"Don't Work Hum"Collaborative Teaming Furniture that Resonates with Creative Inspiration and Sustainable Design.

“Don’t work HUM”

Hum- the sound of a productive team working well individually and together.

Kimball Office furniture company developed HUM Minds at Work in partnership with Formway Design. As they noticed the nature of work changing, they knew that to stay ahead of the game they needed to adapt to a new way of thinking and working. Through the study of “Cognitive Ergonomics”-the study of thinking processes in the work environment that affect both the physical and the mental- Kimball Office and Formway developed the collaborative/teaming  furniture product HUM.

The generation of “we can have it all” coupled with the technological breakthroughs have made businesses that are more mobile, agile, and leaner.  In this competitive environment innovation is the key to survival.

“Ideas are the new currency”

So how do you tap into the creative mind of your employees to bring about that innovation and next “Big Idea”?

HUM has taken down some of the traditional workplace barriers that keep creative inspiration from flourishing.  The HUM furniture design promotes collaboration of minds and helps facilitate the flow of ideas. 

Some Examples of the HUM environment

Here are some of the key elements to the design that enhance the collaborative and creative environment.

• Go to Zones( Now, Soon, or Later) help you work in the moment or offload thoughts for a while. 

Go to NOW- Place things immediately in front of you on your main level desk terrace.

Go to SOON- Utilize the terrace box or 2nd level just above your desk space for things that you need to get to but are not your first priority.

Go to LATER- HUM also has filing capabilities( over 700 configurations) and terrace boxes for those things you just need access to every now and then. This allows you to keep your desk clear for the main task at hand.

• Personal Space and Focus work

Private Office- freestanding furniture- HUM offers freestanding furniture applications to help facilitate all the office needs. This allows for coordination of furniture from the collaborative, creative spaces to the private office, giving consistency to the interior aesthetics.

See Me Screens and Fabric Privacy Panels-See Me Screens help filter distractions, yet allow eye contact. There is a science to the positive and negative space of the screens.Available in 15 colors. Or you can create your own using Kimball Office By Design Team. 100% sustainable recyclable wool is used for the fabric privacy panels for those even more focus driven environments.

Adjust-ability-each person can personalize their space to meet their individual needs. It doesn’t have to be cookie cutter anymore. The main desk level can be adjusted to your height comfort. Whether you are a piler of a filer HUM offers a solution for your work flow.

• Collaborative Interaction

Meet Me Spaces-These are spaces in between the private zones that facilitate mini-meetings that occur throughout the day. Through the use of the See Me Screens you can tell when it is a convenient time to ask for a quick opinion or question while it is fresh on your mind. Then you can easily lean over for a quick collaborative encounter.

Touch Down Spaces-Spaces that provide extra space to huddle and collaborate with many people with out having to totally leave the work area. Impromptu conferences promote creative minds when they are at their best.

• Accessories-bookends, papertrays, displays, and monitor arms. LED lighting and capability for electrical. It is all there.

Although HUM may not be the furniture solution for every office work environment it does answer a great deal of the challenges we have in our creative and collaborative workspace.

I must also mention that HUM’s sustainability story is quite impressive. The Kimball Office team and Formway design put a lot of effort into using sustainable, recyclable products. You can explore that further by going to Kimball Office and checking out the sustainability statement.

Get HUMming!

1. 

   lisa says:

   January 16, 2010 at 5:52 pm

   I love them they look fantastic !

   reply
2. 

   Cary says:

   January 19, 2010 at 9:49 am

   Nice article and interesting design layouts.

   reply