wellness furniture product portfolio
TRANSCRIPT
Our bodies’ needs are designed for movement but certain tasks require us to be still and comfortably seated.
Your body goes into meltdown the moment you sit down:
Electrical activity in the leg muscles shuts o�, calorie burning drops to 1 per minute, enzymes that help break down fat drop 90%.
After 2 hours of sitting: Good cholesterol drops 20%.
But within 90 seconds of standing up, the muscular and cellular systems that process blood sugar, triglycerides, and cholesterol—which are mediated by insulin—are activated.
Vigorous exercise cannot counteract the e�ects of prolonged sitting.
DID YOU KNOW?
Too much sitting puts a lot of stress on the lumbar area. When you sit,
you distort the natural curve of the spine, which means your back
muscles have to do something to hold your back in shape because
you're no longer using the natural curves of the spine to lift yourself
up against gravity.
IDEA STARTERS
Zody’s combination of the frame flex, mesh construction, lumbar pad, lumbar pad spring suspension, asymmetrical adjustment and pelvic support make up the “PAL™” system’s unsurpassed ability to provide comfortable ergonomic support for a broad range of users.
DID YOU KNOW?
Ergonomics plays an important role in ensuring that the risk factors associated with developing musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are recognised and eliminated. 1/3 of work injuries and illness are due to MSDs and the commonly a�ected areas are the eyes, neck, shoulders, arms, wrists, hands, fingers and thumb, back, and legs.
IDEA STARTERS
When seated, adjustability of the Very chair allows users to have their
thighs horizontal and su�cient depth to sit comfortably. A backrest that
supports the natural curve of the spine is a good addition. Ensure that users are aware of how to maximise
and personalise the chair features.
IDEA STARTERS
Chairs fill a large portion of an o�ce. Ensure that your o�ce
chairs have clear information, like Lively, on material composition
and level of VOC emissions.
DID YOU KNOW?
Material composition is an essential factor in keeping good indoor air quality. High quality materials don’t release dangerous emissions such as formaldehyde and other gasses that are harmful to the human brain.
A desk originated from the need for wide surfaces to write large manuscripts. Today, mobile technology allows us to be more flexible and dramatically reduced the need for large spacious desks.
A wide variety of work desk settings in the workplace gives us the freedom to choose and decide what application suits the current task at hand.
The proper type of work desk is important for overall wellness. Privacy levels, acoustics, ergonomics and finishes are important factors in choosing the right work desk.
DID YOU KNOW?
A typical o�ce may have typical work desks but people who use them are unique in their workstyles. The most common workstyles are a combination of tactical / strategic work and individual / group work.
IDEA STARTERS
For a work space to be highly e�ective, the variation of the type of work and the work style of the users need to be considered, like in the Intuity work systems. For example, a team that is more focused on generating innovative solutions tend to need a variety of collaborative spaces as compared to teams focused on standardised and uniform task execution who tend to require more individual focus spaces.
DID YOU KNOW?
‘Locus of control’ over your own work space refers to the extent to which people feel they have control over their space. Giving more control to users contributes to the feeling of confidence in successfully completing a task.
When asking users to give up a little of their privacy when transitioning to a more open space, increasing the locus of control will help ease the typical discomfort and resistance to the change.
IDEA STARTERS
Yourway tools allow users to personalise their own work space.
When the experience of a work environment is perceived to be low on privacy, it enhances the pressure on employees/people to divide
their mental attention between pursuing work assignments and handling distractions,
interferences and low privacy. One way of maintaining a sense of control over space is
by personalising it. It provides employees with a greater sense of ownership and
control over their space.
DID YOU KNOW?
Standing is like walking. It increases energy, burns extra calories, tones muscles, improves posture, increase blood flow and circulation. Standing all day is also not healthy and some people tend to concentrate better when seated.
IDEA STARTERS
Standing increases concentration, focus and overall productivity. In today’s typical o�ce, not all
companies provide a height adjustable desk. With the Eddy table, this is not an issue. It’s light and easy
to move around, making it the perfect standing buddy.
Distractions such as visual, acoustics or ‘always on’ technology are everywhere in the workplace. The need to focus is becoming more important.
Focus work still occupies the most time in the work day and according to research, it is an activity that most people consider to be critical in doing their jobs right.
The inability to concentrate may cause anxiety and stress, which which may decrease productivity.
DID YOU KNOW?
Focus work occupies 40% to 60% of our daily work life. O�ce workers spend a quarter of their day consumed by interruptions and distractions – wasting time and money. Constant splintering and diverting of worker attention consumed up to 2.1 hours of worker productivity per day, according to a study. These lost hours included not only interruptions and distractions but also the recovery time associated with getting back on task.
IDEA STARTERS
Focus Pods are a great way to enable occupants to mitigate
environmental influences common in open work spaces.
For the first time in a product its kind, the IQ Pod uses nano fibre
as an acoustic substrate designed to enhance the absorptive features of the soft walls.
DID YOU KNOW?
It is now possible to assemble or disassemble a fully functional meeting room in just a few hours. This also means that businesses who are often changing space requirements are able to adap this moveable room solution. Whether this is moving to another position in the same work space or a completely new building location, all parts are re-usable and modular, making it also possible to add components to expand or change the shape of the meeting room.
IDEA STARTERS
Air3 pods can be positioned anywhere within a building as they are not fixed to
the floor. They can be furnished with a wide variety of interior furniture (seating, desking) and can also readily integrate a range of technology equipment, such as
monitors and video conferencing components. They can be built-up, taken
down and readily relocated therefore saving costs and significatly increasing
flexibility compared to traditional bespoke partitions.
DID YOU KNOW?
Hearing is one of the most acute senses. The human ears are incredibly sensitive in the audible frequency range (20Hz to 20kHz). Levels of loudness that cause discomfort di�ers from person to person and can also be a�ected by a person’s mood (for example, we may be less tolerant of loud noises if we are stressed).
IDEA STARTERS
Soft surfaces, like in Shift, provide additional absorption as well as di�using
the sound. In smaller, open-plan environments, vertical acoustic wall
panels can reduce lateral sound reflections.
Be aware of the visual impacts of panels. Although they provide acoustic benefits, e�ective acoustic strategies include the occupant’s own behaviour. When users have immediate eye contact, the voice
levels will modulate at a lower level naturally due to human response and
body language, as compared to situations in the absence of eye contact (in the case
of high panels).
Furniture that encourages collaboration and provides comfort and ergonomic support is crucial for social interaction in the workplace.
A thriving social wellbeing needs 6 hours of social time. It includes time at home, work, on mobile phones, talking to friends, sending email and other forms of communication.
A study shows that forming close relationships with colleagues boost employee satisfaction by 50% and people with a best friend at work are 7 times more likely to engage fully in their work.
DID YOU KNOW?
Studies show that being surrounded by happy friends makes you 15% more likely to be
contented. Also, even when a distant friend becomes happier, that means a 6% chance of
increasing your happiness. A cheerful friend increases the likelihood of you being happy by
9% while an unhappy friend means a 7% decrease in contentment.
IDEA STARTERS
Pockets of collaborative Cwtch spaces provide opportunities for unplanned
interactions. Whether or not the topic is related to work, the positive social
interaction already contributes to worker productivity. Taking a co�ee or
water break with a friend at work will most likely be better for your
productivity than having it alone.
DID YOU KNOW?
When designing spaces for collaboration, the activities performed, the length of time spent in the space and the number of participants will vary according to the collaboration style. Collaboration is great for creativity. A research found that best teams communicate outside formal meetings.
IDEA STARTERS
Something as simple as using furniture on castors, like Point, can already equip users with the flexibility to adjust space for collaboration to suit their needs. Having fun and funky fabric finishes just adds to the ‘creative feel’ when adjusting your own space.
DID YOU KNOW?
Research shows that if your immediate teammates are more than 30 meters away, they may as well be in another building, for the amount of e�ort you make to see one another will be challenging. This proves that spatial strategies a�ect the ability of space to bring people closer together.
IDEA STARTERS
How we design adjacencies a�ect behaviour and in e�ect, collaboration and team cohesion. Two seemingly di�erent teams may turn out to be complimentary and may be able to derive valuable insights from each other - provided they are equipped with environments that foster and nest such interactions like Openest.
WHY WE MEET Social scientists have identified a variety of reasons for meeting but they can be distilled into four general categories :
Socialising and interacting informally, such as a reception or team-building event.
Tactical execution of work tasks with clearly defined objectives.
Strategic thinking and problem solving that is facilitated by brainstorming and idea generation.
Presentations, including public speeches, sta� meetings, or other events in which one person imparts information to others.
All organisations need spaces that support all four meeting types. But the number, size, and arrangement of meeting spaces required by a particular company will depend on the nature of its business and the tasks its employees have to accomplish.
DID YOU KNOW?
Research shows that sitting side-by-side or face-to-face, as opposed to at 90 degrees, is
detrimental to interaction.
The optimal shape for a meeting room table is one that allows participants to make direct
eye contact with each other. This greatly promotes cooperation and better
communication among the team members.
IDEA STARTERS
There is no fixed arrangement that covers a myriad of meeting room size and styles. Furniture that easily reconfigures depending on the function of the space allows the users to set up the room to maximise the use of the space and reflect the size of the group.
The ability to customise a variety of layouts and arrangements of Kite tables enhances the participation of members and the quality of interaction.
DID YOU KNOW?
When designing an environment that fosters community building, furniture
has to adapt to the changing needs of the community. The right table surfaces
can help create a support sense of togetherness among members.
IDEA STARTERS
Retractable, moveable and reconfigurable tables allow multiple ways of using space. The simple exercise of moving, unfolding and finding the suitable layout together already enhances social interaction, promotes physical activity and fosters collaboration.
Additionally, to save space, Tilt tables can be dismantled and tops can be hung on the wall making their organic shapes and finishes stand out.
DID YOU KNOW?
Physical distance represents a major determinant of social influence. In a
study of engineers in an o�ce space, it was found that the majority of
work-related information came from other people within 6 feet of their
primary work area.
IDEA STARTERS
Free seating increases the chance of cross-pollination of ideas especially
when proximities to other people are changing on a regular basis.
Informal pop-up spaces, like Border, can be a refreshing change of
scenery for any employee who would like to temporary get away from the desk. This increases the
possibility of interaction and learning from a wider variety of
people.
Logical and intuitive storage systems that support an e�cient filing system can reduce stress caused by disarray. This also ensures e�ciency and continuity of the system as new members join.
Filing and organising are the main activities involved with storage spaces. Opportunities in storage areas can surface when we think of them as ‘social touch-points’ instead of just a space to store worktools in.
DID YOU KNOW?
With more open and unassigned spaces come more centralised types of storages. As workers become more mobile, storage
technology has kept up with the pace. Cloud storage has become the norm and the need
for physical copies is sometimes born from a psychological urge rather than an actual
requirement (except for some highly regulated industries such as the banking
sector). It is time that physical storage spaces evolve with the changing technology and
people’s mindset.
IDEA STARTERS
Hotbox is a unique, flexible, secure and portable storage unit. It is bright, and light for the agile worker, designed to let you personalise a shared work environment with your own style. Hang it on an Intuity bag hook or carry it around with you. Two ergonomic handles allow easy transfer and lifting. A combination lock is designed for security plus flexible interior dividers help you organise your space.
DID YOU KNOW?
Storage units can serve more than one purpose. Creative ways of converting, otherwise plain looking pieces, include integrating plants and biophilic finishes to the design or turning them to multiple functional components of a work setting.
IDEA STARTERS
Storages support multiple functions. Add a cushion on an M-series pedestal with castors to convert it to a cushioned seat for visiting colleagues. A table top to a high freestanding storage can create an ad-hoc standing tables.
IDEA STARTERS
Storages support multiple functions. Add a cushion on an M-series pedestal with castors to convert it to a cushioned seat for visiting colleagues. A table top to a high freestanding storage can create an ad-hoc standing tables.
DID YOU KNOW?
Any physical space with aesthetically pleasing elements can positively impact people’s mood and morale. It adds to a measure of comfort or joy from the surroundings. Design elements and artwork helps create a calming environment.
IDEA STARTERS
In addition to being an informal meeting point, works of art can find their way on the surfaces of storages. It can be extra powerful when the storage surface is used to communicate messages to users. Beautifully designed reminder about wellness can be added on AllWays storage surfaces.