick, easy build.

For the past 7 years, we have been lucky enough to serve the craft alcohol community. In that time, not only have we worked with dozens of incredible craft beer and spirits brands, but more importantly, we’ve been warmly welcomed into their communities. We’ve developed real and lasting relationships with the wonderful people behind the iconic brands and beloved products.

When the COVID19 pandemic hit in the spring of 2020, we found ourselves not only concerned for our people, but also found many of our craft friends immediately and devastatingly affected by the public health crisis and its economic ramifications.

As the months wore on, whether we were talking to an owner of a brewery, distillery, winery, or other business open to the public, everyone’s concerns followed a common theme: owners wanted to safely reopen their spaces, but they wanted to do so in a responsible way that aligned the best available public health information with an enjoyable customer experience to reduce risks for their staff and their patrons.

Finished planter can be used to store menus, sanitizer, potted plants, and more.

Finished planter can be used to store menus, sanitizer, potted plants, and more.

Suddenly, our world was filled with makeshift plastic barriers, caution tape, and bottles of disinfectant – often strewn throughout a space as quickly as possible to help keep people safe by spacing them out and coordinating their movements. While we admire everyone’s speed and thoroughness of response, we think that, for only a little extra cost and effort, many common seating arrangements can be adapted to provide for a more enjoyable customer experience that feels comfortable and welcoming while maintaining compliance with public health guidelines. That is the purpose of this idea, to provide an aesthetically appealing, modular, multi-functional seating spacer that can be used now for health and safety purposes and adapted as hanging planter boxes should conditions in the future make their present purpose no longer necessary.


Disclaimer

These instructions are provided to the community free of charge and for educational purposes only. OPA Design Studio, Inc. does not warranty or guarantee the design or its application and will not be held liable for any resulting damages or injury in the construction or use of the design in any way and/or at any time. No copyright or patent is intended in this work; it may be freely adapted by the community for their own use at their own risk. Proper precautions should always be undertaken when working with power and hand tools, including but not limited to the use of proper eye and ear protection at all times. Children should never be permitted to operate dangerous equipment and should be kept away from construction areas and furniture that is not securely fixed in place. By reading the following instructions and using them to construct your own divider box, you agree to indemnify OPA Design Studio, Inc. against all resulting and associated liability, harm, or loss, and personally assume all responsibility for any claims that arise. The specifications of the design are not intended to meet CDC, state, local, or other public health authority guidance pertaining to the transmission or mitigation of communicable disease, nor any other legislation, regulation, code, etc.

OPA Inner Circle Interview - Todd Hutchison, Architectural Project Designer

As we continue to highlight the people behind all of the awesome craft brewery design coming out of OPA Design Studio, we recently (virtually) sat down with Todd Hutchison, another of The Brewery Architect’s dedicated project designers.

Todd started with OPA two years ago and has been a valuable member to our design team in that time. We hope to see him continue to shine and grow with our team, lending us and our clients his unique perspective and passion for great design.

IMG_8138.png

1) In 3 sentences or fewer, what does your daily life at OPA look like (bonus points for haikus)?

Log in to find OPA's "word of the day"
what should my background be, what should it say
rearrange lines in space
sketch on another paper of trace
until what once were dreams are set to stay

Editors Note: limerick bonus points given in place of haiku bonus points.


2) What advice would you give to our fellow architectural professionals, clients, and consultants from your experience working remotely for OPA these last 6 months during the COVID19 pandemic?


Working from home tends to be more fluid than the daily schedule of working in the office. Creating structure and connecting with work mates adds stability. Open communication is key. Fun Zoom backgrounds make for good conversation.

3) What is the best thing about being in the architecture profession today?


Architects problem solve to meet challenges. COVID has changed how we live in 2020 and architects are challenged with how our spaces look and function moving forward.

4) What do you like most about how our team has evolved in the time that you've been with us?


I have gained skills and grown as a designer from getting to know other's strengths, sharing current work through the open office Zoom meeting, and acquiring new rendering and VR tools.

5) What do you consider your greatest architectural accomplishment so far?


Finding enjoyment in the pursuit of an answer.

6) What motivates you?


Solution finding.  Smiles.  Joy.

7) Please fill in the blanks (feel free to use multiple words for each blank):

Good architectural design meets the needs, but great architectural design makes the moment.

8) Define great design in 5 words or fewer.


Efficient. Natural. Detailed. Inspiring.