On The Ball

For decades, modular furniture solutions have been the driving force behind Switzerlands USM, and now the firm is seeking to find the ultimate workspace solutions which reflect and enable a work-life balance in the technology-driven work environment.

- Catherine Belbin

Defining workspaces in the digital-dominated 21st century is anything but easy. What should an office look like? What sort of ambiance should it have? Is there a need for a crèche or a pet pen? Ping-pong tables? Snooze pods?

Today, people often choose a job based on the design and layout of the office. More and more people are working from home or in shared co-work spaces, conducting their tasks next to other non-related, independent workers…

For more than 50 years, USM – one of Switzerland’s best-known furniture manufacturers – has successfully supplied furniture for major banks and conglomerates, and sits proudly in New York’s Museum of Modern Art.

Now, despite the iconic stature of its modular furniture that’s made up of steel rods and connecting balls, the firm seems to have reached a crossroads.

For the first time it is seriously pondering the question: Where and how do people want to work and live?

During the recent Salone del Mobile, the firm asked: ‘Too much HomeWork, not enough play? ’, and began a conversation about work and life, both today and in the future.

As well as using the world’s largest furniture/design show as a platform to launch this campaign, USM commissioned the Futures team of leading design firm UNStudio to create a mammoth booth by using the traditional USM components to explore the shifting boundaries between work and home life. The design team, led by Ren Yee, devised a hybrid of home and office environments within the temporary yet sustainable super-structure, engaging with visitors and encouraging them to express their feelings about the different environments.

The structure turned out to be one of the biggest USM furniture pieces ever built. It included some 1015 Haller panels, 5008 balls, 13,318 tubes and 8.9 tonnes of material. Almost 2000 hours of manpower were called on to construct the exhibition stand.