News: Ahrend Group and Techo UK invest in the future

Since we last posted about Ahrend, there have been some interesting developments.  Barry Foley, Managing Director of Techo UK, is now the Managing Director of Ahrend Holdings,  Ahrend Holdings consists of the commercial activities of Ahrend in the UK as well as the Techo business.

 As ties between the two manufacturers become closer, The Ahrend Group has invested in laser edge banding equipment which will be installed in the Techo factory in Prague.  This will be used by both manufactures as an increasing amount of the Ahrend product is made by Techo.  Laser edge banding means that laminate can be joined without any visible jointing meaning a less glue and a more sustainable solution.

Techo UK are a comprehensive commercial manufacturer of high quality office furniture and subsidiary of the Ahrend Group:

Techo UK

Ahrend

Restructuring at Ahrend announced

In order to create a more flexible and more customer focused company, the new management plans to make 175 positions redundant over the next 2 years.  This will affect all parts of the company and is a response to a strategic study to help the company adapt to changing market conditions.

Several iconic brands will disappear 2012… including Steelcase

Several iconic brands will dissapear in 2012 according to Corebrand.

CoreBrand, a brand strategy and communications firm, and creator of the Corporate Branding Index, released at the beginning of January its 2012 brand valuation and management predictions. Corebrand states on their website “Our quantifiable valuation process, which encompasses 20 years of data within our Corporate Branding Index®, finds that the corporate brand accounts for between 5% to 7% of market capitalization and can identify and predict changing company and market conditions,” commented James Gregory, Chief Executive Officer at CoreBrand. “With this proprietary data in hand, CoreBrand can provide an objective measure and add a science to the art of creative brand building and its impact on individual companies, industry sectors and the overall economy. In 2012, we expect the brand valuation process to continue to gain rapid acceptance and for our Corporate Branding Index® to become the standard valuation tool.”

 

Among several of the brands they say will disappear in 2012 are Sears, Kodak and Saab.  With Steelcase, Corebrand claims that their research shows they are not investing correctly and will no longer contribute to their company’s corporate equity.  Unlike Sears, Kodak and Saab, Steelcase are still expanding on their market share and are still the largest furniture manufacturer in the world, selling more furniture globally than any of their competitors.

 

Time will tell if Corebrands data and scientific approach to understanding Brand actually works… although, I only found out about them through a furniture publication who referenced them in an article about Steelcase’s centenary.

Haworth sell Castelli brand and exit Italy

Haworth, announced that will be disposing of Castelli (which includes Poltrona Frau, Cassina and Cappellini) and its Italian operations to a German management company Mutares AG. Who will change their name to Castelli after the deal is completed.  Haworth will still sell the range outside of Italy.

Herman Miller in bid to protect its design rights down under

 

Herman Miller is taking an Matt Blatt, an Australian supplier of replica furniture to the Australian Federal Court in order to stop it from using the famous Eames name.

 Matt Blatt sells many replica products at a fraction of the price of the real thing.  Herman Miller claim that the company has infringed trademark, contravened the Trades Practices Act and Australian Consumer Law and that it is ultimately passing off its products as genuine Herman Miller.

 Adam Drexler, the owner of Matt Blatt, is standing by his right to sell replica designer furniture and intends to challenge Herman Miller. ”I believe that good design should not be something one should aspire to but be readily available to everyone – not just those in the top levels of income,” says Adam Drexler.

 Matt Blatt, like many of the replica designer furniture companies which have sprung up in recent years always refer to their products as replicas e.g. replica Eames DSE Side Chair.  The courts have yet to decide if it is an infringement of intellectual property to refer to a trade mark in this way.  If the courts find in favour of Herman Miller, it could pave the way to many other cases being brought to law courts across the world.

 The first hearing is scheduled for today.

Design PRIMA to run alongside ARC Show 2012

So Design PRIMA is not quite dead and gone…

 The Design PRIMA story is a long and to many, a well known one.  Some will remember its heritage from Spectrum and its association with the Architectural Review at the Commonwealth Centre or in its reincarnation as Design PRIMA at Old Billingsgate with Mix Interiors and eventually The Business Design Centre.  After years of declining visitor figures and somewhat questionable feedback as to the validity and focus of the event, Design PRIMA has landed the backing of The ARC Show and United Business Media, still one of the power houses in B2B publishing and exhibitions.  The publications that they will bring to the table range from Mondo (a lighting publication) to Building Design and Property Week, well respected publications with respected voices and good integrity.

 From the 29^th February – 1^st March 2012 The ARC Show and Design PRIMA will run side by side with exhibitors being able to see the latest in commercial, retail and residential lighting and contract furniture all under one roof at the Business Design Centre.

 If Design PRIMA can find its way back into the hearts and minds of the contract trade and sit along side of Clerkenwell Design Week, next year could hold some interesting events for designers and trade alike.  The market here needs these platforms to engage a wider audience, who are becoming much more sophisticated and have higher expectations than just visiting another tired trade show.

 Watch this space..

World Festival of Interiors – Barcelona, 2-4 November 2011

This November will see the launch of an exciting new interiors event that will be held in Barcelona – Inside. Running alongside the World Architecture Festival, Inside is a brand-new festival celebrating the finest interiors and their creators.

In the main the format looks set to be familiar, but with some innovative new twists to take this above and beyond the current droll offering that we have been subjected to of late. With a series of through a curated events, talks, installations and a prestigious awards programme, Inside looks set to engage the industry as never before.
One of the most exciting new elements is that designers will be given the opportunity to present their work to the live panel of judges and in front of a live audience, which will include clients and press.

Categories range from the most prestigious new hotels and bars to civic spaces, offices and shops. In a nail-biting finale shortlisted entrants from each category will go head to head for the overall prize of World Interior of the Year live at the Festival.

Inside’s formidable international judging panel will decide which project walks away with ‘World Interior of the Year’ live at the festival. The judges for the 2011 event are:

• Lorenzo Apicella
• Robert Backhouse
• Nigel Coates
• David Collins
• Ilse Crawford
• Marcus Fairs
• Andre Fu
• Suzy Hoodless
• Eva Jiricna
• Ross Lovegrove
• Linda Morey Smith
• Lyndon Neri
• Paul Priestman

Click here for further details: http://www.insidefestival.com/index.cfm

New Version of BS EN 527-1: 2011

FIRA are pleased to announce the publication of a new version of BS EN 527-1: 2011, concerning the European standard specified dimensions for office desks and tables. It has dimensional requirements for four types of desks/tables; fully adjustable, height selectable, fixed height as well as a type where only very limited adjustability is provided. The new standard requires larger legroom and greater ranges of adjustability.

The new standard has been released to include revised dimensions to ensure a better fit for today’s office workers and requires larger legroom and greater ranges of adjustability.

The standard includes dimensional requirements for four types of desks/tables;
– Fully adjustable
– Height selectable
– Fixed height
– Limited adjustability

The new standard involves two key changes:

Changes in desk heights
• – Fixed height desks should be 740mm ± 20 mm (increase of 20mm)
• – Height adjustable or height selectable desks should adjust between 650mm and 850mm for sitting applications and between 650mm and 1250mm for sit/stand desks. The new heights are lower to suit short users and higher to suit tall users.

Changes in Legroom
• – Legroom height at the front of the desk and at 500mm from the front edge has increased. Desktops can not be thicker than 55mm at the front and 80mm at 500mm from the front edge.
• – Legroom depth on the floor and up to 120mm above the floor will now be 800mm (an increase of 200mm). This should allow tall people be able to stretch their legs slightly without having to push themselves away from their desks and tap their keyboards with their arms at a stretch.
• – Legroom width has also increased to 850mm for fixed height desks and to 1200mm for height adjustable desks.

The FIRA Ergonomics team have been heavily involved with this new standard and can offer immediate ergonomic testing to this new standard.

(The above info is from the FIRA press release)

For further information please click the below link:
www.fira.co.uk

Triumph Business Systems slip into adminisration

With restructuring underway, the 60 year old company has shed up to a third of its workforce, whilst trying to safe guard the remaining jobs.  Although continuing to trade, attempts are made to find a buyer for the beleaguered office furniture company, which has sites in Merthyr Tydfil, Tredegar and a showroom in Clerkenwell, London.

Eurotek formally liquidated

The company which went into administration in January has been formally liquidated.  Despite efforts to keep the company trading, no buyer could be found and PriceWaterhouseCoopers confirmed that the company has formally been wound up.  The company is not the first to suffer from the effects of the difficult economic conditions facing the public sector, nor will it be the last.