The world and the business of commercial furniture, just as every other business sector and indeed subject you can think of, has its own vocabulary and jargon.
To those that work within the commercial furniture sector or own businesses within it such as office furniture suppliers and manufacturers, all of the words used will be known to them as well as their native language.
However, to everyone else, including those who might wish to purchase office furniture for their business or an organisation they repressible for such as a school, medical facility or government department, the jargon used might seem like a foreign language to them.
In truth, some of the terminology within the commercial furniture sector will be relatively obvious. For example, you, we presume, know what an office chair is.
However, do you know what an ergonomic office chair is? How about a bariatric chair that you might find in a health facility?
We assume the majority of readers will not know what these are, so we are going to resolve that and also help you understand what other terminology means with our glossary of commercial furniture.
Adjustable Lumber Support: A part of a chair that adjusts to provide extra support for the back and thus aid sitting posture.
Anti-Rebound: Prevents a drawer from reopening when it is closed with force.
Back Pitch: The angle of a chair’s back relative to the seat.
Bariatric Chair: A chair designed to be wider for those who are obese or overweight, which has added strength and can provide comfort for the user.
Case Goods: Freestanding commercial furniture i.e. not connected to other furniture or walls.
Credenza: Often found in company boardrooms, it is a display cabinet that also has storage.
Ergonomics: The study of how humans work in specific environments, including their efficiency.
Ergonomic Chair: A chair, usually within an office, which has been designed to include numerous adjustments. These allow aspects of the chair to be adjusted to suit any body type and thus provide optimal support and comfort.
Executive Chair: A high-specification office chair made from premium materials such as leather and normally used by CEOs and other top executives.
Foot Ring: Found on stools, this is an adjustable bar that helps to support the feet and legs.
Ganging Bracket: This bracket is used to connect seats and tables together often in several rows for large meetings and conferences.
Hardboard: A material used for manufacturing numerous types of office furniture, it is comprised of compressed and hardened wood pulp.
Lumbar Support: The part of an office chair is situated where the lower back is to help maintain the spine’s natural curvature.
Modular Furniture: Commercial furniture which can be installed to a specific configuration, then disassembled, and then made into a different configuration based on specific needs and usages.
Mesh Office Chair: A chair whose back has a webbed material, known as mesh, made either from fabric or synthetic materials and which provides ventilation whilst adding comfort for the person using the chair.
Pedestal: A freestanding cabinet that has a set of drawers and is sometimes used to support a desk.
Pivot Arms: These are arms on an office chair that can be moved to different angles to suit the chair’s user.
Seat: Although this term is often used simply to refer to an entire chair, it is, in fact, the part of the chair that the user sits on i.e. what their backside is on.
Standing Desk: A desk that has an adjustable table top that can be set at numerous heights, including those which allow the user to stand at their desk, often to the benefit of their health.
Tamperproof Furniture: This is commercial furniture for health facilities that treat mental health patients which cannot be tampered with or disassembled for the safety of patients and others.
