Posts Tagged ‘boardroom’

Most businesses as some stage decide to buy some boardroom furniture, so that they can have a quality and luxurious meeting space for their customers, business managers and shareholders.

But invariably having the boardroom properly kitted out costs much more than originally anticipated.  The reasons for this are obvious but often overlooked.

First of all most boardroom tables are quite big and made with real wood. Real wood ( veneer) is very expensive when compared to an MFC finish normally associated with office furniture, and lots of it means a big price.

Secondly a big table means that a big number of chairs can be put around it.  If you are going to the expense of a  wood veneer table, it would not make sense to use some cheap fabric chairs to go with it, so once again a higher unit price multiplied by a large number means a bigger than expected cost.

We normally find that most boardrooms tend to have leather upholstery which further adds to the cost, but money can be saved here if a stylish fabric is specified instead.  In fact many  leather meeting chairs are now only leather faced ( matching vinyl is used on the back and base) which helps reduce costs.

At the top end of the leather chair pricing range is the quality leathers from Connelly and Muirhead for example. These are seriously expensive but the quality is second to none.
Further down the scale average quality hides are split into 3 layers, through their thickness to produce two very thin outer hides and one inner hide, which has no grain.

This middle hide  then mechanically stamped with a grain pattern on to give the impression of a real hide.
So three hides out of one can seriously reduce the unit cost of the leather chair.  However at this level of pricing most of these hides are stained black in order to hide the imperfections in the hide ( from barbed wire for example)

Also we often see vinyl and faux leather being used, and many of these imitate real leather very well.  Unfortunately many customers are put off by the word vinyl ( it was pretty bad 20 years ago) and it is now forbidden to hunt the faux for commercial reasons.

As with everything you really do get what you pay for, but there are some very inexpensive but good quality meeting room chairs out there in the market.
However there are also many which are imported form China which really do not stack up in terms of value for money, or continuity.

So, if you are going to spend a considerable amount of money on a new boardroom suite, it really would pay to speak to an office furniture dealer. Give them your budget and you may be surprised with what they can come up. After all they have been in this position many times whereas it is probably quite new to you.

With the ever increasing pressure on businesses to make the best use of their office space, we are more often than not specifying flip top tables as the ideal solution for most training and meeting room requirements.

These tables have the advantage of being easily reconfigurable in minutes and the job can be carried out by anyone in the office.

Their clever design means that the weight of the table does not have to be lifted during the reconfiguration.
Once in their new layout, the castors can be locked and the meeting table tops fixed to each other with an easy to use locking bracket or hand wheel.

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At the beginning of this year the name of the Noveo range of executive office furniture was changed to Noveum, and at the same time some striking additions were made to this popular range of wood veneer and glass office desks.

To begin with the wenge stained oak veneer is now complimented by a rich and warm honey walnut. This has been a very popular finish in one of our other executive office furniture ranges, so we have decided to add the walnut to this range.

Another addition to the available desk top finishes is brilliant black glass, which really has to be seen to be appreciated.

Whilst we still stock the light grey glass table tops, we also keep the black glass in stock, ready for immediate dispatch.

The aluminium finished steelwork of the desk frames really compliment the natural wood finishes, and the addition of a black or brilliant grey glass produces what can only be describes as a truly stunning executive desk.

In addition to the main desks and desk returns, this range boasts a healthy number of additional furniture items to complete your new executive office.

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Looking for office chairs for your meeting room can be difficult at the best of times, but even more so if you have left it to the last minute and need them urgently.
Most reception seating is upholstered to order which means a lead time of around 3 to 4 weeks.   And if you trawl the internet all you seem to find is very cheap wood framed chairs with limited choice of one or two drab fabrics.

Before you decide to buy these as your best option given your cirumstances, take some time to condsider these three well priced and, most importantly, available from stock reception armchairs.

The first a more contemporary chair that the rest, whilst still being a classic meeting chair,  The box sides and back are upholstered in leather and the wood legs are a natural beech or a dark mahogany  stain.

These chairs will grace any traditional office or waiting area and cost under £130 each. They are very comfortable without being too large and very well built

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CH Workspace have significantly  increased their range of executive office furniture held in stock for this year, and one of their most stylish ranges is called Estime.

A contemporary mixture of dark wood veneer and satin silver, combined with a striking and unusual leg frame design make the Estime range stand out from the crowd.

The desk tops are available in either a jet black Wenge stained oak or a warm dark honey walnut veneer. The tops and return sections are also available in 3 different glass finishes to add to the appeal.

A nice detail in this range is the desk support leg  which is a large box section U frame finished in matt silver.

The leg  frame looks substantial and stylish and is completely different to any other office   furniture range which we hold in stock.  If you don’t like the openness of the U frame there is an option to fill in the void with a veneer panel to match the desk top.

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Most businesses nowadays have to make the best use of all of their office workspace.
Desks are getting smaller, although flat computer screens  mean that this is not such a problem, and people are sitting much closer together.  But clever design and the provision of a break out and relaxation areas for the staff can actually improve working conditions.

The same applies to meeting areas, which have undergone a radical change in the last fifteen years.  No longer do we see large offices filled with one expensive veneer boardroom table and equally expensive meeting chairs.

This office space is just to valuable to be left for the occasional use of senior board members and shareholders.

Instead these areas are being partitioned into smaller yet highly efficient meeting rooms.
These rooms are used on an almost continual basis with staff members booking in their time to use the space, whether for a formal meeting with clients, a general chat with colleagues about a specific project, or just somewhere quiet to work for a brief period.
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After a few years absence Phenix office desks are once again back in stock and available for delivery within a matter of days.
This furniture range was a stock range a few years ago, but had to make way for some new executive ranges which we wanted to make available quickly.

But popular demand has meant that this well priced wood veneer executive range has risen from the ashes to take its well deserved place amongst the wide range of executive furniture which we hold in stock.

In case you cannot remember these stylish executive desks from our office furniture brochures in the past, this range is very traditional with big slabs of dark wood and angular edge details, giving you the impression that it was made by hand by craftsman, many years ago. 

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A small change in name perhaps, but the Noveo office furniture ranges has become even more stylish with additional glass products and some new exciting finishes.

Originally only available in light oak or  Wenge ( black oak) veneer, Noveum is now offered in  a warm honey cherry veneer in addition to the Wenge. There is also an option to have the large storage return units in a satin cream finish which compliments the wood veneer perfectly.

As before the rectangular tubular legs of the Noveum range  can be either welded steel, finished silver or graphite grey, or clad in a matching wood veneer, which is really striking.

Another addition to this stylish range for 2010 is a black glass finish , which is additional to the existing frosted glass which has been available for a number of years.

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A few days ago I was watching the final of the UK TV programme, The Apprentice, with Sir Alan Sugar. Over a

BBC The Apprentice

period of several months, competitors, in teams, have to carry out a series of business related tasks. Each week, Sir Alan fires one member of the losing team. What’s this got to do with office furniture?

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ACT Office Furniture are UK manufacturers of high quality real wood veneer executive desks, tables and reception units. They have revitalised their Nimbus and Stratus ranges and have introduced the Cirrus reception range.

Executive Desk

All of their furniture is hand crafted and finished using the highest quality wood veneers such as Cherry, Walnut, Oak and Maple. Inlays and edge details can be included in the design, to create a unique piece of furniture built to you own specifications. Although designed for today’s modern office, the Nimbus and Stratus ranges still evoke feelings of tradition, quality and distinction. Continue reading »