A3, Knoll's tentlike curvilinear office system, was designed by Hani Rashid
and Lise Anne Couture of Asymptote Architecture.
If systems furniture hadn't been invented, Scott Adams wouldn't have the
trials of Dilbert to chronicle. Fortunately for the humorist, the office-furniture
industry gave Dilbert--our ultimate cubicle dweller--plenty to talk about.
Starting in the mid-1960s with the introduction of Herman Miller's Action
Office, modular desks, files, and partitions became standard workplace
furnishings. Proposed with the best of intentions by inventor Robert Propst
(and detailed by the George Nelson Office), Action Office was
meant to reflect the changing needs of a flexible workplace. It
could be configured to suit each job, as well as save big bucks on
construction costs. In subsequent decades, the American office evolved
into a cube farm. And for the better part of 40 years, despite refinements
and the addition of new technology, it has been the reigning paradigm.
In recent years new pieces were added to the specifier's repertoire:
mobile file cabinets that turned into perches, whiteboards that could
be deployed wherever a meeting gathered, flip-up tablets attached to
lounge chairs for laptops, trays of all kinds to organize papers. But these
objects only expanded cubicle options, they didn't change the quality of
office life appreciably.
Some signs of change--modest challenges to the cubicle--could be found at
this year's NeoCon, America's largest contract/commercial furniture show,
held in Chicago. Although nearly all of the manufacturers would downplay
it, the influence of the late lamented dot-coms could still be felt.
The best product there provided us with a glimpse of what a completely computerized
workplace might look like. The aesthetic message is clear: no more bulky
furniture for bulky paper technology. The twenty-first-century office
will be light, digital, and inspired by popular design culture--boutique
hotels, luggage, airline interiors. We saw one system that emulated the
look and feel of a diner, a clear reflection of the designers' informal
workplace habits.
Although we find the growing variety refreshing, we wonder when the
furniture industry will begin to add service--not just installation--to
its products. From DuPont USA they can learn about product leasing and reclamation.
The German company Wilkhahn can teach them about making furniture that is
easy to repair, disassemble, and reuse. The current doldrums of the contract
furniture industry--manufacturers are reporting layoffs and poor quarterly
earnings--could benefit from some adventurous thinking about the workplace
of the future. Dilbert is talking. Who will listen?
