Have you seen the advertisements we’ve been running this year? It was a totally fresh approach for us and we think they’re awesome.
You might have seen them in a few design mags or across the web.
Click the picture above and the image gallery on the right to see some full size versions.
We’ve just updated our showroom, with a host of exciting new products and finishes which will form part of our 2013 product range.
Have a look at some new photos by clicking on the one above, and if you’ve been before, it’s definitely worth swinging by and checking out what changes we’ve made. If you’ve never been, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!?!?!
Our multilevel showroom is over 2500m2 and showcases all our products from seating to workstations, desking, storage, training and everything in between all here for you to see and try.
You don’t need to make an appointment to come past, one of our sales consultants will be more than happy to show you around. We’re also known to offer the best coffee this end of King St.
We’re at 645 King St, St Peters. Just 10 minutes from the CBD.
What is ergonomics?
Ergonomics is the study of the interactions between people and their environment. Ergonomics is neither a positive or negative term but rather it describes the relationship between employees and their workspace.
Why is ergonomics important in the office?
When you can spend up to 12 hours a day at your desk, making sure that you have positive and healthy ergonomic relationship is crucial. Providing the right office setup will be the best investment in yourself or your staff you can make. Recent scientific studies indicate that not only will employees be more comfortable and have increased morale, but they will also work more effectively.
Additionally, designing more suitable work environments is extremely important in safeguarding ourselves against the development of painful musculoskeletal injuries and other physical discomforts associated with prolonged work periods.
What can you to do improve the ergonomic situation in your office?
To make sure you have the most positive relationship with your surroundings, it’s important you carefully consider your office furniture. It’s essential that your office chair offers proper alignment and support to the upper body, shoulders and back. Back support is a crucial ergonomic element as it aids breathing, provides comfort and promotes the ‘ideal’ posture.
Important things to keep a look out for when making chair purchases include; chairs that allow for natural body movement and offer custom fit support to the lower and upper back. Tension adjustable controls and height adjustable lumbers are also important. Chairs with these characteristics will offer you the most benefits.
It’s also important to remember that different body shapes will be suited to different chairs. Krost offers a full selection of high quality office seating, that is designed to offer support for extended periods of office work.
What else?
In addition to choosing the right office furniture, users must know how to use and configure their workspace appropriately. There are a number of handy tricks that can instantly make your workspace more user friendly. For a quick and general guideline of these ‘rules’ please refer to the ergonomics section of our website.
It’s also important to remember that even though you should aim to be in the most ergonomically correct position for the majority of the time seated, it is not healthy to maintain the same position for too long. You should temporarily change positions, stretch or allow the chair to be in free-recline to relieve some muscles and activate others.
More detailed tips on workplace ergonomics can be found here.
Are the materials recycled?
Many of our products use recycled materials in their production, from plastic to steel and wood. This reduces our footprint on the environment, but can actually also be a more cost effective solution when used correctly.
We use veneer and melamine finishes on a substrate made from chipped wood and resin, which can also contain wasted wood and forest trimmings (materials that would otherwise go to waste). These are glued with low formaldehyde glues to comply with Australia’s E0 standard. Wood isn’t the only material that can be recycled though, steel frames, workstation legs and modesty panels are just some of the other parts and products that are over 90% recyclable in the Krost collection.
Recycled (or recyclable) doesn’t mean lesser quality, however. All our products come with a minimum 3 year warranty, but most of our range features 5 year warranties.
Can I reuse the furniture in the future?
As well as being recyclable, the product’s lifespan, reusability and versatility are equally important. If you need to relocate, our workstation systems ensure your office furniture can be moved and refitted with your business. All Krost systems are adaptable and can be disassembled and reused in different configurations.
Is the company using processes that consider the environment?
We are one of the few company’s in our industry to hold the international certifications of ISO 14001for our environmental management system and ISO 9001 for our quality management system. ISO 14001 details how our products are designed and manufactured with a viewpoint on maximising our environmental efficiencies and also gives us a framework for continual improvement.
Further, products can undergo particular third party certifications, such as GECA or AFRDI reviews, to assure customers of quality, sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. Many of our products feature these certifications. Our raw materials are sourced from suppliers that offer chain of custody over the materials, ensuring that the wood is from well managed sustainable sources.
Wastage is also an important factor in the design and production of office furniture. With our ISO 14001 coupled with our ISO 9001 certifications, we have tangible and realistic management systems to reduce wastage, such as segregation, disposal, environmental reporting and effective record keeping. These measures ensure we can effectively control and minimise impacts to the environment.
We’re super excited to announce the newest addition to our website!
(Drumroll please…)
Please welcome the Design section to www.krost.com.au.
A full library of drawings is available through this section, with features including:
All will be easily accessible and readily downloadable, waiting for you to create your own design solutions. Whether you are a creative professional, student, experimenter or simply a visionary you now can plan your workspace with all our furniture.
For 3D models, you’ll need SketchUp (free). 2D drawing blocks will require a CAD program, such asDraftSight (also, free) or AutoCad.
Each page has a help function in case you get stuck along the way and we’re always available to help through our office line (+612 9557 3055) or email info@krost.com.au.
For a long time now, corporations and designers have been working together to look at how workspaces can be used more effectively to increase employee productivity and reduce space.
Over the past 5 years, mainly due to advances in IT and developments like cloud computing and smart boards, a firm and relevant move to more open-planned office environments has become more common.
Finally, after a long time in the wilderness and numerous well publicised failures (see ‘Lost in Space’http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/7.02/chiat_pr.html) ‘hot-desking’ and ‘hoteling’ are forming the basis of viable ideas. Advances in manufacturing and more modular and customisable furniture have aided this trend, allowing employees to reconfigure office furniture to suit their needs.
The activity based setup allows for the diverse range of work that takes place in an individual’s role and attempts to facilitate and support the varying levels of concentration and teamwork required. It provides different work spaces, stimuli and levels of group collaboration. In practical terms, this results in sections of each office floor being tailored to different activities. Some spaces are suitable for meetings and brainstorming other places are more quiet enclosures where personal work and thinking needs to be done. The exact implementation of the idea varies from organisation to organisation and is entirely dependant on the firm’s nature of work.
The cynic would argue that the possible 30% reduction in physical space requirements is the valuable commodity driving this trend. However, the setup has shown marked increases of worker productivity and employee satisfaction. Those who have initiated the change recommend taking it in stages. This allows for employee feedback in design and to facilitate a transition period into this vastly different and new style.
Will activity based working take over in the next 10 years? We believe that for all the benefits that come with job specific working environments and all the great technological improvements that are driving this trend, it’s equally important to allow for the individual’s role and their level of comfort through their own office chair, storage space, physical space and sense of belonging to the organisation. Overall, the answer probably lies somewhere in-between. What do you think?
We have a long history in office furniture….
Over 60 years ago, three sheet metal workers Barney, Jack and Isador Krost began a steel manufacturing business. Since then, the business has been incarnated a few times over and visited 4 continents but in Australia has settled into becoming a provider of quality office furniture solutions.
We’ve decided to sit down with Cecil Krost, a person who’s lived through Krost’s 60 year history, to find out more about the company.
Cecil has worked, managed and directed various Krost companies from when he was 22 years old. There might not be a better person on the planet to give insights into how the office furniture industry has evolved over the last 60 years.
What has been the biggest change to office furniture during your career?
It used to be about selling the ‘bread and butter’ of office furniture – things like cabinets, filing systems and cupboards. Now, there is much more of a focus on design, desking and acoustics – overall providing a customised offering. The funny thing is that the framework of a workstation is almost the same as it’s always been, with steel frame structures. Our FGR leg has been around for 15 or more years and looks about as good as ever. Other leg profile designs have also been around for as long as I have – but materials now vary a lot and you can add details that you never used to be able to. Things like cable management systems were also never even thought about till 20 years ago.
How has the way you marketed your products in the 50’s changed compared to now?
When we didn’t have things like the internet, our marketing was focussed mainly on our showroom floor. Every year there was a big exhibition where us and our competitors would display all our products. It was widely attended and reported and we were a frequent gold medal winner (over 20) and recipient of trophies for having the best display stands on show. Similar to now, we produced catalogues a couple times a year, but did more things like printed calendars and a lot more advertising in the press.
How has manufacturing changed?
Methods of manufacturing have shifted due to the change in materials that have occurred. When Krost started we made everything from steel because it was cheap, strong and easy to work with. But over time with advances in technology and manufacturing processes it’s become more about finding the right materials to suit the aesthetics of the design. We gradually increased our range of materials from just steel to include, lino, laminate and wood. Even now there’s new types of reconstructed woods so there are definitely much more options now than ever before.
What do you think the biggest changes in the future will be?
Office design always will always rotate around the organisational structures of businesses and what fits that best. I think we will see a re-emergence of hot desking, mobile offices, activity based work spaces and more open-planned areas. But that will all depend on which way technology goes and what structures suit those technologies best.
1. Budget
The amount you want to spend will have a big impact on what choices you have. At Krost, we have a lot of advantages that allow us to pass through great price savings. Our vertically integrated supply chain and strong history in the marketplace enable us to supply high quality products at very competitive prices.
2. Layout/Space
Workspace requirements will change with different organisational structures. Employees should have enough space to organise themselves and work neatly. Cramped workspaces can lead to low motivation, low morale and ultimately decreased efficiency. Our sales consultants are space planning experts and can provide a furniture solution tailored to your company. It’s also important to take into account additional needs such as types of computers, telephones, and the amount of power and data access points required.
3. Aesthetics
How do you want to represent your company? Aesthetics should not be underestimated as they can portray a certain message to staff and customers about the companies positioning and professionalism. Different moods can also be created by changing the colours and choosing different chairs, desks, or screens.
4. Comfort/Ergonomics
Ergonomically designed office furniture will give two main benefits:
1. Increased Health
2. Increased Productivity
Ergonomic furniture is probably the best investment a business owner can make in their employees. Recent scientific studies showing a statistically significant correlation between workplace ergonomics and job performance, satisfaction and employee wellbeing.
5. Materials
Choosing materials that are durable and robust is crucial. They must be able to withstand commercial levels of traffic. Krost offers table tops and fabric upholstery in a wide range of finishes and material compositions so that we can provide a custom-fit for your organisation.
In our regular updates we hope to provide you with industry and company information and events, product knowledge, recent projects, guest posts, and more!
We hope to create a platform for discussions and any questions you may have for our Design Solutions experts.
Is there anything you would like to see on our blog? Give us any suggestions or feedback on our comments section!