3 Fundamentals of Good Office Furniture Design

To most people, the importance of something as simple as office furniture doesn’t stretch far past mere practicality. After all, as long as it performs its duty well — whether that be providing a comfortable place to sit or complete tasks, that’s all that matters, right? 

Though that’s certainly an important part of the equation, the pieces that occupy your work area are much more influential than meets the eye. From colour schemes to materials, office desks, chairs, and more can alter anything from workforce productivity to job satisfaction. 

So, what separates exceptional office furniture from conventional pieces that only offer limited advantages? Like most things, it all boils down to a few common fundamentals. In this article, we’ll review these factors to help you find the options that’ll help improve your office most.

1. Function

We need to start at the most important fundamental, which is what originally spawned the creation of furniture all those centuries ago.

When looking for something like an office workstation, you’re specifically searching for something that offers an optimum level of functionality. No matter how successfully the piece satisfies the following fundamentals, it’ll be a failure if your workforce is unable to put those features into practice.    

Fortunately, it’s usually quite simple to identify furniture that is functional. For instance, you should already know what requirements you’re looking for in an office chair, from its height to durability.

So, before you allow yourself to be swayed by any of the other factors we’ll cover below, ensure you’ll actually be able to put the office furniture to use.

2. Aesthetics

As important as functionality is in something like an office desk, it’s usually the second or third fundamental noticed by consumers. As you’ve probably predicted, the first spot belongs to the aesthetic quality of the piece.

Of course, this point is slightly more difficult to narrow down: as they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. While function is almost always an objective consideration, how powerful an office workstation’s style speaks to you largely depends on your personal taste.    

Still, there are a few ways to tell whether a piece would fit into your workspace without being difficult to look at. Some elements to examine closely include:

• Colour: Is there a clear harmonic relationship between its colours? Or are they brash and uncomfortable?
• Texture: Is there any connection to nature in the materials used?
• Details: Is there anything that makes the piece stand out? Is functionality sacrificed at the cost of style, or is it improved?

Even if a piece grabs your attention immediately, avoid making an impulse purchase. Think hard about why it stands out, and then re-examine it to ensure it fits into the overall aesthetic vision for your workspace.

3. Ergonomics

We finish with one of the more easily overlooked fundamentals of good office furniture design, yet perhaps the most crucial of the bunch.

Ultimately, office desks, workstations, and chairs are meant for one thing: to be used. Aesthetics are a fun and equally important piece of the puzzle, yet they’ll simply become a mask for a piece’s poor usability if it isn’t designed with this fundamental in mind.

While we’ve already touched on functionality, ergonomics deserves separate consideration, especially as we consider the rising supply of research proving the importance of office furniture that supports employee health. Essentially, they’re two inseparable parts of one relationship: If a piece isn’t functional, it’s almost certainly not ergonomic, and vice versa.  

Much of this fundamental comes down to specific construction elements. For instance, the proportions of an office chair should be designed to support a user’s body throughout their workday.

Fortunately, more producers than ever are realising the importance of this fundamental, making it easier to discover quality pieces that won’t harm your employees.

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re supplying office furniture for a workforce of ten or a thousand individuals, these fundamentals can help you make the most informed decision possible — and keep your business flourishing because of it.

If you’d like further advice, or some help choosing the perfect office furniture for your space, contact RJ Office and our team of experts will be happy to assist.