Working between feel-good zone, focus room and meeting point. The transformation of the working world is becoming clear and multifaceted - as this year's Ambiente has shown in its growing Working segment. Innovative room concepts, clever tools and office furnishings that were the exception rather than the rule just a few years ago are becoming the new standard. Both spheres benefit from the innovative ideas and developments of suppliers: Corporate offices and home offices.
The focus of the innovations from exhibitors and of the Future of Work area in the Ambiente Working section is on people and all their needs. Photo: Messe Frankfurt/Jens Liebchen
The focus of modern working is on people and all their needs, from exchanging ideas to taking time out. As a result, on the one hand, there is a growing need for intelligent and pragmatic concepts for the use of space in companies - be it in traditional offices, co-working spaces or lounges in hotels, railway stations or airports. On the other hand, the home office has become firmly established and is increasingly being professionally equipped. Key issues here are ergonomics, sound insulation, room layout - but also the many small practical everyday helpers on and next to the desk.
New Work upgrades office and home office
Whether furniture or room concept: the home office is benefiting from the triumphant advance of the New Work approach in companies, as more and more manufacturers are focussing on both target areas - corporate office and home office. Finnish pioneer Evavaara, for example, is equipping both offices and private homes with its "sshhh 3" mini home office. The highlight: when open, the mobile furniture offers space and calm for concentrated work; when closed, it becomes a cosy chest of drawers. The family-run company König + Neurath is also increasingly opening up its collections for private use. One example of this is the design-orientated room zoning system "Acta.Plus", which offers a wide range of functional elements and enables flexible and homely room structuring. Corporate offices, on the other hand, can now draw on a growing pool of innovative and affordable solutions. Young brands such as Mute Labs, for example, are making a big impression with their sophisticated telephone and meeting boxes that offer affordable solutions for open-plan working environments. Durable offers elaborate solutions for collaborative and hybrid working, including a mobile media trolley for video conferences and presentations as well as a flexible tablet holder that allows a straight view of the screen from any position. Sigel, for example, offers further solutions for agile working - with mobile pinboards or whiteboards for spontaneous brainstorming that makes project and team work more transparent, flexible and efficient.
Goodbye kitchen table! Welcome to new ergonomic work solutions
Since the home office has become firmly established, the "emergency office at the kitchen table" has been replaced by fixed workstations at home or gradually expanded. Health aspects are becoming increasingly important in this context. The exciting thing for planners: Almost all solutions are suitable for both corporate and home offices. The German-Canadian brand Country Living, for example, presents a design-orientated and pragmatic approach: the new standing desk attachment for the bestseller "Alwins Space Box" can simply be placed on the chest of drawers of the pull-out table and raised when required. It invites you to alternate between sitting and standing and offers additional storage space. As a small solution, stylish screen raisers including desk organisers such as those from Bigso Box of Sweden ensure better posture and tidiness on the desk. In confined spaces, the "Kapsul Stov" balance capsule from Vluv is a slim alternative to the healthy sitting ball. It has all the ergonomic advantages of the ball, but takes up no more space than a chair. Not at all recognisable as an office chair, the elegant rocking stool from the Taiwanese brand Gudee gives your back a boost when you turn it on its side. And the wall decorations from Hey Sign make it "nice and quiet" in the truest sense of the word. The decorative felt objects not only ensure pleasant acoustics, but also healthy indoor air thanks to the special purifying properties of sheep's wool. If there is no space on the wall, the ceiling light from the "Welle" series fulfils both functions.
Analogue for the mind and soul
Beyond interior design, there are 1001 stylish ideas that makes working at home and in the office easier or simply more beautiful. Especially in the highly digitalised world of work, creative suppliers from various sectors are opening up a wide range of analogue products that help to structure your thoughts. The fresh, colourful "Re:combine your thoughts" line from Leuchtturm 1917 or the stylish Ingeniox planners from Carchivo, which offer a great deal of agility with their rich inner life and patented tile system, provide inspiration. For mind maps, workshops and collaborative working methods, the family-run company Edding is increasingly developing sustainable presentation and highlighters that are in no way inferior to the classics in terms of function.
Between intensive phases of work, small mental breaks help to regenerate. Stylish accessories, such as the mini waterfall from Umbra or the designer marble run "Marbolo" from the start-up Onino, provide a little relaxation. When focus is needed again, the "Sentimental Minds" by Engels Kerzen - a series of AI-generated fragrances that have been proven to promote concentration - can help.
Trade fair dates 2025
Ambiente, Christmasworld and Creativeworld will continue to take place at the same time at the Frankfurt exhibition centre. They will, however, be moved to the beginning of February to ensure that major global trade fair dates are aligned.
Ambiente/Christmasworld:
07 to 11 February 2025
NEW: Creativeworld:
07 to 10 February 2025
www.ambiente.messefrankfurt.com
