Re-Imagining Command Console Furniture

Ask the average person in the business of control room furniture and they'll probably tell you that they don't think of their sector as particularly technologically-advanced. There is probably some factual basis for these opinions; the industry tends to be rather stable. But this shouldnt be taken negatively. The stability of American manufacturing leans on industries like control room and office furniture. As a result, firms in those sectors are doing everyone a service by resisting perpetual innovations.

But a new technology could change our conservative mode of thinking. A big name in office furniture design is about to unveil an innovative new type of office console that will redefine office consoles. Herman Miller is product-testing a customizable line of office furniture called Metaform that allows the various pieces to be reconfigured in countless ways. Rest assured, the pieces can be set into the traditional cubicle form that we are all used to. But they allow for the ability to shift the walls away, allowing for work that is more collaborative in nature.

Studio 7.5, a German-run design firm, was hired by Herman Miller to bring Metaform to life. Before Metaform appears in stores, the designers have had prototypes in numerous offices to gather data about how end-users will specificaly employ the various interlocking parts. The development of this is all part of Herman Miller's "Living Office" initiative. The company anticipates that in the future, office workers will be less tied to one location. In light of this, the potential for constantly reconfiguring work consoles will be a life saver.

One can foresee some negative effects on the control room furniture industry resulting from this new trend. Control room consoles are typically designed with a specific space in mind. If the industries served by control room furniture anticipate an increase in collaborative work, they might move away from traditional control room consoles. It might not be such a danger in some of these industries (such as the intelligence industry). But overall, America (and most of the world) has become more and more collaborative in the way it functions. One need only look at the Internet trends of the last few years to see how widespread it has actually become.

Put all this together and it points to the fact that we need to update our conception of the control room furniture industry. It is doubtful that the industry is doomed or any such thing, but we should realistically expect that user-defined furniture is in the cards. This new technological shift could cause some industry-wide damage, unless it is fully embraced. For precisely this reason, I welcome the development and recommend that all producers follow suit. Adapting to the new landscape of American business will only strengthen our manufacturing backbone.

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