Presentation Sheets
BBC Wales Student Design Competition
"The brief asks you to design a height adjustable, pull-up work table for use in collaborative (soft seating) work environments"
The BBC Wales launched a student design competition in cooperation with 4 major companies: Orangebox, Bisley, Camira and Naughtone. The task was for each participating student to choose and develop one of the 4 given briefs. The winning design will be manufactured and installed into the new BBC headquarters, currently being relocated from Llandarff to Cardiff.
The brief provided by Orangebox called for the design of a pull-up table for signle person use which:
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accommodates formal and informal collaborative workplaces
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is height adjustable
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has a tilting worksurface
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offers manoeuvrability
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is made with sustainable materials.
I wanted to escape the idea of the typically industrialised mediocre office, with dull grey colours and people fitted into tiny cubicles. My main goal was to create a design that answered the brief, proved to be completely efficient, but also provided something different, something out of the ordinary when it came to office furniture: a design made for both the users and the building. I decided to concentrate on people's health and finding a way to stimulate their productivity in the workplace by incorporating biophilic elements into my design.
The main concept behind my design was taking all of the specifications provided in the brief and putting them through a biophilic prysm. The idea was to interpratate the requirements in a different way, rather than the obvious, straightforward one.
Brief & Concept Proposal
The tabletop consists of numerous laser cut holes, each a different shape, which remind of human cells and how they come together to create a whole.
A footrest mechanism allows for the tabletop to be tilted in two different angles.
I have interpreted the height-adjustability requested in the brief in a more unusual way: the table doesn’t move directly up and down, but rather rotates about a helical thread. That helical thread is hidden behind a cylindrical form which, along with the twisting motions, gets deformed into a hyperboloid shape (a reference to biophilia).
The materials used for the construction of the table have been researched and documented in particular from a sustainable perspective. A set of wheels incorporated into the design allow for a better mobility of the table.
Design Detail
Model Development
The prototype of the table design was made at 1:10 scale, using both a laser cutter and a 3D printer. The separate parts of the model are (left to right):
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laser cut acrylic (polycarbonate tabletop)
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laser cut plywood (MDF tabletop)
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3D printed male and female thread (screw system)
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laser cut acrylic rings, connected with numerous elastic bands (hyperboloid shape, hiding the screw system)
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laser cut square plywood (base)
Once the elastic bands were tied and glued to the two rings, I tried forming the hyperboloid shape, using paper clips and pliers. I criss - crossed two straightened paper clips, twisted the ends upwards and downwards, and caught each end with a separate set of pliers. Turning each plier in a different direction caused the elastic bands to intertwine and form a hyperboloid shape.
Final Projection
Visualisations
Visuals and technical drawings
Intro, brief and response
Proposal, inspiration and concept
Model development and final model