Posts Tagged ‘Furniture Trends’
Furniture manufacturer uses first QR codes in 2012 catalog
OFM, office and school furniture manufacturers, unveiled its first QR codes in its 2012 product catalog, a high-tech effort that is rarely seen in the furniture manufacturing industry.
OFM’s QR codes, accessible with any smartphone using a downloaded free application, are square barcodes that link the smartphone user to product videos and product specification pages.
“Aside from the introduction of photographs, print catalogs haven’t changed much in the last two centuries,” said Blake Zalcberg, CEO. “But the use of QR codes and smartphones allows us to add a whole new layer of information for our customers. It’s like adding a virtual showroom to the pages of the standard print catalog.”
September furniture orders increase 13 percent from August, survey finds
According to a survey of residential furniture manufacturers and distributors, conducted by Smith Leonard, new orders in September 2011 rose 12 percent over September 2010 orders and are up 13 percent from August 2011.
The Furniture Insights survey shows year-to-date, new orders are up 6 percent in 2011 over the first nine months of last year. Smith Leonard noted that many furniture manufacturers have introduced some price increases, which may have impacted the percentage increase in orders.
Furniture shipments for September were 6 percent higher than September 2010 and also 6 percent higher than August. Year-to-date, shipments are 3 percent higher than in the previous year.
The number of factory and warehouse employees in September was even with August, but dropped 1 percent from September 2010. Factory and warehouse payrolls were up 8 percent from August and up 10 percent from September 2010. The survey says the increased payroll numbers mean employees are getting more hours this year than last, since the number of employees remained relatively flat compared to last year.
The full Furniture Insights survey can be viewed at http://www.smithleonardcpas.com/pdf/fi_nov_2011.pdf.
Philadelphia Invitational Furniture Show to be held in March 2012
The Philadelphia Invitational Furniture Show will be held March 23-25, 2012, at a new location at the 23rd Street Armory in Philadelphia.
The Armory is a medieval castle-like structure with natural light to compliment the show’s theme of “Invest in Beauty.” The beneficiary of the 2012 preview party/auction will be CERF+, an organization that supports crafts people in times of need. David Rago of “Antiques Roadshow,” will be the guest auctioneer and commentator.
For more on the Philadelphia Invitational Furniture Show and to see a list of exhibitors, visit www.PhilaIFS.com.
Hooker shows furniture design trends at High Point Market
Hooker's Cache Chest features an elegant gold metallic design, following trends shown at High Point Market 2011.
At the October 2011 High Point Market in North Carolina, Hooker Furniture introduced new furniture style and design trends for 2011. Hooker Furniture says design trends this year include the return of gold’s popularity, soft and warm contemporary design styles, and a Greek motif revival.
Glowing tones like bronze, copper, gold and platinum are making a comeback in furniture. Gold metallics and gold leafing are popular ways to get an elegant, luxurious look. Gold, Hooker says, is easy to mix and match with different colors, metals and woods. Following this trend, the company is featuring its Cache Chest, part of its Mélange Accents collection.
Greek motifs like the Greek key or columns are used on consoles, accents, upholstery and drapery fabrics. According to High Point Market’s Authority trend report, Greek infusion signals “a return to Neoclassic forms but in an updated context.” An example at Hooker is the Odyssey Cabinet in the Mélange collection, which features the Greek key motif on the hardware.
In addition, warm, contemporary furniture is popular. Hooker’s Felton collection includes an upholstered bed with chrome nail head trim. The company says its design merges soft shapes and textures with chic chrome.
To see the company’s full line of furniture, visit www.hookerfurniture.com. For more on High Point Market and other design trends, visit www.highpointmarket.org.
One-third of U.S. upholstered furniture supplied by Mississippi
The National Strategic Planning and Analysis Research Center at Mississippi State University recently compiled furniture industry employment and wage data for the Franklin Furniture Institute.
The data show that 9,624 jobs in the furniture industry were lost from 2005 to 2010. Furniture industry employment dropped from 27,647 workers in 335 firms to 18,023 workers in 279 firms, or a 35 percent decrease over the past five years. The average annual wage for Mississippi furniture employees in 2010 was $37,542.
Data for furniture suppliers in Mississippi from 2005 to 2010 show a decrease in the number of firms from 580 to 523, and a 29 percent decrease in the number of employees from 33,152 to 23,496. The average annual wage for workers employed by furniture suppliers was $45,862 per year. While furniture employment in the state is down, the industry still supplies 31 percent of the upholstered furniture sold domestically in the U.S. in addition to providing $1.4 billion in employee compensation, $5.5 billion in total output and $2.1 billion in value-added to the Mississippi economy. The location of furniture manufacturers and employment remains heavily concentrated in northeast Mississippi.
For more information, visit the National Strategic Planning and Analysis Research Center’s website at www.nsparc.msstate.edu.
Innovative furniture inkjet printing on children’s furniture
Digital printing is used on children's furniture.
Furniture company Funkids has updated its traditional range of children’s bedroom furniture to make it more attractive with the help of Mexican printer Extrema Publicidad and its Inca Eagle H inkjet printer.
Using traditional decals or vinyl for decoration can be labor intensive and high set-up costs make low-volumes cost-prohibitive. With Inca’s digital inkjet printing technology Extrema could produce one-time personalized designs for Funkids. Each design is repeatable. Extrema used its Inca Eagle H to print directly onto MDF and HDF to produce the range of colorful, themed designs.
Funkids provided several processes to Extrema Publicidad, from digitally cutting the individual pieces, substrate treatment and primer preparation before the pieces could be printed, then UV varnishing. With its Eagle H printer Extrema Publicidad was able to produce consistent, colorful graphics for children’s bedrooms.
Inca Digital Printers, www.incadigital.com, part of the Dainippon Screen Group, is a manufacturer of flatbed inkjet printing technology. Fujifilm Sericol manufactures and develops the UV inks used in Inca machines and sells the flatbed printers around the world.
Haworth partners with Italian furniture manufacturer at NeoCon 2011
North American-based office furniture manufacturer, Haworth, teamed up with Italy’s Poltrona Frau Group to present the latest products in its furniture collection at NeoCon 2011 in June.
Castelli products that debuted in the Haworth Collection include LTB Lounge modular furniture, which won Gold Best of NeoCon 2011 in the “Seating: Benches” category. The Haworth Collection also launched with two Castelli tables: Encourage and Bay.
Bringing home the big sound
Bassett Furniture and Boston Acoustics have partnered to introduce the Nvelop line of television cabinets with a built-in soundbar and powered subwoofer. Bassett is a manufacturer of home furniture and Boston Acoustics makes home entertainment products and high performance loudspeakers. The introduction marks the first time the two companies have worked together.
The Nvelop cabinets feature Boston’s soundbar system and digitally optimized virtual surround that is designed to envelop viewers in room-filling audio.
There are four credenzas in the Nvelop lineup, including large and small Philippe and Redin Park models. The credenzas are now available at Bassett Home Furnishings Stores, Bassett retailers and at bassettfurniture.com.
The credenzas have built-in 150-watt Boston Acoustics soundbar and powered subwoofer system that delivers a deep bass response to enhance the home theater, music or game experience. A built-in mini-stereo jack can be used for iPods, MP3 players and a computer audio connection. Vented shelves for additional audio and video components and built-in four-outlet power strip for simple wire management are included.
Consumers can switch between “virtual sound” for TV and games, and “stereo mode” for music.
“For the first time at retail under $2,000, American families will be able to bring big sound to their family rooms while avoiding all the clutter of speakers and wires, or the expense of installing a wall-mounted home theater system,” says Jason Camp, senior vice president of reail at Bassett Furniture.
“Nvelop credenzas offer consumers a simple, elegant solution to great surround sound,” says Ed Harary, Boston Acoustics senior vice president. “Furniture and flat-panel TV literally merge to create a total home entertainment system…that brings power, quality and dynamic audio punch toTV, movies and music listening.”
OFS shows casegoods office furniture lines at NeoCon
Contract furniture manufacturer OFS showed off its office furniture lines and casegoods collections at Chicago’s NeoCon 2011 in June.
OFS introduced its “Eleven” executive desk and casegoods platform, which was designed by Swiss architect Daniel Korb. The furniture line got its name from the 11 components it was built with, for flexibility without excessive structure. The company’s Offerings casegoods collection was displayed with a contrasting band design on the upper and lower cabinetry. The Impulse G2 casegoods office collection that was on-display at NeoCon features exposed wood surfaces in natural cherry, maple, walnut and quartered oak veneers. The company also showed its Sebree line of furniture for schools and offices, with a design that features veneers and glass with solid wood edges.
Allsteel debuts office furniture line at NeoCon
The Gather line features modern furniture for collaborative office workspaces.
At the NeoCon 2011 design fair in Chicago, Allsteel presented its latest office furnishings line for collaborative workplaces.
The furniture line, Gather, includes seating, tables, storage and accessories, many of which incorporate dual functions. The overall design is modern, the company says, with sparse lines and simple details.
In searching for design firms to work with on the Gather line, Allsteel sought out design concepts and product ideas from nearly a half-dozen firms, and selected two of these to collaborate with: IDa Design and HOK.
“Gather pushes the reset button on the definition of collaborative workplaces with some very clever and innovative solutions,” said Jim Cahill, Allsteel’s vice president product development and management. “Out-of-the-box thinking was highly encouraged as we began to explore the creation of furnishings to support this type of work environment. We knew our designs had to meet different criteria. The collection had to be conducive to idea sharing, consider varying body posture, and, ultimately needed to help catalyze increased productivity.”
