Blinds for your conference room are about more than décor. They should also make the space more comfortable and functional for all of your meetings. If you are in the market for commercial window blinds in Chicago for your conference room, keep these tips in mind as you consider your options.

Consider Your Lighting Needs

Blinds can let in as little or as much light as you need, depending on the design, so consider what kind of lighting is right for the space. Some conference rooms suffer from excessive outdoor lighting, which creates glare on the screens of electronic devices and can interfere with presentations. Others are darker spaces that could benefit greatly from an influx of natural light to make the room feel more vibrant and productive. Check out your conference room at different times of the day to see how much light it gets before you make your decision.

Focus on Functionality

If you foresee the need to open and close your blinds at different points during meetings, then choosing motorized blinds is a must. With these automated blind systems, you can easily control the blinds using a remote device, so you don’t have to interrupt the flow of the meeting to adjust the window treatments. This functionality lets you draw the blinds to darken the room for video presentations but reopen them to re-energize the space. You can also partially adjust the blinds easily at different points in meetings if glare is created as the sun moves.

Look into Energy Efficiency

Blinds can have a significant impact on your energy usage. Because blinds create an additional barrier for exterior air to move through before it enters your office space, they help to keep cold air out in the winter and warm air out in the summer. With less influence from exterior air, your company’s heating and cooling system will work more efficiently. If you want to decrease energy usage and save money, look into blinds that have high R-values, which indicate a high level of energy efficiency.