One Good Chair Winners
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Finalists
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Eric Tong
Zpine Lounge Chair
The Zpine Lounge Chair is based on a new technology we developed that opens up unlimited possibilities for a vastly undervalued material – honeycomb. This beautiful and flexible material, more generically known as a ‘cellular structure’, is very cheap to make, sustainable and biodegradable, yet gives a magnificent strength to weight ratio. The technology we developed involves modifying a standard honeycomb core so that it can house a simple tubular structure to give it omni-directional stiffness. The tubular structure is typically in stainless steel whilst the honeycomb can be of any material such paper, card, or timber depending on the application. By using renewable metals and recyclable paper, card or timber we aim to attain excellent sustainable credentials.
The Zpine Lounge Chair offers the user two modes of repose. The furniture is converted between a moderately reclined chair and a fully reclined chaise within seconds. The chair mode supports an upright posture whereas the chaise mode, together with the stored-away leg rest, supports a reposed posture.
The Zpine Lounge Chair will be shipped with its components flat packed into a volume of less than 0.1 cubic metres. The piece can be assembled and disassembled within minutes.
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Pitt Berkemeyer & Georg Thesing
The ELXE chair combines elegancy with functionality. Two molded wooden shells form the seat and the backrest. Both merge with the extended wooden rear legs together into two armrests. The light vertical front legs in stainless steel pierce through these armrests and accentuate the constructive design principle: The fusion of the three wooden components.
The ELXE chair corresponds to the needs of modern life. Mobility plays more and more a substantive role in the young urban society. The lounge chair has been designed for people who set great value upon good quality workmanship when it goes together with easy disassembly. With one tool the chair can be dismantled in 4 components for reducing space during moves. The chair allows this by its innovative construction.
The ELXE chair rear legs, made of 20 mm thick bent birch plywood, are the backbone of the construction. From top slides the backrest into a channel integrated in the armrest. The stainless steel front legs penetrate all components. Seat and rest are made of 6 mm molded beech plywood with black stained ash veneer. By connecting the seat shell with the front and rear legs the sitting shell stiffens the entire construction.
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Baita Design Studio - Helena Bueno & Heinz Muller.
Broom Chair: Like its name suggests, the chair assemblage was inspired by how brooms are assembled, offering the maximum simplicity to mount. When dismounted it can be stored in a minimum space. This is something that goes beyond the mere shape of the objects, embodying feelings of satisfaction, fun and proud of owning. Another issue that cannot be forgotten is that the increasing population living in concentrated areas dictates the need for greater efficiency of space, storage and costs. The project focused on how shipping the product using a minimum space and consuming minimal material for packaging while providing easy storage and stockpiling. Composed of a WPC seat and nine FSC wooden screw top sticks, this chair is fully detachable, super easy to store, transport and assemble. The sticks are screwed directly to the seats. This project is very simple and its fabrication requires very little steps. No decorative elements make the manufacturing simple, easy and inexpensive. The fact of not requiring the use of glue, nails, screws, metal components, etc, improves the manufacturing process. Material: – Packaging: Egg cartoon like material. – Legs/backrest of the chair: FSC certificated Birch Wood. – Seat: Injection molded WPC (Wood Plastic Composite).
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Juan Mercado
RE_flex chair design contemplates sustainability not only in the sense of material conservation, means of production, and packaging but develops a concept in which objects can be sustainable thru a reuse, transformative process that allows the object to be used in multiple ways for multiple events and activities. The chair is recycled but instead of giving off its previous form in the process it preserves its integrity and the essence of the previous form and can go back and forward. RE_flex chair is designed to be at one instant, a sleek, modern desk chair yet in another, a comfortable reading rocking chair that is simple to transform by its users. RE_flex consists of two different parts that form the section of the chair repeated nineteen times. The parts are cut out from a standard 4’x8’ wood sheet using a CNC router. The pieces are tightened with two metal bars that run through all the pieces creating a pivot point for the upper parts to rotate. As the chair shrinks and condenses, it reduces the packaging size and volume for shipping.
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Tom Fereday
The Allt chair is a simple and highly efficient flat pack furniture design. Through an innovative non-permanent fastening system combined with a durable light weight seat and back support, the Allt chair is efficient in terms of both material use and overall weight and size.
The linear construction of the Allt chair frame is reminiscent of classic hand crafted Danish furniture design whilst the mesh and fastening system provide a contemporary edge to the design.
The Allt chair is designed for maximum longevity through its durable and inherently strong frame and material selection. The Allt chair is manufactured from 100% recyclable formed birch plywood and stainless steel components, and by utilizing non-permanent fasteners the Allt chair can be easily disassembled for fabric repair or end of life recycling.
The Allt chair is intended to be implemented as part of a larger manufacturing and recycling system which reduces the environmental foot print of the chair at a number of levels. Environmental improvements to product packaging, distribution chains, shipping/transportation logistics, product weight and recycling ensure that the Allt chair dramatically improves the environmental impact.
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Semi-Finalists
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David Prete
The latest discoveries in physics state that each basic particle is made by vibrating strings, in different patterns, that form all matter. This learning inspired me to create a single, vibrating element like a “string” to support all human body postures in casual seating.
In this design, I combined vibrating elements to form an elegant and comfortable surface that supports the human body in an almost infinite number of positions.
This element is composed of 80 pieces made from recycled wood. Each element has 3 pivot points or joints. The entire pieces move in unison from the pivot points and the structure can be tailored to a floor or a wall system. All elements can go back to the original flat surface and disappear into the floor or wall. The system can be easily divided into single elements, packaged and shipped, ready to be assembled.
The physical comfort is guaranteed by the smoothness of the wood and the minimal space between each element produces a soft surface.
The shape of this seating system is like a sensual sculptural wave that draws on the primordial instinct to find comfort by sitting on the ground or by leaning against a tree.
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Juney Lee
The Infinity Chair does not offer any singular, preconceived and permanent design or purpose. It is a simple kit of parts that gives you the power and freedom of design. With nine types of planks, the number of different shapes it’s capable of becoming is infinite.
The materials used are not only recycled and recyclable, but also durable and strong. All the pieces are repetitive elements that can be fabricated in mass quantities with great efficiency. Mechanical fabrication methods such as CNC milling and injection molding result in very accurate parts, and waste almost no material.
Its ability to be disassembled allows the Infinity Chair to be packaged very densely. Because all the pieces are stiff and strong individually, there is no need for extra padding materials.
You can experiment with different combinations of planks to form the shape that is most comfortable for your body. Comfort and purpose is symbiotic, and you have the power to explore and find that one combination of planks that is appropriate for you, your body and your lifestyle.
With such simple yet elegant kit of parts, and limitless possibilities, the Infinity Chair is not just a chair.
It’s almost nothing.
Almost everything.
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Sarah Blau , James Brucz , Jessica Cooper & Amanda Kross
Inspired by organic forms in nature, the curve of brisa resembles
peaceful images such as ficus leaves or ocean waves, encouraging the desire to lounge. Upon sitting, brisa’s hollow form provides strength that appears unexpected. The weave simultaneously provides durability and flexibility in the appropriate places; rigid on the sides for support and giving on the surface. The dimensions of brisa were determined by the human form, ensuring comfort. Furthermore, brisa elevates the body and supports the head, making it perfect for lounging. Versatility evokes delight: brisa is easy to transport and is adaptable to any setting.Universally designed for adaptation to various cultures, brisa makes use of natural grasses, a material native to almost every region around the world. Species vary by location but are consistently abundant and renewable. In the production of brisa, local communities collaborate to harvest and weave the native grasses using methods that have proven themselves over time. Local production of brisa also reduces transportation distances and supports regional economies. Because the pattern uses an interlocking module and becomes a hollow structure formed by a single sheet, material use is minimized. Additionally, by solely utilizing this material, brisa remains biodegradable, celebrating concepts of zero waste.
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Jose Minguell & Laura McQuary
The Basket chair is a modern variation of the typical wicker lounge chair. The materials are minimal; a wicker basket and a CNC-bent steel frame.
The design takes advantage of the inherent qualities of both materials. The circular-sectioned steel pipe offers the best structural integrity with the least amount of material. The bent structure creates an elegant form from which the “Basket” hangs and supports the user’s back. Also since steel is the most widely recycled material, steel can now be considered a sustainable product.
Wicker provides comfort, beauty and structural integrity without the need of complicated fabrication methods. The fabrication process of weaving rattan solves the issues of connecting both materials avoiding the need of mechanical or chemicals fasteners. Rattan is a strong, lightweight and renewable material.
Wicker furniture tends to be bulky. However, by creating a stackable and simplified design, this chair can be easily produced and shipped. The cantilevered bent tube structure adds both aesthetic interest and gives a little spring to the traditionally stiff wicker chair.
Thus the design of the Basket chair gives equal importance to sustainability, ergonomics, ease of fabrication and shipping. Its simple form merges the worlds of classical craftsmanship and digital fabrication.
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King Yip Roderick Lee
The GT Chair
The goal of “GT Chair” is to design a high performance chair in both comfort and style.
The GT Chair consist the following component:
1) Carbon fiber reinforced composite main frame;
2) Carbon fiber reinforced composite supporting rod and bracket with silicone foam pad;
3) Carbon fiber seat fabric.
The supporting rod bracket is mounting to slots of the main frame, the user can move the bracket to adjacent slots to tighten or loosen the seat fabric to suit the user’s preference.This piece not only in one configuration but can re-configure to suit varies situations/conditions according to user’s preference.
Due to it light weight, durability (thanks to the carbon fiber technology) and simple installation, it is ideal to behind the trunk of your “GT” during your journey.
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Tomo Arakawa & Jason Lee
scoop chair
Composed of two parts, seating bowl and frame, fitting together to create a comfortable lounge chair.
Utilizing simple materials in limited quantity. Strips of millboard fan out into a deep and comfortable seating bowl, which rests securely into a lightweight yet strong steel frame. In its undisturbed state the seating bowl is an inviting object of beauty. When in use the seating bowl, which connected to the frame at two points, pivots to the seaters preferred position.
