The next big thing is circular design.

A new mind-set for business is emerging. It’s worth around a trillion dollars, will drive innovation in tomorrow’s companies, and reshape every part of our lives

But making the shift isn’t easy. That’s why we created this guide: to help innovators create more elegant, effective, creative solutions for the circular economy. Solutions that are invaluable for people, give businesses a competitive advantage, and are regenerative for our world.

Now is the most exhilarating time to be an innovator.

https://youtu.be/yAvkM7B7BBs

The scale of what we’re designing has shifted from products, to companies, to economic systems.

Who we’re designing for has expanded from a solitary user to an intimately connected web of people, spanning the globe.

New tools such as artificial intelligence, the internet of things, and biomimicry mean our design ambitions are limited only by our imagination.

Meanwhile, creativity has never been more important. The global economy is stuttering and disruptive technologies challenge established business models.

What if you could redesign everything?

You might be questioning the health of our organizations, social systems, and business models. With good reason: companies are currently deeply rooted in a linear approach to growth – make, use, dispose.

The design thinking approach that underpins this guide allows you to explore new ways to create sustainable, resilient, long-lasting value in the circular economy – giving you the creative confidence to redesign the world around you.

The shift is already in motion.

ecovativeHave designed a new form of packaging made of mycelium, or mushroom ‘roots’. Cheap, plentiful, and easy to grow, the biodegradable products break down, just as they do in nature, and become compost once you’re finished with them.Read MorePhilips + RAUArchitectsCreated a “pay-per-lux scheme” where instead of buying bulbs and light fittings, the architects only pay for light itself. Philips take responsibility for the maintenance of the physical fixtures.Read MorePatagoniaPatagonia outdoor wear have grown their business out of a repair and refurbish service – propelled by captivating and authentic storytelling.Read More
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The Circular Design Guide is a collaboration between the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and IDEO. To give your feedback, email us directly or join our LinkedIn group.

Copyright © Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2017, 2018

Are you are familiar with Section 179, accelerated tax benefit. Section 179 of the IRS tax code allows businesses to deduct THE FULL PURCHASE PRICE of any office furniture, equipment, and/or software purchased or financed during a tax year. That means that if you buy (or lease) furniture for your office before the end of the year, you can deduct the full purchase price from your gross income. Who doesn’t like a tax break? I know I do! 

In years past, when companies purchased qualifying equipment, it typically wrote off only a little bit at a time through depreciation. So if your company purchased office furniture for $50,000.00 it got to write off (say) $10,000.00 per year, for five years.

So who qualifies for Section 179? All businesses that purchase, finance, and/or lease NEW or USED business equipment during tax year 2020 should qualify for the Section 179 Deduction (assuming they spend less than $3,630,000.)

This obviously has made a huge difference for most companies. Businesses have used Section 179 to purchase much needed equipment instead of waiting. For most small businesses, the entire cost of the purchase can be written-off on the 2020 tax return.

There are limits with Section 179 that you should be aware of though. For the year 2020, the cap for the total amount written off is $1,040,000. And the limits to the total amount of the equipment purchased is $2,590,000. This deduction begins to phase out on a dollar-for-dollar basis after $2,590,000 is spent by a given business (thus the entire deduction goes away once $3,630,000 in purchases is reached). So this makes it a true small and medium sized business deduction. 

For more information we recommend visiting the IRS website or talking to your accountant.

Shop the best deals on all national contract furniture brands.

Workstation Dimensions Defined

Example: 8X6

The overall dimensions of a workstation are defined by the SPINE panel 1st. Then the RETURN panel.

The “8X6” means the SPINE panel is eight feet and the RETURN panel is six feet.

The “SPINE” aptly named because it’s the panel running down the center of a CLUSTER of workstations (more on clusters later). The spine is where the majority of the power and data is located, either at the base and or the middle of the panel or “BELT LINE”, which can be above or below the work surface.

Also shown is the WING panel. WING panels add privacy at the opening of the workstation, the example to the right shows two wing panels with a center opening. WING panels are common in workstation designs to provide prereferral sight privacy for “heads-down” workers like engineers and programmers. WING panels also add value to workstations because they open up more options to build various size workstations.

It’s interesting to note the dimension “8X6” is the interior dimension of the workstation. The exterior dimension includes the thickness of the connectors that attach the RETURN to the SPINE and/or the WING panel. This added dimension is also known as CREEP.

8×6

CREEP is the width of each panel connector added to the outside dimension of the work stations. The various widths are determined by the furniture manufacture and furniture series. Furniture panel system designed since the late 1990’s such as Herman Miller Canvas or Haworth Compose are 3″ thick and the CONNECTORS are the same as the width of the panel system.

The most popular panel system Herman Miller Action Office designed in 1967 is a 2″ think panel with a 3.5″ CREEP factor which is determined by the CONNECTORS.

As you can see below the outside dimension of the 8X6 is 7″ larger; 8′ – 7″ including the two CONNECTORS which is another important detail for BUYERS to consider. CONNECTORS fasten the two panels in the SPINE called IN-LINE, PANEL-PANEL, or DRAW RODS. The CONNECTOR in the SPINE of the 4 PACK shown is called a “4-WAY“. The SPINE to RETURN  and RETURN to WING CONNECTORS are “2-WAY” and/or 3-WAY” depending on the number of panels.

How many workstations will it take?

Example: 6X8

A helpful hint for SELLERS listing workstation quantity available is to provide more information in the description that define how many SHARED and how many SINGLE workstations you have in total. This is also a good rule for BUYERS to check and make sure there’s enough workstations in the inventory to build the exact configuration in your office layout.

The SPINE panels shown in these examples are six feet and contain all of the power and data for each CLUSTER. The RETURN panels are eight feet and are non powered. The WING panel non-powered as well.

The SPINE panel is SHARED by workstations on both sides 6X8 workstations. They are configured in a group or CLUSTER of six also known as a 6 PACK.  Something that needs to be taken into consideration when counting the total number of workstations is the quantity of SHARED and SINGLE ROW workstations.

Workstations designed in a SINGLE ROW require 1.5 times as many spine panels as workstations configured in SHARED CLUSTERS. Designed in packs of four, six, eight and up to as many as twelve in very large facilities.

SINGLE ROW 6X8 Typical Workstation

You can see the potential issue (in the example shown below) for a SELLER creating a listing for 12 workstations that are all configured in SHARED CLUSTERS of six. A BUYER looking for 12 workstations with a layout of workstations along the exterior walls in a single row will be missing SPINE panels for three workstations.

You can increase the value of your workstations by 30% or more. In fact most BUYERS will only consider an inventory of workstations with an accurate AS-BUILT DRAWING. If your workstations have been knocked down, the value of is now little if any without and AS-BUILT drawing and a accurate inventory. The good news is you can hire RESEAT to CERTIFY your workstations. We can update your current layout by providing us with a the AUTO CAD file of your current AS-BUILT DRAWING.

Will They Fit?

Now that you’re up to speed with CREEP of CLUSTERS and SHARED vs SINGLE workstations, how do you know the inventory you’re considering will fit in your office?

RESEAT  design support team provides you with furniture space planning by building partnerships with office furniture dealers across the country.

Reach out to us to find out how it works.

Workstation Electrical Explained

Power Entry Locations

Something for BUYERS and SELLERS to be aware of is the electrical power specification, locations of entry from the building and who does what making the connections and disconnections in furniture and to the building. There are several large companies that have workstations installed on RAISED FLOORS.

These floor systems include power and data within the floor tiles, located under each position. If this is the CONDITION of the workstations that means there is no power included and will be an added cost for BUYERS to consider, Unless they’re going to be installed on another raided floor, all other workstations have electrical receptacles integrated in the panels, beams and under the work surfaces of benching workstations.

Workstation power options

POWER RECEPTACLES locations are most commonly located in the SPINE panel at the BASE COVER. The RETURN PANEL may have power but has been a feature that is usually “value engineered” to save cost. This is a consideration for BUYERS when planning to modify the workstation to work for your office. There may be added costs for new electrical parts to complete your workstation layout.

BELT LINE POWER can be located both above and/or below the work surface depending on the furniture brand. Since HAT’s (Height Adjustable Tables) have been popularized BELT LINE POWER DOES NOT work well with the up and down movement of the HAT. The problem with BELT LINE POWER and Height Adjustable Table is of course interference with the cords plugged in to the receptacles. The best product feature for Height Adjustable Tables in clamp mounted fixture called a POWER TAP or DESK TOP POWER MODULE.

What else you’ll need to know

POWER POLES are commonly used to provide electrical and data service to workstations that are designed to float in the middle of the work space floor. POWER POLES or CEILING FEEDS can be an external FREESTANDING POWER POLE to provide power and data to benches and other styles of workstations. Most commonly designs by major furniture manufactures are integrated into the top of the panels shown in the example above. INTEGRATED POWER POLES are deigned specifically for that furniture brand and series of workstation. They are NOT ADAPTABLE to other furniture brands.

BUYERS must also consider the height of their ceiling in the office where workstations will be installed and the height of the POWER POLE included with the workstation inventory.

WORKSTATION POWER LOCATIONS

BASE POWER-IN FEEDS or BASE FEEDS also refereed to by electricians as WHIPS come new from the manufacture in 6′ lengths. There are some manufactures that have longer BASE FEEDS available, but the thing the BUYER must consider is the existing length of the BASE FEED as some have been cut to a custom length that may not work for some conditions in their office building.

Who Does What?

Furniture electrical systems are designed with internal snap fit connections. The FURNITURE INSTALLER is responsible for putting them together at the cost of the BUYER. Every type of furniture power feed is installed from the furniture to the building by a licensed ELECTRICIAN.

The power feeds must be scheduled to be DISCONNECTED from the building before removal. This is cost to the SELLER. The power must also be RECONNECTED from the furniture to the building by a licensed ELECTRICIAN at the cost of the BUYER.

We know power

You can increase the value of your workstations by 30% or more. In fact most BUYERS will only consider an inventory of workstations with an accurate AS-BUILT DRAWING. If your workstations have been knocked down, the value of is now little if any without and AS-BUILT drawing and a accurate inventory. The good news is you can hire CLEAR–OFFICE to CERTIFY your workstations. We can update your current layout by providing us with a the AUTO CAD file of your current AS-BUILT DRAWING.

Most Acclaimed Designs

Womb Chair and Ottoman (1948)

Womb Settee (1950)

Side and Arm Chairs (1948-1950)

Tulip Chair (1956)

Crow Island School (Winnetka, Illinois, 1940)

General Motors Technical Center (Warren, Michigan, 1956)

Womb Chair and Ottoman, 1948

Tulip Chairs, 1956

Roots

On August 20th, 1910, Saarinen was born in Hvitträsk, Finland. Eliel Saarinen and his second wife, Louise, were the new parents to Eero, who would soon immigrate to the United States in 1923. Eero was thirteen at the time, and continued his teen years in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. 

The company his father founded, Saarinen, Swanson and Associates, was run by Eliel Saarinen and Robert Swanson from the late 1930s until Eliel’s passing in 1950. Up until 1961, the business operated out of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Then, it relocated to Hamden, Connecticut.

Education

Eliel Saarinen, Eero’s father, was the dean of the Cranbrook Academy of Art, and naturally, Eero took up courses in sculpture and furniture design. As he studied, his peer group included fellow artists, such as Charles and Ray Eames and Florence Knoll. 

To have that many design legends under one roof, all studying alongside each other, is quite an extraordinary happenstance. 

Eero did not stay in the United States to continue his higher education, however. At the age of 18, he ventured to the Académie de la Grande Chaumière in Paris, France, in September 1929. There, he pursued studies in sculpture. After spending some time in Paris, he returned to the United States to complete his studies at the Yale School of Architecture in 1934. 

When Eero’s education was completed, he went on to travel Europe for two years, and soon returned to the United States to pursue work under his father’s practice in architecture.

Career

Saarinen came right back to his roots post-travel time.

At Cranbrook Academy of Art, he worked for his father and explored a newfound love for teaching. When Saarinen worked on a special chair that would soon receive critical recognition, his career in furniture design made way. 

The Tulip chair, designed by both Saarinen and Charles Eames, received recognition under the Organic Design in Home Furnishings competition in 1940, and this was where they received their first prize. It was soon fully implemented and produced by the Hans Knoll-founded Knoll furniture firm. 

When Saarinen achieved first place in the 1948 competition for the design of the Gateway Arch National Park (then titled as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial) in St. Louis, further attention was also received while he was still working for his father. Finalization of the memorial took place in the 1960s. 

Because he and his father both joined the competition independently, the prize was inadvertently sent to his father. The letter notifying Saarinen of his victory in the competition was sent out by the committee in error and was addressed to his father.

When Saarinen completed the Crow Island School in Winnetka, Illinois, he received international praise, which was a celebratory matter considering this was one of his earliest works. 

Saarinen was no stranger to collaborative projects, as seen with the Tulip chair designed alongside Charles Eames. Saarinen and his father worked on a major project together, which now stands as the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, Michigan. This style displays what’s known as rationalist Miesian style design. This is when steel and glass are incorporated within accent panels. Here, the accent panels hold two shades of blue.

Constructed in 1956, the General Motors Technical Center project itself allowed Saarinen to use models, which permitted ideas between other architectural professionals to be exchanged for inspiration. 

This project was one to lead them to other architectural opportunities across the Nation. Other major American corporations such as John Deere, IBS, and CBS commissioned Saarinen to design their headquarters or other corporate buildings. These buildings include design elements that were notorious of Saarinen’s signature style. Sweeping staircases occupy the buildings’ spaces and his furniture scattered within their walls. 

Commissions from American universities soon came about as well. Examples of universities include Antioch College, University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, MIT, and the University of Chicago Law School.

Eero Saarinen, 1910 – 1961

Helping the potential buyer get a really good idea of the quality and condition of the furniture helps you make the most money!

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When you are selling your office furniture online, you want to make sure that the potential buyer is getting a really good idea of the quality and condition of the furniture. This is done by taking great photos and providing as much detail about the product as possible.

Remember the buyer isn’t necessarily going to come to your location and physically look at your furniture so it’s important to provide them with as much information as possible so that they can determine if they want to buy your used office furniture or not.

First, make sure you clean your furniture before you photograph it. For example you don’t want to take a picture of your office furniture with all kinds of items on or around it. Remove the clutter and wipe down the surfaces!

Take photos during prime daylight hours. Take eye-level pictures of your furniture’s front, back, and sides. It’s also a good idea to include any unique details about your furniture; the drawer pulls, the fabric or edge detail.

You also want to make sure that you point out any obvious defects with the furniture. You may have 250 Steelcase Leap task chairs you’re selling that are in great condition, but maybe 5 of the chairs have cracked arm pads. You want to make sure you mention this in your description. Being honest and upfront will help avoid any issues.

Lastly, you should take photos of the manufactures sticker label. This is important because it tells us a lot about the furniture. It tells us who the manufacturer is, the manufacturer date, the part number and sometimes it will even give us details on the finishes that were selected.

To find the manufacturer labels on chairs, you want to flip the chair over and you should find a sticker. To find the manufacturer of cubicles or workstations, the stickers are usually in one of these places: under the worksurface, in a pedestal cabinet drawer, an overhead cabinet, or you can pop off a fabric tile to find a manufacturer sticker.

Tell your furniture’s story, this is your moment. Be creative with your sales pitch. Make your listing rich with details!

If you follow these steps you are sure to be successful on our marketplace!

There are many things to think about when selling your pre-owned office furniture, especially when it comes to the office building that it’s located in.

Landlord-You want to make sure that you first contact your landlord or property manager and let them know that you are planning to remove your office furniture from the building and ask them what the requirements are if any.

Certificate of Insurance or COI-Your landlord will most likely require the labor company that is removing the furniture to provide insurance based on their COI requirements.

Elevators-Your property manager will most-likely need to reserve the elevators, making it easier for the removal.

Floor & Wall Protection-Some commercial buildings will require you to protect the floors and walls so that they do not get damaged during the removal of the office furniture.

Hours for Removal-Most commercial properties only allow removal of office furniture before or after business hours so that it doesn’t disturb any of the other tenants, however the disassembly can be done during normal working hours.

Power-If workstations have power that is connected to the building, you will have to have a licensed electrician to come out and “safe off” the power so that the labor crews can safely remove the furniture.

Union or Non-Union-You need to know if your building is a Union or Non-Union building. You can find this out from your landlord. This information is important to communicate to the buyer.

Everyone knows what a Herman Miller Aeron chair is, or at least you would know one if you saw one! I must admit, it’s a very well-designed chair and looks super sharp, but personally, it is not one of my favorite task chairs when it comes to comfort.

The Herman Miller Aeron chair was introduced to the world in 1992 by Don Chadwick and Bill Stumpf. The chair became super popular in the 1990’s with Silicon Valley startups and sort of became the symbol of what represented a “cool office space.”

They can cost a little over $1,000.00 when purchased brand new, and they still hold their value pretty well when sold on the used office furniture market selling at about half their original purchase price.

They have three different sizes, “A” is the smallest, “B” medium, and “C” the largest.

Size A accommodates users that are between 4′-10″ to 5′-2″ and up to 130 pounds.

Size B accommodates users that are between 5′-3″ to 6′-2″ and up to 300 pounds.

Size C accommodates users that are between 6′-3″ to 6′-6″ and up to 300 pounds.

• Size A – Small: 38.5″ H 26″ W 16″ D
• Size B – Medium: 41″ H 27″ W 16.75″ D
• Size C – Large: 43″ H 28.25″ W 18.5″ D

You can easily find out what size Aeron chair you have by looking at the back of your chair and placing your fingers under the lip, where you should feel a “bump.” One bump represents an “A” size, two bumps represents a “B” size and three bumps represents a “C” size.

Circular economy refers to a model in which economic growth does not go hand in hand with the exploitation and consumption of natural, non-renewable resources.

Ellen Macarthur Foundation

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation mission is to develop and promote the idea of a circular economy. They work with, and inspire, business, academia, policymakers, and institutions to mobilize systems solutions at scale, globally.

Clear Office Inc looks to join the growing list of leading companies innovating products and processes for the future.

https://youtu.be/zCRKvDyyHmI

Re-Think: The Circular Economy

The aim of a circular economy is the resource-efficient and sustainable use of natural resources, their reuse and recycling within a circulatory system and the prevention of waste. The fact’s are that in the system of circular economy companies generate an additional value from the materials re-used.

There’s a world of opportunity to rethink and redesign the way we make stuff. ‘Re-Thinking Progress’ explores how through a change in perspective we can re-design the way our economy works – designing products that can be ‘made to be made again’ and powering the system with renewable energy. It questions whether with creativity and innovation we can build a restorative economy.

Re-Design: Circular Economy Design

Companies need to build core competencies in circular design to facilitate product reuse, recycling and cascading. Circular product (and process) design requires advanced skills, information sets, and working methods. Areas important for economically successful circular design include: material selection, standardized components, designed-to-last products, design for easy end-of-life sorting, separation or reuse of products and materials, and design-for-manufacturing criteria that take into account possible useful applications of by-products and wastes.

The shift to a circular economy requires innovative business models that either replace existing ones or seize new opportunities. Companies with significant market share and capabilities along several vertical steps of the linear value chain could play a major role in circular economy innovation and driving circularity into the mainstream by leveraging their scale and vertical integration. While many new models, materials, and products will come from entrepreneurs, these brand and volume leaders can also play a critical role. Profitable circular economy business models and initiatives will inspire other players and will be copied and expanded geographically.

Re-Purpose: New Life Cycles

For widespread reuse of materials and higher resource productivity to become commonplace, market mechanisms will need to play a dominant role, supported by policy makers, educational institutions and popular opinion leaders. These enablers include:

New and additional skills are needed for cascades and the final return of materials to the soil or back into the industrial production system. This includes delivery chain logistics, sorting, warehousing, risk management, power generation, and even molecular biology and polymer chemistry. With cost-efficient, better-quality collection and treatment systems, and effective segmentation of end-of-life products, the leakage of materials out of the system will decrease, supporting the economics of circular design.

What is a circular economy you ask?

We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”

Albert Einstein, Physicist

A circular economy is focused on the renewal, resilience, and repurposing of already existing materials and parts verses the “take, make, dispose” method of a linier production that we all have been way too comfortable with in the past, including me.

When it comes to office furniture waste, it’s only a small part of the overall sustainability problem, but it’s a big chunk. 17 billion pounds of office furniture is dumped into our landfills each year in the USA and it is only getting worse. I have personally seen enough, good quality office furniture get thrown away without a second thought, to last me a lifetime.

So, what can we do about it?

There is a world of opportunity when it comes to the way we make and design things. By “rethinking” the way we are accustomed to doing things, knowing we have the power to change the perspective we can redesign and rethink the way our economy works, however it will have to start at the top for it to catch on. Meaning, it has to start with the top architectural and design firms of the world as they have enormous capacity for influencing change. With top architects leading the charge they can help guide their clients in each phase of the design process to help direct them towards reused, repurposed resources and products.

 In the not to recent past there really hasn’t been an easy way for architects and designers to access existing office furniture inventories yet alone implement pre-owned office furniture into their design because of various reasons such as; timing, availability and location but now with the RESEAT marketplace sellers can easily post their items for sale on the site and specify critical pieces of information such as when the furniture is available, when the furniture needs to leave the building, minimum quantity sale and important building information details creating a more streamlines approach to material reuse.

In addition, by architects getting their clients to post their previously loved office furniture in the beginning of a project (6-9 months ahead of time) they will have adequate time to market their pre-owned office furniture avoiding the possibility of it ending up in landfill AND architects and designers have a realistic chance of being able to access and secure already existing materials to implement projects. Helping our clients be PROACTIVE instead of REACTIVE can make all the difference in the world but we will have to teach them a better way.

Once other architectural and design firms see the benefits and ease of reusing existing materials, they are surely going to follow, along with engineers and construction. That is when we will see some very big, positive impact on our planet and help us move in the right direction.

Extend the Life Cycle of these great products from RESEAT Marketplace