by Brianna Crandall — July 6, 2015—Major furniture manufacturer Herman Miller continued its Living Office concept with new products and applications at the NeoCon 2015 contract furnishings show in Chicago in June. The concept is seen as a holistic offering of knowledge, tools, products, and services designed to help people envision and realize higher performing workplaces that address fundamental human wants and needs while adapting to the unique purpose, character and activities of individuals and organizations. The company’s integrated approach puts people first and weaves technology into each setting in a purposeful way to support the type of work being done in the space.
One of Herman Miller’s new collaborative, technology-integrated products is Exclave, described below, as is Chadwick, the company’s popular modular lounge seating that has been newly integrated with technological features to allow quiet work or collaboration in a more comfortable setting.
Exclave
Through ongoing research and work with numerous global customers, Herman Miller has found that conference rooms are often avoided because the surroundings, furnishings, and tools in them are actually at odds with people and their work. The new Exclave is designed to remove these frictions. A suite of products—”performance gear for team spaces”—Exclave brings purpose to work settings by harmonizing surroundings, furnishings, and tools to create collaborative environments that support people and keep ideas and innovation moving, says the company.
Herman Miller worked with Continuum, a global innovation and design consultancy, to design Exclave. Gianfranco Zaccai, cofounder and Chief Design Officer of Continuum, describes Exclave as, “an Enterprise Solution to foster natural human collaboration anywhere and everywhere. The system allows for the integration of the best evolving technology into a more natural social and organizational context to foster trust, flexibility, and efficiency.”
To deliver this elevated experience of work, Exclave maximizes the potential of vertical surfaces with wall-mounted rails that can be installed throughout a workplace, transforming any space into a potential setting for sharing ideas. Light-weight Exclave white boards, tack boards, and eco boards can be stacked up to four deep on rails so they can each be swapped out or moved from place to place as users switch between individual work and group activities. Other rail-hung elements include a media tile that supports one or two monitors for digital content and video conferencing, and a storage element and accessories that keep essential tools at hand and house personal items.
Exclave’s purposefully designed organic table shapes, available in multiple sizes and seated or standing heights, tapered to allow people to see each other, technology, and content clearly, improving team engagement with idealized sight lines. Rounding out the solution, mobile carts in two sizes aid in the visualization and sharing of ideas, delineate open space, and can be used to transport up to eight boards from setting to setting.
Additionally, much like the territory of one country surrounded by the land of another—the concept which inspired the product’s name—elements of Exclave can live independently throughout the workplace, complementing a variety of tools and furnishings and transforming the entire office landscape into a collaboration space, says the company. Exclave will be available to the contract market later this year.
Chadwick Modular Seating
Newly reissued by Herman Miller after being out of production for more than a decade, Chadwick Modular Seating reportedly embodies the ideal benefit of a modular system: vast variety from just a few parts. Originally designed by Don Chadwick in 1974, and now updated with a higher seat and the ability to carry power, Chadwick Modular Seating remains one of the most versatile and enduring lounge furniture options available, says the company.
The Chadwick Modular system consists of five units: A straight module with parallel sides; inside and outside wedge modules with 22.5 degree sides; and inside and outside wedge modules with 30 degree sides. These five simple units allow Chadwick Modular Seating to take on a multitude of forms — from an individual seat, to a few modules forming a small sofa, to multiple pieces creating a large-scale seating solution for a public space or hospitality setting.
Arrangement options are said to be endless: long straight lines to fill a hallway; circles around obstacles to transform otherwise unused space; snaking structures that add character along with utility. Each layout created is also easy to change. Units link together securely with simple connectors, but can be unlocked for quick rearrangement.
Each unit’s molded, sculpted shape offers support and soft edges. Deep pockets in the back allow air to circulate around the sitter, which also makes for easier cleaning. The rigid fluted base is durable and resists marking from shoes or cleaning equipment. Neatly tailored, each piece has a fully upholstered front, back, and sides, which lets it readily serve as either an end, interior, or solo seat, no matter the arrangement.
