Buying office workstations isn't like buying furniture at an office supply store. For one thing, cubicles from leading manufacturers are built to last for decades. Dealers will work with you to design a system that's right for your needs and will stand behind their work.

In addition, office workstations are more expensive than many people realize. We'll get into more detail in Pricing, but you can expect to pay around $1,500 per cubicle for high-quality used systems furniture - or $2,500 and up for new systems.

Do your homework
Before you start talking to cubicle suppliers, you'll need to prepare some basic information about your office and your employees.

First, you'll need to know the floor plan of the space you're looking to furnish. If you can get a scale drawing of your office, great; if not, you should measure the office yourself to get a rough idea of your available space for workstations. In most cases, you'll wind up working with a designer who will take more detailed measurements later, but knowing the general dimensions will greatly improve your initial conversations with potential office workstation suppliers.

Next, consider your employees. Obviously you need to know how many employees need office workstations. But go one step further: what do those employees do? Cubicles for a department of telemarketers are quite different from the right cubicles for a group of programmers. Talk to your employees about their needs: do they spend more time on the computer, on the phone, or doing paperwork? How important is it that they be able to easily converse with co-workers? Do they have small meetings in their cubes? These factors will influence the size, wall height, and surfaces of the workstations you choose.

There are office-wide considerations, as well. Copiers, printers, and any other shared resources need to be accessible without being a distraction to employees seated nearby.

Start early
Shopping for systems furniture isn't a quick process: if you're buying new or remanufactured systems, you can expect an average of three to six weeks between placing the order and delivery. If you choose office workstations a dealer has in stock, it can take a week; if you place your order at a busy time, it can take as long as 10 weeks or more.