by Brianna Crandall — July 4, 2016 — During the NeoCon 2016 contract furnishings show in June, global furniture and technology provider Steelcase demonstrated how the spaces where people work, learn and heal can help drive engagement. This includes solutions designed to enrich emotional well-being through authentic and inspiring places. Also featured was an ecosystem of spaces that offer choice and control, enabled by a layer of smart and connected human-centered technology, designed to improve the experience people have at work, school and in healing places.
For its efforts, Steelcase took home a Gold and Silver award as well as two Innovation awards in the prestigious Best of NeoCon Competition [see FMLink article] in various categories. Three of the awards are highlighted below, and the Silver-winning Steelcase Workplace Advisor will be covered in a separate FMLink article.
Gold: High Density Storage
Steelcase’s High Density Storage collection won a Best of NeoCon Gold award in the Files and Mobile Storage Systems category. The system provides personal storage and extendable privacy/boundary options to workers in any office environment. A streamlined storage piece that maximizes smaller workspaces to optimize real estate, HD provides options for mobile or resident workers.
Steelcase’s Gold-winning High Density Storage collection provides personal storage and extendable privacy/boundary options to workers in any office environment.
Resident workers are supported by HD with shelves that keep files and reference materials at hand. Mobile workers use HD with Bag Drop for temporary storage and ease of access to belongings. Each configuration offers an optional coat closet and fabric-lined interior surfaces.
High Density Storage is available in all standard laminates and veneers and with Perfect Match paint options on the inner case. Other materiality options including a fabric-lined shelf and fabric-wrapped magnetic board.
HD’s 42” height is intentionally designed to create an additional space for quick, collaborative work or impromptu meetings. Thoughtful additions to the inner case, like an internal LED light, mirror, or magnetic board, meet personal needs and offer unexpected moments of humanity, says Steelcase.
The versatile collection seamlessly integrates with all Steelcase benching and storage options, including Elective Elements and height-adjustable benching like Ology.
Innovation: Bassline Tables
Steelcase’s Bassline Tables won an Innovation award in the Tables: Occasional category of the Best of NeoCon Competition. Bassline Tables are designed to be fully customizable and unique ancillary pieces from Turnstone, answering the call for even greater customer ownership in the construction of their furniture.
Steelcase’s Innovation-winning Bassline Tables are fully customizable ancillary pieces from Turnstone.
Aside from standard tops, parametric options allow the user to order a table in any size, shape or specific surface material to fit their personality, taste and values.
Innovation: New Black collection
Steelcase also won an Innovation award in the Textiles: Upholstery category for its “elegant and sustainable” New Black collection of upholstery fabrics, created through an innovative recycling process and designed for future recycling.
Steelcase’s Innovation-winning New Black collection of upholstery fabrics contains at least 99% recycled material and is designed for future recycling
The black and white collection is made of at least 99% recycled material.
In addition to the award-winning introductions highlighted above, the company also introduced several other new and updated products and collections, including the following:
- The Verb Standing Height-Adjustable Table is part of an integrated collection of classroom furniture, including tables, whiteboards and an instructor station, designed to support a full range of teaching and learning styles and to encourage multiple postures for both individual and group work.
- Node with ShareSurface provides quick mobility, ergonomic design and a unique 360 degree rotating and pivoting ShareSurface that encourages eye-to-eye collaboration, information sharing and interpersonal connection between doctors, patients and family members.
- Turnstone’s Campfire Personal Table displays the user’s unique personality with expanded surface options that add a warm, residential feel to any space. Vibrant colors, modern patterns and rich wood tones combine with its trademark raw edge for an “unforgettable” look.
- The Bivi furniture collection’s new dual-height table preserves an elegant appearance while offering standing or seated options for choice and control. Research shows users pivot between focus and collaboration all day, necessitating spaces that offer privacy and support for impromptu collaboration. With both stand and sit options, Bivi’s modular design grows with the user, easily reconfiguring with the turn of one simple tool.
- Ology height-adjustable desk enhancements pair the integration of new sensing technology with smart, user-centered features to encourage wellbeing. Using a subtle posture change reminder, Ology prompts users to change desk height at intelligent intervals, reducing the negative effects of static postures. A sleek LED display is integrated into the worksurface to encourage healthy behaviors.
- Personal Console is a unique storage solution designed for today’s mobile or resident workers. Personal Console offers convenient, secure storage of personal effects and charging of technology.
- B-Free is a full range of modular lounge furniture designed for the new workplace. B-Free creates sheltered niches where people can work together or alone in comfortable, relaxed postures.
- Brody WorkLounge is a microenvironment designed for the brain and the body — helping workers focus and featuring advanced ergonomic design. Embedded technologies give workers even more control over sources of distraction like temperature and interruptions. The enhanced Brody provides utilization data to space managers and designers, helping them optimize the workplace.
- Gesture with headrest was inspired by a study of over 200 images on the movement of the head and neck on today’s workers. The result is an integrated ergonomic headrest that enables Gesture to support a greater range of sizes and postures as users interact with a range of technologies.
- The Migration height-adjustable desk allows employees to transition from seated to standing height postures throughout the day, stimulating mental and physical activity and promoting well-being in individual and group workspaces.
- media:scape technology thoughtfully integrates furniture and technology, bringing people, space and information together to increase productivity and help groups excel. Enhancements to media:scape include a wireless-only table enabled by Virtual PUCK.
New and updated products are described on Steelcase’s NeoCon 2016 launch page.
