1. INTRODUCTION
Productivity is an important factor in every organisation. Profit and loss depend to a large
extent on labour productivity, i.e. how productively employees work. Although public
organisations are not about profit and loss, costs are undoubtedly important in this sector. In
the Netherlands, the government needs to cut down costs drastically by making the own
organisation more efficient. The physical environment is one tool which can be used to exert a
positive influence in that respect. Various studies have found that aspects such as openness,
noise, lighting and temperature can affect productivity.