Designing a chair, a seemingly simple assignment, continues to challenge and fascinate designers. By its very simplicity, it becomes complex, requiring a keen aesthetic sense and appreciation of structural design as well as a clear vision of the requirements of a particular offering.

At Halcon Corp., a manufacturer of casegoods, a line of guest chairs was proposed as a means of enhancing its product offering. The design process resolved itself into a definite set of criteria:

• Identify product designers with ability and experience.

   

• Develop products which would be compatible with the company's existing lines of casegoods in design, quality and materials.

   

• Define and address the requirements of a guest chair in today's office by considering how it would be used and the physical characteristics of the users.

   

• Be aware of current styles in office and guest chair design, incorporate those qualities into the design and enhance the thinking where possible.

The Assignment
Frederick Poisson, Halcon's director of design, was given the assignment to find a group of designers. He solicited portfolios and proposals from 16 designers. Four designers were chosen and asked to submit guest chair designs specifically for Halcon.

The four designers included Ken Reinhard, the team of John Thiele and Brian Graham, Wayne Braun and Joseph Ricchio. The geographic diversity represented by this group -- California, Maryland and Texas -- was a deliberate choice by Poisson. "There is often a regional feeling in design and I wanted to get a cross section of different regions for this group that we commissioned," he noted.

Poisson also wanted a group of designers who would be able to communicate the ideas behind their designs to the customer and to Halcon's sales staff. The process from original requests to final prototyping and manufacturing was approximately two years.

Varied Requirements
The requirements for a chair design can be as varied as the environment in which it will be used, not to mention the variety of people who it must serve. Designer Braun, who has a background in interior design as well as a body of award-winning product designs, said that the ideal chair must accommodate men and women from 5'3" to 6'3". "The successful chair must serve many people in comfort and still must be a simple product with complex solutions. It also must deliver built-in value, not just price, but attention to detail and use."

Ricchio mentioned the difficulty that designing in a particular category can present. "If I have multiple assignments in the same category it becomes more difficult to do something different. The parameters are so similar," he said. "One can then see why designers are challenged. This is further complicated by the price squeeze that the industry has faced," he said. In his own chair design, four variations are available, with more or less upholstery, yet each has a slightly chamfered leg detail which adds style to the product.

Poisson noted that generally guest chairs have become lighter and more easily moved to accommodate the need for increased flexibility in the offices they serve. His desired diversity has been realized in the four lines of products, yet certain common elements exist in the solution to the design challenge. The products tend to be more lightly scaled in comparison to products of the past, although there is no compromise of structural integrity since all have been tested against and conform to BIFMA standards.

Ken Reinhard explained that the most challenging part of designing a chair is "keeping it simple, removing things from your design rather than adding to it. Cost always is a factor," he added, "but it must never look like it is." Reinhard also said that the increasing numbers of women in the workplace has affected design. "I think the acceptance of more lightly scaled pieces is due to this factor," he noted.

Brian Graham, designer of Halcon's Cadence casegoods line, also pointed out that designing a chair is far more of a problem than designing casegoods. "Because there is such interaction between the body and the product, more attention must be given to comfort without sacrificing styling," he explained.

"It is interesting to note," said Reinhard, "that often a slight change in the pitch of a seat or the depth may alter the perception of comfort, even though they are very small adjustments."

Passing the Test
These kinds of considerations all contribute to the value of prototyping and sampling with the kind of random testing which goes on in all manufacturing processes. While chairs will conform to BIFMA standards, the changes that will ultimately affect sales are the changes that are made while companies' own staff gives the product the ultimate "sit test."

"Everyone in the company, and all visitors, are pressed into being a test," said Carl Luedtke, vice president of sales for Halcon. It is evident that all are designed with office conferencing needs in mind. Seat heights tend toward the high side with the products ranging from 18 to 19 inches to facilitate working at a desk or a table while allowing the user to get in and out easily. Chair widths between 22 and 23.5 inches retain comfort, while conserving space which has become limited in today's offices. The designers have asserted their individuality most frequently in arm heights which can range from 24 to 28 inches. These design preferences not only affect the feel of the chair, but its ability to be pulled up to a desk. And while the designers have certainly been concerned with comfort and attractiveness, the chairs also are designed as a functioning tool for the user to a much greater extent than in the past.

After all the study, prototyping, wood choices and manufacturing decisions are made, the proof of the comfort and viability of the chair is in its sales. Interior designers make choices on many bases, but what typifies their decision is summarized by Natan Bibliowicz, a principal of BNK Architects in New York, NY, who has designed both executive and staff offices for numerous corporate clients.

"When I look for a guest chair for an office, I want somewhat subdued lines which will blend with the other pieces in the space. I want ease in shifting from one location to another since the modern office chair seems to wander from office to office as work moves. I want them to be well-engineered, and while they need not be system related, I want them to feel like they're in the same family and not in a fight for attention," he said, adding, "Price always is a factor, clients avoid spending too much on a side chair, but I will fight to use the chair that will fulfill my design criteria."

Related Articles » On the Edge of the Seat » Art Glass Reinforces Clean and Simple Architecture » Cross-cultural Flights of Fancy in Fashion and Furniture » So You Want to Be a Furniture Designer? » Seating Systems » Living room tables » Kitchen and Bath Elements » Health Care Furnishings » Cheap Office Furniture » A Guide for Using Aluminum Furniture in Hospitality Settings