A 60-Year Old Way of Working
April 7, 2020
I recently took a trip down memory lane with my 89-year-old Father, finding a picture of him which was taken in the early 60’s. The image is of him next to a raised drawing board sat on a high stool.
From my earliest memories I can remember going to work with him on an early Saturday morning, watching him spend part of his time sitting on the stool and the other standing.
Familiar?
The way my Father worked in the early 60’s is known as ‘Active Working’. It’s regularly promoted and known as best practice for office workers, particularly those who spend more than 70% of their day in a sedentary position.
It’s also how I now spend my time working when I’m at my desk in the Workspace Health office.
I constantly wonder where it all went wrong in the last 60-years. Who believed that sitting down all day and not moving was a progression?
Now, the HAG Capisco which encompasses ‘Active Working’ and I regularly use at Workspace Health was actually launched in 1984. It’s undoubtedly a design classic but, presents features that will have a strong future in the world of sit-stand working.
Its high gas stem allows for perching whilst working with a desk in a raised position. The chair also allows you to sit in multiple ways as well accommodates a more normal sitting position.
After little research, you can find out that the HAG Capisco was actually inspired by the dynamic postures of a Horse Rider. The likeness resembled in its sculptural saddle seat and curvaceous back rest.
Think.
How many sit-stand desks have you seen where the height has never been adjusted?
Is this down to poor education? Or, are users not intuitive enough to go from sitting to standing at the desk?
Now, going from perch sitting to standing is a small fluid movement. Spending some time at a normal sitting height still has value, especially when intensively typing, but when reading standing or perching is the perfect work system.
Of course, like most developments, this information I’m telling you isn’t new. We know there has always been a need for the sedentary working population to stand up and become more ‘active’.
So, if you’re considering a sit-stand desk, why not consider the HAG Capisco to go with it?
Reference:
Vimeo Animation by Jan Konings
https://blog.flokk.com/the-story-of-a-design-icon-h%C3%A5g-capisco