10 innovative products from Orgatec 2024
Modularity, reuse and harvested flax: we spotlight ten head-turning products that caught our eye at this year’s Orgatec trade fair.
Photography: Courtesy of Orgatec
Last week, Orgatec returned with its annual trade fair for office design at its landmark location in Koelnmesse, Cologne. With 600+ international brands on offer, Orgatec saw its biggest turnout yet, thanks to its reconfigured event concept, designated Focus Areas and curated talks programme. Spanning 140,000 sq ft of exhibitor space, there were a plethora of pioneering brands and standout releases to choose from. Here are just some of the most innovative products that caught our eye at this year’s event.
foild partitions by Brunner
Keeping up with the rapidly evolving ways in which we work, foild by Brunner enables flexible room design and function. Available in a high and low version, the easy-to-position screens can be extended and retracted, thanks to the use of pleated fabric and an aluminium scissor-type framework. Held together by innovative plug connectors, the high-quality cloth is opaque in appearance for private, but not totally isolated, space making within the workplace.
BLOX Collection by Icons of Denmark
Icons of Denmark’s new BLOX interior system offers modularity to banquette and tiered seating, planters and mobile units. With workplace tenant turnover in mind, the system is designed with internal frames that link together and enable repurposing and reconfigurability.
VEVA tables by Bla Station
In a world flooded with digital solutions, Bla Station advocates for a return to the simple with the new for 2024 VEVA table. Primed for modern-day office use, a crank allows the product to be adjusted for any activity, including desk working, dining and virtual meetings. As self-proclaimed functionalists, the brand sees VEVA as almost an educational product, to preserve simple, manual interventions in the workplace.
reSKU 2.0 fabric collection by Camira
ReSKU 2.0 is a recreation of Camira’s recycled wool fabric, ReSKU, which launched in 1998 and was made from disused army jumpers. Reimagined to celebrate the brand’s 50th anniversary, ReSKU 2.0 is the latest innovation to emerge from the textile reprocessing technology, iinouiio, and is made from a blend of recycled wool and harvested flax for an array of soft furnishings and upholstery.
Buddy Oasi seating by Pedrali
Buddy Oasi maintains the contrast between the bold volumes and light aluminium legs of Pedrali’s previous Buddy Oasi seats. This new iteration of the flexible poufs, featuring removeable backrests, is injected with polyurethane foam and features removable outdoor fabric linings, ensuring easy maintenance for use in and out of the office.
SONUS acoustic pod by Narbutas
Developed due to the increased demand for improved office acoustics, Narbutas’ new product, the SONUS acoustic pod, was first presented at Orgatec 2024. The most effective solution to workspace shortages and noise, SONUS can be used as both separate meeting or focus area and a physical, acoustic barrier in shared office spaces.
reForm Transition Collection by Ege
Reflecting the seasonal cycles of plants – Seed, Leaf and Fibre – the reForm Transition Collection from Ege sees irregular textures from outdoors translated into multi-level carpet design. Highly durable and sound-absorbing, the new collection is composed of a soft yet strong PET felt material and Ecotrust backing, which are derived from discarded plastic bottles.
Tri.ply modular collection by Nowy Styl
Based on elementary shapes, the Tri.ply modular pouf system from Nowy Styl features slots for attachable components, such as tables and armrests, allowing for free adaption to individual needs. Primed for recreational lounges and breakout spaces, the round poufs introduce a contemporary, stylish accent to any workplace interior.
Stacked Storage System by Muuto
Being both versatile and functional, Muuto’s Stacked Storage System can be arranged and rearranged for the aesthetic and functional needs of the office. The sleek individual building blocks tesselate for the storage of books, equipment and stationery, as well as broken down into its constituents for wall mounted storage and display.
442/00 Media Wall by Wilkhahn
Combined with a monitor, shelf and Liteboard mounts, the 442/00 Media Wall is a multipurpose digital and analogue media apparatus by Wilkhahn. Bolstered with a TV mount and shelf, the acoustically optimised, moveable panel also features a detachable pinboard for brainstorming and collating ideas. Technology is concealed here too, with all inputs for connecting more devices tucked into a side slot.
MOV:E by Bachmann
MOV:E promotes mobile collaboration regardless of the available building infrastructure. Ideal for the modern working environment, Bachmann’s MOV:E is a portable power source that can operate four laptops simultaneously as well as supply a mobile flipchart with power for up to two hours.
