The modern office

Shane Schneck has designed a system of worktops for Manerba inspired by the dictates of positive psychology, a design trend aimed at promoting creativity and collective productivity. Colourful, practical, modular, transformable, sustainable and sound-absorbent, the Apollo system consists of tables that can be adjusted in height with laminated tops, dividing panels in sound-absorbent cork and coloured recyclable containers. 

We are moving towards a more flexible and informal working model where we can already see concepts such as spatial mobility, efficient time management and the reconciliation of home and work. This new approach corresponds to a marked compositional flexibility in workspaces. The Longo system of chairs – designed by Ramos & Bassols – is therefore an ideal solution since its compositional nature and versatility mean it can be used to design a more friendly working environment, one that is open and relaxed, where new people can immediately be integrated into working teams and furniture adapted to changing working needs.       

Designed for office interiors, the Held system by Alki consists of co-working tables, mobile containers and vertical dividers. Combining these basic elements together a large number of possible configurations can be achieved that are able to respond to a wide range of design needs and can be used to create large continuous surfaces. The solutions can be completed with dividers, also available in leather, a programme of storage available with different widths and multiple drawer options. 

A freestanding and wall system designed for contemporary management offices, Outline consists of an outer frame that defines a storage space that completes the proposal of executive tables. With its design, materials, finishes, construction details and functional performance of superior quality, the system is characterised by the slender parallel joints from which originate the extra-thin steel shelves.         

Jaime Hayon has come up with his first real piece of contract furniture for Fritz Hansen: PlenumTM, that follows on from the RoTM and FriTM chairs and LuneTM sofa that, conceived for domestic settings, have also proved ideal for public spaces. The PlenumTM range of high-backed seating play homage to the contemporary notion of the shared workspace and is designed for socialising as well as individual concentration. The series includes one, two and three-seater sofas, equipped with accessories such as power sockets, USB ports and incorporated tables, to favour a functional but aesthetically-pleasing experience.         

Upholstery seating system desgned by Jaime Hayon for Fritz Hansen

Jean-Michel Wilmotte has come up with the Anatole Desk for the Turkish brand Koleksiyon, a multiple workstation based on an original idea for subdividing workspaces. The French architect has gone beyond the classic concept of the geometric partition of space into identical portions and come up with a proposal with spaces of different shapes and proportions dedicated to specific functions, uses and tasks but to no specific physical person.         

Favaretto & Partners presented a new design for Luxy, at Orgatec 2018. The Biga chair – that takes its name from ancient Rome – conceals behind its unusual and original appearance, a significant functional study with regards to acoustics and privacy. The chair can be easily moved with the wheeled version.

Dante Bonuccelli has come up with Pyramid for UniFor, an integrated cabling system conceived to resolve the management of cables and network connections for work stations. This electrified technological bar assumes another function, acting as a dividing screen, that can be equipped with hook-on accessories that optimise operative space by making it more ergonomic and comfortable.   

This system is presented as a sophisticated table with enhanced functions thanks to the addition of end elements, side elements and a wide range of accessories able to respond to the changing demands of contemporary work-spaces, offering practical solutions for every operative situation. The system consists of tables with a modular structure in aluminium combined with back-painted toughened glass tops. 

Intelligent and interconnected, the furniture in this system by Tecno designed to move beyond the new frontier of the contemporary office, offers information and solutions in real time to owners and managers of smart buildings as well as end users that makes for better management of space, reduced consumption and optimal use of resources, becoming a significant factor for wellbeing and cost-saving. 

Changing one’s posture over the course of the working day is key to the physical wellbeing of workers. The Up&Up system of desks and benches that can be adjusted in height has been conceived In order to increase movement while working. The height of the top can be set at two or three positions up to a maximum height of 1268 cm. The control display, that uses Bluetooth technology, is set to remind the user to alter their position and features an application to book use of the desk in co-working spaces using a smartphone. 

In 1931, Mart Stam reached the peak of essentiality in his style with the S 43 chair, that emphasises linearity of form and minimalist aesthetics in the structure, without renouncing comfort in the seat. Thonet today retains the artistic copyright of the S 43 that combines a frame in tubular steel with a body in curved wood for the seat and back.       

Presented at Orgatec 2018, Cila Go represents a versatile workstation designed for educational spaces. The chair is formed in two distinct parts: the body, that takes up the en- veloping lines of the Cila collection, and the wheeled base that is also a practical and useful container.

A versatile workstation produced by Arper

To respond to the need for seclusion and privacy within open-planned work-spaces that have been created to incentivise communication and sharing, Faram have come up with the Collabora- tive Room, an acoustically-insulated workspace for isolating oneself from reverberation and external noise in order to aid concentration. This modular system consists of a self-supporting structure in aluminium, sound-absorbent panels in fabric-covered multilayer wood and glazed partitions. The programme is available in various sizes (from 2.5 sqm to 9 sqm) and can accommodate up to eight people.

Designed by Jorge Pensi and presented for the first time at Orgatec 2018, Ypsilon is a folding table conceived for contemporary, flexible and multiform work spaces. Extremely light and minimalist in its design, the table is distinguished by its frame with folding mechanism that enables it to be closed and stacked while the base in diecast aluminium that sits on the floor can be equipped with wheels to make it easier to move.         

In response to the challenges presented by the transformation of contemporary workspaces and to safeguard the health of collaborators, USM have extended their range of tables USM Kitos with the version Kitos M that thanks to the traction spring can be adjusted in height quickly and effortlessly according to the individual needs of the user. Depending on the height of the top, this solution can aid individual working methods or is ideal, in the version at maximum height, for short or informal meetings and impromptu business conversations. 

The need for privacy within open-planned, public and private spaces is evident to both the users and designers of contemporary offices. With sound-proofing provided by acoustic panels and partitions in stratified glass with sound-absorbent film, Cube, along with Bubble and Bubble Meet, represents Faram’s response to this demand. Conceived for work meetings, brainstorming and group meetings, Cube can be used as a conference room to accommodate four to six people and ensure the right level of privacy in busy spaces such as open-planned offices, airports, libraries, universities, hotels and shopping malls.