July 31, 2012

Office Furniture – A Brief History

An office tends to be a room or an area in which people work, but may also be a position within a company for specific roles.

Offices in the past were often part of a palace or a large temple, more often than not a room where scrolls were kept and scribes did their work. We’re lead to believe that the rooms where scribes worked were sometimes called “libraries,” though they only became known as offices as the scrolls were meant for record-keeping.

The furniture of offices changed over time, and in the past, desks and chairs used to be very decorative like they are in most of the buildings you will see in London – you could admire and enjoy the art of the furniture, and the time and effort someone had spent creating them.

In the past they were made of wood and always dark in colour. Gradually over time the style, design, and the material that were used changed, and metal started to be used for the legs and the frame of the desks. This meant that they only needed a thin top as a surface. Then different sizes, shapes, colours, and weights were introduced, and they became easier to assemble and carry.

These days, to furnish organisations we have customised furniture to suit the design of the company and the size of their rooms. Another key factor is the company’s job roles and the deco of its building, which affects how the furniture is designed.

For example:

Call centre
 Closed off screened desks, for privacy and to block the sound from other desk.

Small business
 Rooms filled with desks, storage units, and cabinets all matching in colour and design.

Large company
 Open-planned and minimalistic, with large and grand modern or decorative furniture.

The furniture of an office is the key to how it feels and works for both the employees and the public.