Flexibility first. The key values in the contemporary workplace are adaptability, ease of composition and the possibility of personalization. These are the principles with which the firm Foster + Partners has created the XYZ modular system produced by UniFor. A bookcase (X), a table for informal meetings (Y) and a desk with adjustable height (Z), ready for independent and individual use but also to generate complex configurations.
“Underpinned by a human-centric approach to office design, the XYZ system allows everyone to fine-tune their working environments to meet individual requirements, which can have a profound effect on mood and general wellbeing in the workplace,” says Mike Holland, Senior Partner and Head of Industrial Design of Foster + Partners.
The X bookcase takes its name from the characteristic cross-shaped support of its main structure. The grafting of shelves and posts creates a very light floor-to-ceiling partition that separates collective work areas from more private and individual zones, while permitting an open view of the overall space.
The Y system of light tables for easy reorganization is named for the Y-shaped metal legs, which can be easily repositioned in different configurations, or completely removed for transport and storage. The leg in the four-part version also acts as a connector, permitting creation of larger modules.
The Z desk, which will reach the market during the second half of the year, has the aim of generating a height-adjustable workstation without electric actuators or cranks. The desk will be equipped with a mechanism inserted in an aluminium frame, capable of regulating and setting the position of the worktop in a very rapid, intuitive way, with simple manual pull-push movements.
