Herman Miller has produced many of the office chairs which are now integral to the way we work, whether at home or in the office, fusing efficiency, with comfort. The Aeron Chair, the Cosm Chair, the Embody Chair, the Mirra 2, The Sayl, and the Lino, have all made us more aware of the value of these chairs, particularly with the long stretches of time now spent working from home. How they perform during the day, has become as paramount as to how we feel at the end of the day.
Selecting the right chair for the appropriate environment is part of Herman Miller’s ‘DNA’, along with Living Edge’s long association with the company. As with Herman Miller, Living Edge understands what type of chair suits most appropriate work environments and the tasks demanded from it, be this at one’s office or at home. Long periods spent behind a computer, for example, may require The Embody where there’s intense focus and little movement in this environment. Other office chairs, such as the Cosm, was conceived to encourage greater movement with its leaf spring action.
These chairs have become the most popular task chairs for 2020, ensuring a smooth transition in 2021.
1. Aeron Chair – Setting the standard for work chairs that are now a household name.
The most recognised and admired task chair in the world, the Aeron offers revolutionary ergonomic support for the widest range of shapes and sizes. When the Aeron debuted in 1994, it became the benchmark for ergonomic seating. Since then, Herman Miller has learned a great deal more about how best to support people in varied postures they adopt throughout the workday. The chair incorporates technological and ergonomic enhancements and widens its range of cross-performance capabilities. Aeron now offers smarter weight distribution and suspension through 8Z Pellicle and adjustable PostureFit SL that supports both the sacrum and lumbar to better nurture the natural S-shape of the spine. In short, Aeron performs smarter than ever before – so you can too.
2. Cosm Chair – Moulded to one’s body that feels like a ‘second skin’.
There’s a sense of weightlessness with the Cosm Chair. Designed by Studio 7.5, the chair’s dictum is “You should have a chair that allows you to change posture as easily as possible”, according to its designer, Roland Zwick, who collaborated with Carola Zwick and Burkhard Schmitz. Perfecting the self-adjusting tilt mechanism, the gears within the tilt system automatically adjust the chair’s tension to respond to the body’s movements. The chair’s leaf-shaped arms (an option) make holding a book or resting one’s iPhone against the ear simply an extension of one’s day-to-day movements. The head/backrest supporting one’s arm when turning towards colleagues allows for a continued, rather than a short and stilted conversation.
3. Embody Chair – Most expensive but by far the best ergonomic chair on the market.
Designed by Jeff Wever and Bill Stumpf (the latter also designed the Aeron Chair), they created chairs for Herman Miller that are ‘health positive’ and therapeutic. The Embody’s seat and back automatically respond to your body movements, not only obvious but also micro-movements that are indiscernible to the eye. The backrest was conceived like a human’s spine with flexible ‘ribs’ adapting to these constant shifts. And rather than concealing this sophisticated technology, the ‘ribs’ are integral to the Embody’s aesthetic. When tasks at hand require intense concentration and considerable time, this chair provides the ideal work solution, whether in the office or at home.
4. Mirra® 2 Chair – The most natural balanced movement and dynamic fit.
Available as flexible TriFlex or as Ultra Responsive Butterfly Back, the Mirra 2, designed by Studio 7.5, is as much about motion as being sedentary. As with the nature of one’s work, which is continually evolving, this chair allows the user to continually change direction without being conscious of it. But with each move, there’s support through the chair’s mechanism.
5. Sayl Chair – Strikes a healthy balance between ergonomic support and the freedom to move.
Designer Yves Behar was interested in using as few parts as possible when he designed the Sayl Chair. Based in San Francisco, he was inspired by the city’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge. Supported with what appears to be minimal effort, the bridge performs well beyond what its structure appears to allow. Likewise, the Sayl includes the bridge’s principles to provide maximum flexibility, as much as strength, with its unique elastomer suspension material that’s stretched in a manner that provides the greatest tension at the points where support is needed most.
6. Lino Chair – At the nexus of comfort & value.
Lino brings scientifically-backed comfort and a wide range of aesthetic options to your workplace or home. Charged with designing a high-performance work chair at an exceptional value, award-winning designers Hecht and Colin found inspiration in constraint. Thanks to their design prowess and Herman Miller’s ergonomic expertise – including their patented Posture Fit technology -Lino joins the portfolio of high-performance work chairs.
To say there is one office chair that’s right for any one solution is incorrect, but these six chairs fulfil the requirement for flexibility, durability and importantly, comfort in today’s COVID-19 world. The office chair fulfils an important role in our lives, adapting to both at work and at home. Irrespective of their use or placement, these chairs ensure one’s health is improved even with extended time spent at one’s computer. With flexible work environments now at the forefront of our lives, these chairs are taking ‘centre stage’. How one feels at the end of each day is born out in one’s productivity and, importantly, one’s general health.