MODERN UPHOLSTERY TECHNIQUES AND MATERIALS

MODERN UPHOLSTERY TECHNIQUES AND MATERIALS

InternationalSpecialised Skills Institute Inc

ISS Institute Inc.2003 ©

Julian PrattISS Institute/TAFE Fellowship

Fellowship funded by ETTE, Victorian Government

ISS Institute/TAFE Fellowship

Furniture Upholstery Ju l ian P ra t t

Page 2

Contents I tem Page 1.0 Acknowledgements 3 2.0 Introduct ion 3 2.1 The Austral ian Context 3 2.2 Internat ional Special ised Ski l ls Inst i tute Inc. 4 2.3 Organisat ions 4 2.4 Fel lowship Detai ls 5 2.5 The Ski l ls Gaps 5 3.0 The Fel lowship Program 6 3.1 Introduct ion 6 3.1.1 In i t ia l Contacts 6 3.1.2 Main Body of Fel lowship 6 3.1.3 Austral ian Context 7 3.2 Host Organisat ions 7 3.3 Program Content 8 3.3.1 In i t ia l Contacts 8 3.3.2 Main Study Program 12 3.3.3 Austral ian Context 48 3.4 Other Places & People Vis i ted 49 4.0 Fel lowship Conclusions 51 5.0 Recommendat ions 52 6.0 Appendices 53



Page 3

1.0 Acknowledgements

Awarding body: In ternat ional Specia l ised Ski l ls Inst i tu te Fel lowship sponsor: Of f ice of Employment, Tra in ing and Ter t iary Educat ion

(ETTE) Assist ing bodies: Furn ish ing Tra in ing Vic tor ia and Moran of Melbourne 2.0 Introduction 2.1 The Austra l ian Context Due to the s ize of the loca l furn i ture manufactur ing market investment in to new and innovat ive techniques and equipment is very restr ic t ive. Uphols tery is the last area to be developed due to the product ion technolog ies and a lack of t ra in ing in new sk i l ls . The recent CSIRO repor t ‘Manufactur ing Technolog ies ’ has ident i f ied the need for the industry to develop a manufactur ing methodology instead of the cot tage industry approach i f i t to surv ive. To enable th is educat ion needs to prepare graduates wi th the correct sk i l ls in modern product ion techniques and equipment. The Austra l ian furn ish ing industry a im over the next 5 to10 years is to develop capaci ty to expor t to a l l major wor ld markets . The main reasons for th is are:

a . To combat the inroads imports are making in to the domest ic market , especia l ly in the uphols tery sector due to tax inconsis tenc ies.

b . Larger markets enable economies of sca le thus a l lowing bet ter product development and product ion processes and g iv ing greater re turns.

c . Export leve ls are incred ib ly low compared wi th overa l l manufactur ing vo lumes. Therefore, as compet i t ion increases and dol lar va lues are compet i t ive the industry has ident i f ied an opportun i ty to become a susta inable Industry f rom a smal l base.

The usual ly common held be l ie f that As ian countr ies dominate the import market is incorrect w i th in the furn ish ing industry . I ta ly has the largest import market share. Large manufactur ing bases, such as Natuz i , in Europe export large vo lumes of uphols tered furn i ture to Austra l ia . In Austra l ia uphols tery is a very labour in tens ive operat ion and requires a h igh degree of mater ia ls knowledge and sk i l l to produce qual i ty products . Even though uphols terers can earn a good wage there is a shor tage of qual i f ied t radesmen and a lack of people want ing to take up the three-year apprent iceship.



Page 4

2.2 Internat ional Special ised Ski l ls Inst i tute Inc. The In ternat ional Specia l ised Ski l ls Inst i tu te Inc. f i l ls gaps in industr ies and enterpr ises where the means of do ing so are not ava i lab le through government programs or Austra l ian TAFE inst i tu tes and univers i t ies. Operat ions are d i rected towards rebui ld ing specia l ised sk i l ls and knowledge, which are d isappear ing, or have been lost and br ings leading-edge technolog ies to Austra l ia . The way in which th is is ach ieved is by bu i ld ing g lobal par tnersh ips through the Fel lowship program, then the fe l low shar ing what he/she has learnt overseas through educat ion and t ra in ing act iv i t ies – one fe l lowship; many benef i ts . 2 .3 Organisat ions Over the prev ious 10 years the major industry body for the furn ish ing industry was the Furn ish ing Industry Associat ion of Austra l ia . I t is an organizat ion which is s ta te dr iven wi th a nat ional representat ive body. With the commerc ia l and nursery furn i ture sectors set t ing up the i r own organizat ions under the nat ional banner the industry has fur ther f ragmented. Over the last two years the FIAA nat ional has t r ied to un i fy the organizat ion to respond to the federa l governments ‘Act ion Agenda for the furn ish ing Industry ’ . The Federa l Government has p ledged 60 mi l l ion do l lars in funding to improve the ab i l i ty o f the sector to compete against aggress ive ly pr iced imports . The major areas of the agenda were bu i ld ing capabi l i ty , bu i ld ing capaci ty , innovat ion, market access, IT and the env i ronment. There are on ly two TAFE Inst i tu tes who of fer an uphols tery apprent iceship in V ic tor ia , Holmesglen Inst i tu te and Kangan Batman Inst i tu te . Holmesglen have had to reduce the i r teaching s ta f f down to on ly one and hal f teachers due to the lack of apprent ice enro lments even though the industry has ind icated a shor tage of uphols terers and the FIAA and ITAB are act ive ly promot ing the vocat ional pathways to school leavers (see Appendix 1) . There are no prov iders of furn i ture des ign for uphols tered furn i ture in V ic tor ia . In a recent survey of the members of the FIAA Designers Col lect ive not one is engaged in des ign ing uphols tered furn i ture. Th is i l lus t ra tes two of the b iggest areas of concern in th is industry sector , the lack of des ign and development input in to the product ion of uphols tered furn i ture in Austra l ia and the prevalence of Euro centr ic coping. Mater ia ls research has main ly been undertaken by ind iv idual manufacturers . The foam market is contro l led by two main p layers, Dunlop Foams and Joyce in V ic tor ia . Foam is a large component in the cost o f an uphols tered un i t therefore th is market is very compet i t ive. Th is has g iven r ise to lean product ion and innovat ive products for the market . Recent in t roduct ions have been h igh res i l ient foams, ant i -dust mi te foams and f i re re tardant foams. In the fabr ic and leather area there has been a consol idat ion of suppl iers and sp l i t between the contract (commerc ia l ) market and the domest ic ( re ta i l ) market . There are a few crossovers between the sectors but genera l ly the main factor is pr ice and wear o f the product . Many of the innovat ions overseas have yet to appear in Austra l ia due main ly to cost cons iderat ion even in the contract market .



Page 5

Environmenta l cons iderat ions in the furn ish ing industry on ly extend to waste min imisat ion in the domest ic product area. Yet in the contract product market government pressures wi th in large contract have seen L i fe Cyc le Assessment a common design methodology and packaging take back a major cons iderat ion. Even so we are wel l behind companies l ike Herman Mi l ler in the USA when i t come to env i ronmenta l impact o f product ion and product . Major manufactures us ing modern uphols tery methods in manufacture are l im i ted due to onshore focused sa les creat ing a smal l market s ize. Severa l manufactures such as Stem Industr ies have imported modern techniques and mater ia ls . These companies are near ly a lways in the contract market due to innovat ion in des ign and manufactur ing a dr iver in sa les. The major contro l l ing factor in the domest ic market in Austra l ia is the dominance of a few reta i l companies and buy ing groups dr iv ing the d i rect ion of product output . Branding is be ing suppressed and pr ice is cruc ia l in buy ing dec is ions. 2 .4 Fel lowship Detai ls The ISS Inst i tu te /TAFE Fel lowship was awarded to Ju l ian Prat t to undertake a program of s tudy in the furn ish ing industry by v is i t ing t ra in ing and industry fac i l i t ies in I ta ly and the Uni ted Kingdom The Sponsor o f th is fe l lowship was the Off ice of Employment, Tra in ing and Ter t iary Educat ion. 2 .5 The Ski l ls Gaps that were researched were:

Cold foam product ion In ject ion moulded p last ic f rames Mater ia l and too l development and substructures Modern product ion processes and associa ted safety s tandards Env i ronmenta l and susta inabi l i ty issues



Page 6

3.0 The Fellowship Program 3.1 Introduct ion This fe l lowship program was sp l i t in to 3 par ts , in i t ia l contact v is i t to the UK, Germany and France as par t o f a personal v is i t , the main s tudy tour program v is i t ing the Uni ted Kingdom, the Nether lands and I ta ly and th i rd ly an Austra l ian component on re turn. 3.1.1 In i t ia l Contacts In December 2001 I t rave led to Europe to invest igate poss ib le companies and organizat ions to v is i t in March 2002. In th is in i t ia l v is i t I cemented contacts wi th :

The Design Museum in London – Col laborat ive teacher workshops wi th des igners and industry . See Appendix 2

Dav id Gr imshaw, Lecturer a t Manchester Metropol i tan Univers i ty and a pract ic ing furn i ture des igner work ing in the uphols tered manufactur ing area.

Peter Corn ish, Head of School H igh Wycombe, Buck ingham Chi l terns Univers i ty Col lege.

John Highman, Director o f L igne Roset UK. Gerard L iaze, D irector VIA Mark Robinson, Engl ish Designer work ing in Par is on VIA Scholarsh ip . Ba ler ia Spa, I ta l ian manufacturer o f co ld foam uphols tered seat ing.

3 .1.2 Main Body of Fel lowship Study tour o f Uni ted Kingdom, I ta ly and the Nether lands. United Kingdom:

SCP – London, Sher idan Coakley re ta i ler o f up market domest ic /contract uphols tered furn i ture wi th des igners inc lud ing Jasper Morr ison, Mat thew Hi l ton, Tom Dixon and Jonathan Woodgate.

Thet ford Designs – Manufactures of SCP furn i ture under contract to see product ion and prototyp ing of new furn i ture products .

H i tch Mi l ius – Director , Tr is t rum Mi l ius, producers of uphols tered furn i ture wi th a h igh des ign focus. Products were featured in Home Sweet Home a tour ing exhib i t ion of Austra l ia in 2002.

Br i t ish V i ta – Foam products manufacturer , the largest in the Uni ted Kingdom. KLC – Simon Cavel le , D irector o f pr ivate In ter ior Design School in London Des ign Museum – Creat iv i ty and des ign teaching and h is tor ica l context .



Page 7

France: L igne Roset – Cancel led at last minute due to companies invo lvement in the Mi lan In ternat ional Furn i ture Fair . www. l igne-roset .com Netherlands: Trespa – Manufacturer o f qual i ty exter ior and in ter ior panel products where mater ia ls , innovat ion, lean manufactur ing, env i ronment and supply chain were invest igated. Replaced L igne Roset v is i t . www.trespa.com I ta ly:

B&B I ta l ia – product ion fac i l i ty us ing co ld foam construct ion. Ba ler i I ta l ia – Producer o f co ld foam/b lock foam construct ion. M i lan In ternat ional Furn i ture Fair – Mater ia l t rends and construct ion

methodology. B iesse – Pesaro, CNC manufactur ing methodology and technology.

3 .1.3 Austra l ian Context Opportun i t ies and avai lab i l i ty o f products , technology and equipment:

Mater ia ls – Fabr ics, Foams Equipment – Major suppl iers Methodology – Automot ive Uphols tery and des ign for modern product ion.

3 .2 Host Organisat ions: There was no one organizat ion that hosted me on the s tudy tour o f Europe but I based the tour f rom my parents home in Mi l ton Keynes in the Uni ted Kingdom. Close to ra i l and a i rpor ts a l lowed for sav ings in accommodat ion and f lex ib i l i ty in program. With In ternet and phone access a l lowed for communicat ions wi th poss ib le and conf i rmed v is i ts . A specia l ment ion should be made here for the support I rece ived f rom Sir James Gobbo AC CVO for estab l ish ing an opportun i ty to v is i t the I ta l ian furn i ture factor ies and Mar inda Smith for a l l her ass is tance across the mi les. I t is a lmost impossib le to see ins ide companies l ike B&B I ta l ia . I would a lso l ike to thank Dr Michele Per in i the Managing d i rector o f SAGSA and the head of ASSO Lombardo and h is ass is tant Susanna Monald i , w i thout the i r he lp and support the work S ir James Gobbo had done would have been wasted, Thankyou.



Page 8

3.3 Program Content: 3.3.1 In i t ia l Contacts In December 2001 I t rave led to Europe on a personal v is i t w i th my fami ly to spend two months v is i t ing fami ly and to invest igate poss ib le companies and organizat ions to v is i t in March 2002. I a lso v is i ted two major in ternat ional furn i ture shows; Par is and Cologne. The Powerpoint presentat ion of those shows are inc luded on the CD Rom accompanying th is repor t . Par is I t was in terest ing to see the d i f ference in s ty les f rom the two shows; the French was very decorat ive whi le the German had a lo t more funct ional e lement . Severa l companies showed at both shows, which was an incred ib le feat o f organizat ion, as the shows were back to back. Par is had a great sect ion on new mater ia l or mater ia ls used in a new way sponsored by VIA. Acry l ics and other p last ics were be ing explored. VIA in conjunct ion wi th major mater ia ls manufactures inc lud ing Dupont sponsored 20 pro jects for young des igner to product new furn i ture. VIA had created a tent in the middle of the exhib i t ion in which i t cou ld engage the publ ic in the ideas i t was moving forward wi th . Th is is were I met Mark Robson, an Engl ish Designer who was l iv ing in Par is and had developed a lounge chair made up of a new mater ia l f rom Dupont – E lastomer. I t had been developed by Dupont for Ford in Amer ica in response to the prob lem Amer ican’s were wear ing out the normal webbing in the i r Car Seats. The mater ia l has potent ia l to be moved over in to the contract furn i ture market eas i ly . There were severa l o ther new products shown in the new designers sect ion wi th in terest ing uses of uphols tery ‘Pouf ’ by Laurent Fonta i re and Reva made f rom polyether foam and made of foam and Kvadrat wool / fe l t fabr ic .

F ig 1 .1 Quan tum Sea t ing Des igne r : Mark Robson

Pho tog raph f rom des igne r & Ju l i an P ra t t

F ig 1 .2 Sp in Des igne r : Rene Barba

Pho tog rapher Ju l i an P ra t t

F ig 1 .3 Pou f Des igne r : Fon ta ine & Reva Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t



Page 9

The Euros i t Chair . www.Bobseat .com This chair has been des igned in co l laborat ion wi th s tudents o f the Inst i tu t Super ieur de Design.

Based on deconstruct ion the des ign of the Bob seat is c lean and ef f ic ient on mater ia ls . D id ier-Arnaud Borea the ch ie f des igner demonstrated how the in terchange of par t enables f lex ib i l i ty in product range wi thout extra too l ing. D id ier sa id good des ign in France is about producing someth ing new wi th a re ference to the past for the consumer to l ink to .

F ig 1 .4 The V IA ‘Ten t ’ Sa lon de Meub le2002 , Pa r i s Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t

F ig 1 .5 Eu ros i t Bob sea t cha i r Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t



Page 10

Other in terest ing developments:

Foam cut t ing of mat t resses and Gel seats : Emmegi , I ta ly

Cologne The Koln In ternat ional Furn i ture show ran s t ra ight a f ter the Par is ’s Salon de Meuble. I spent on ly a day qu ick ly look ing i f any furn i ture company looked good to v is i t in March. The three main uphols tered furn i ture manufacturers there worth pursu ing were Morroso wi th the i r V ic tor ia and Alber t range, Baler i w i th a range of formed foam p ieces and p last ic chair form Arte lano .

The three images in f ig 1 .8 show modern uphols tered furn i ture a l l us ing modern mater ia ls except Er ik Jorgensen is us ing Char les and Ray Eames’s fabr ic des igns f rom the f i f t ies and s ix t ies. Baler i had good in format ion about the construct ion of uphols tered furn i ture us ing a mixture of co ld foam and b lock construct ion. Th is wi l l be covered la ter in the main body of the repor t .

F ig 1 .7 Ge l cha i r Emmeg i , I t a l y Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t

F ig 1 .6 Foam Mat t resses de ta i l Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t

F ig 1 .8 Sk inned foamed cha i r A r te lano

Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t

L i t t l e A lbe r t Mor roso


Upho ls te red Cha i r s E r i k Jo rgensen




Page 11

People: David Gr imshaw - Lecturer a t Manchester Metropol i tan Univers i ty and a pract ic ing furn i ture des igner work ing in the uphols tered furn i ture. www.gr imshawdesign.co.uk David s tud ied 3D Design Degree in (Wood Meta l Ceramics) a t Manchester Poly technic . Af ter f in ish ing in 1989 he set up G.A.P. Design Associates wi th mysel f and Guy Avery. In 1992 he set Gr imshaw Design Associates work ing wi th large and smal l manfactures such as Al lermuir , Davison High ley, HNB, Aero and Viaduct , w i th c l ients inc lud ing L loyds Bank, Harrods, BBC, McDonalds, Abbey Road Studios and Br i t ish Telco lm. David s tar ted teaching at Manchester Metropol i tan Univers i ty 3 years ago. He has a good understanding of the contract and domest ic furn i ture market . H is comments on the manufactur ing of furn i ture in the modern g lobal landscape are be low: .

Des igners need to understand the whole work ings of a company f rom the product ion methods to the sa les and market ing to develop su i tab le des igns for the company.

Des igner should not be an ar t is t separate ly coming up wi th an idea. Ta lk ing to the MD is not a lways the best way to f ind out what is rea l ly needed Manufacturers must be f lex ib le in the i r range of products Large runs are no long v iab le Quick lead t imes and innovat ion are the key. Furn i ture manufactur ing has been dec imated in the UK in the la te 20 t h Century

wi th very few large producers le f t . Near ly a l l uphols tered furn i ture made in the UK uses t rad i t ional sk i l ls and

techniques even ‘des igner up-market ’ products . Recommended me to contact Tr is t rum Myl ius as he was a leading des igner in

uphols tered furn i ture. Peter Corn ish - Head of School H igh Wycombe, Buck ingham Chi l terns Univers i ty Col lege. H igh Wycombe is s t i l l the centre of furn i ture manufacture in Br i ta in wi th manufactures such Erco l s t i l l c lose ly l inked wi th the co l lege. The school o f fers a range of qual i f icat ion form t rade sk i l ls through to Phd research. Peter Corn ish estab l ished h imsel f as a top maker o f furn i ture in the 70 ’s and 80’s by set t ing up a product ion fac i l i ty for L igne Roset w i th John Highman the now Managing Director o f L igne Roset UK. Peter cons idered L igne Roset as probably the best example of modern manufactur ing of uphols tered furn i ture. Roset is very innovat ive in i t ’s product ion techniques and wi l l readi ly develop product ion machines around the product ra ther than the other way around. I t ’s product range is d is t inct ive and is very d i f f icu l t to copy. When asked about innovat ive mater ia ls use Peter suggested I invest igate Wi lkham in Germany and FIRA (Furn i ture Industry Research Associat ion) . Peter Contacted John Highman for me and we arranged to meet a t the Salon de Meuble in Par is . The Design Museum in London – Col laborat ive teacher workshops wi th des igners and industry . See Appendix 2 and main s tudy program.



Page 12

3.3.2 Main Study Program Sun 24 t h March Arr ived at Heathrow Airport London 6.30am Luggage lost due to in terna l system fa i lure P icked up by parents and drove to Mi l ton Keynes Mon 25 t h March Tra in to London 9.30am Meet ing with Jane Snel l ing, Educat ion Manager, Design Museum to invest igate the re lat ionship between educat ion, design and industry in the United Kingdom. Jane Snel l ing was t ra ined as a teacher in technology and des ign ( res is tant mater ia ls) The Design Museum, www.designmuseum.org was set up by Terrance Coran in the ear ly n inet ies and is a non-prof i t organizat ion educat ing and in forming Br i ta in about des ign. I t runs exhib i t ions and workshops that support both the Design and Technology and Ar t and Design curr icu la . The museum has set up “Designers in Act ion” workshops for teachers to prov ide knowledge and understanding of des ign in the “ rea l ” wor ld . The workshop has been considered a success (see Appendix 2) as i t shows profess ionals produce des igns. I t is focused on creat iv i ty , th ink ing sk i l ls and la tera l th ink ing not des ign methodology The museum has produced 4 resources packs, Chairs , Memphis , Innovat ion and Verner Panton, a imed at school curr icu lum, which, have excel lent mater ia ls for s tudents and teacher. Copies of which can be bought d i rect f rom the web s i te . Design has become an overr id ing theme f lowing through most areas of educat ion and manufactur ing in the Uni ted Kingdom today, “Design or D ie” was one comment. Br i t ish industry cannot compete on pr ice against Eastern European imports . Design is the d i f ference industry be l ieves wi l l save them. Jane descr ibed the UK l ike an adolescent who has just learnt a new sk i l l , raw and showy but now matur ing. The major des igners work ing in uphols tery shown at the museum were two French brothers, Ronan and Erwan Bouroul lec who recent ly worked for Cappel l in i Habi ta t and Vi t ra . 2pm Ideal Home Show, Ear ls Court London There was an appal l ing s tandard of products on d isp lay to the publ ic . There was a des ign consc iousness in the uphols tered furn i ture but most were imported products f rom Natuz i , I ta ly and Spanish companies.

Green Cha ise lounge Ronan and E rwan Bourou l l ec




Page 13

Tues 26 t h 9am London Simon Cavel le, KLC School of Design KLC is a pr ivate f in ish ing school for in ter ior des ign and decorators . S imon is the d i rector and is a lso the pres ident o f the In ter ior Design and Decorat ing soc ie ty o f the UK. KLC is s i tuated at Chelsea Harbour next door to the des ign center , which inc ludes a text i le house wi th 70 suppl iers represented. Creat iv i ty is the essence of KLC t ra in ing and i t was d iscussed that creat iv i ty is underp inn ing to a l l areas of good bus iness. The school is very successfu l as London is booming wi th the Engl ish love of o ther cu l tures and inabi l i ty to purchase larger homes dr iv ing in ter ior re furb ishment. There are opportun i t ies in Melbourne to develop programs to teach creat iv i ty as there is a need to have a d i f ferent mind set to cope wi th compet i t ion and a change in customer needs. K ingcome, Chelsea Harbour Design Centre K ingcome is a top end uphols tered furn i ture manufacturer based in Devon. They produce the i r qual i ty bespoke sofas us ing so l id wooden f rames. They have found i t d i f f icu l t to get young workers to s tar t in the uphols tery t rade. The company through i ts founder and lead uphols terer recent ly developed a range of new modern contemporary s ty le furn i ture based on the i r product range. The innovat ion was in the deta i ls and s t i l l had the qual i ty o f the i r o ther ranges. I t was commented that to move forward manufactures should look at fabr ics , foams and dacrons and other mater ia ls for innovat ion. F ig 2 .1 , Leg fea tu re .

F ig 2 .2 , Cush ion de ta i l show ing loose cush ions f i t t ed to f rame .



Page 14

26t h March Cont inued 2pm Tr istrum Myl ius, Hitch Myl ius, Enf ie ld, London Hi tch Myl ius has been operat ing for over 30 years wi th Tr is t rum as des igner /d i rector w i th one other des igner . The company has been at i ts present premises for 6 years as i t has expanded to outgrow i ts or ig ina l premises. The company focuses on qual i ty des ign uphols tered furn i ture for the contract and h igh-end domest ic markets . The company has exhib i ted at the Cologne In ternat ional Furn i ture Fair for the last 2 years. I t w i l l concentrate on the 100% Design show at Ear ls Court f rom th is year . Most fabr ics used are s ing le co loured wool b lends and leathers. They carry a smal l s tock and make to order . Fabr ic is ordered on receipt o f order and the products are produced on a 5-week t ime l ine (subject to fabr ic supply) . The fabr ic is cut by hand and sewed on normal machines. The foam is s tandard b lock foam bought f rom conver ters . There are on ly three major suppl iers o f foam in the UK; Dunlop, Br i t ish V i ta and one other , which Tr is t rum could not remember. H i tch Myl ius uses recyc led foam as a hard substra te and is cut to shape on form. Fabr icat ion is based on h igh sk i l l w i th low-tech machinery and s tandard too ls . Webbing and spr ings are normal and the beech f rames are subcontracted out . Most shaped f la t panels are CNC cut f rom Medium Densi ty F ibre board panels .

F ig 2 .4 Foam Cu t t i ng on Fo rm

For fur ther products and out l ine see Appendix 3 or www.h i tchmyl ius.co.uk

F ig 2 .6 Upho ls te ry shop

F ig 2 .5 The sew ing room

F ig 2 .3 H i t ch My l ius Foye r



Page 15

27t h March Research Day

• Conf i rm Thet ford Design Meet ing for 28 t h March • 5pm Hire Car for t rave l to Thet ford Design, At t leborough Norfo lk • Conf i rmed Trepsa Hol land v is i t and booked a i r f l ights . • Pers is ted wi th L igne Roset through Gerard L iaze, D irector o f VIA, France • Looked in to v is i t ing B iesse in Pesaro when in Mi lan i f V is i ts fa l l through. • Organised v is i t to V i ta foam Ltd, Midd leton England.

28 t h March Bruce Al len, Matthew Hi l ton and Jorge Quarta at Thetford Designs, Att leborough, Norfo lk, England to see modern designed upholstered furni ture being prototyped for the Salone del Mobi le, Mi lan. The v is i t enta i led the v iewing of the Balzac chair be ing uphols tered and the prototyp ing of the buf fa lo chair for the SCP stand at the Mi lan show. Mat thew Hi l ton is a wor ld-renowned des igner . He has work wi th many of the top European furn i ture manufactures. In 2001 the Gef fyre Museum in London ran a one-man show showing h is depth of work and qual i ty o f h is des ign. Mat thew stud ied furn i ture and three-d imensional des ign Degree at K ingston Poly technic in 1979. He worked industr ia l des igner for Apr icot Computers for the next four years. He f i rs t produced the Bow shelves for SCP and exhib i ted at the Salone del Mobi le Mi lan 1986. He has worked wi th cont inenta l companies such as Dr iade s ince 1992. Mat thew turned up wi th h is ass is tant , Jorge Quarta. There were on ly two days le f t to produce the prototype before i t had to be sh ipped to I ta ly . I t was very in terest ing to see how a top des igner would prototype a new product . I t was very much a t r ia l and error process wi th the mater ia ls . Mat thew Hi l ton had exact ly what he wanted in h is head and was able to work wi th Bruce Al len to scu lp ture the form. This was very much a low-tech approach wi th the uphols terer work ing on the form then the des igner ad just ing the form. Tools inc luded s tandard na i l gun, angle gr inder , foam saw and sc issors. The mater ia ls inc luded under lay (Barr ier c lo th) , Dacron, normal foam and a Fel t wool mix Divana 2 f rom Kvadat .

F ig 2 .8 Ma t thew H i l t on and B ruce A l l en work ing on the Bu f fa lo p ro to type


F ig2 .9 Ba lzac cha i r f oam de ta i l Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t



Page 16

There was at tent ion to deta i l w i th spending a lo t o f t ime making sure the curves were r ight . The chair went to Mi lan and then returned to be pu l led apar t to make pat terns for the foam sub-contractors . The Balzac chair manufacture demonstrated that the at tent ion to deta i l in the uphols tery was cruc ia l to produce a qual i ty product . When f i rs t in t roduced the chair d id not se l l wel l but over t ime i t has developed in to a top se l ler in the upper market bracket w i th Coran, SCP and L iber tys a l l s tock ing i t . In the book form h is Gef fyre exhib i t ion Matthew Hi l ton sa id

“ I had grea t d i f f i cu l ty in unders tand ing the des ign ing and product ion o f upho ls te ry

and I res is ted the t rad i t iona l method cha i rs and so fas wh ich have been produced in

Br i ta in in a v i r tua l ly unchanged way s ince the n ine teenth century .

I t seemed to me to be a s t range and very o ld - fash ioned process wh ich invo lves

mak ing a ske le ton o f wood and cover ing i t layer by layer w i th spr ing ing and d i f fe r ing

dens i t ies o f foams and f ina l ly s t re tch ing a sk in o f lea ther o r c lo th over the body. I t i s

ra ther l i ke remak ing f rom ins ide ou t the an imal f rom wh ich the lea ther had or ig ina l ly

come.

I a lso had d i f f i cu l ty w i th the fus ty , t rad i t iona l es tab l ishment image tha t fu rn i tu re

con ju red up when anyone ment ioned tha t I m igh t des ign some upho ls te ry . A k ind o f

capac ious , sedate and very mascu l ine cha i r appeared in my mind, wh ich was

remin iscent o f a Bournemouth ho te l and re t i red Br i t i sh Empi re tea p lan ters . I t was

see ing the work o f Char les and Ray Eames, par t icu la r ly the Lounge cha i r and

foo ts too l o f 1966-7 , wh ich he lped to change th is percept ion . I cou ld see the f reedom

o f des ign poss ib i l i t ies , a l though the techn iques and methods o f p roduct ion remained

the same.

I wanted to make upho ls te ry , wh ich had more energy and movement . Upho ls te ry , fo r

me is about scu lp tu re , shape, fo rm, and about in t imacy . A d in ing cha i r o r o f f i ce cha i r

i s about ser ious s tu f f : schoo l , learn ing , d in ing , work ing , So fas are about sex , ch i l l ing

ou t , TV d inners , ta lk ing , s leep ing . ” 1

The Div ina c lo th is so ld through Kvadrat , www.kvadrat .dk a Danish manufacture. I t has great qual i t ies for the des igner and prototyper as i t is very forg iv ing and wi l l s t re tch wel l around foams. The top ic o f fab ics wi l l be covered la ter in th is repor t .

1 Ma t thew H i l t on – Exh ib i t i on Ca ta logue , Ge f f y re Museum 2001



Page 17

The Bar r ie r C lo th is on ly used in Br i ta in to p roduce a f i re p ro tec t ive layer under no compl ian t fabr ics o r lea thers . Regu la t ion was in t roduced in the la te e igh t ies a f te r severa l fa ta l domest ic f i res caused by ign i t ion o f mater ia ls .

The lea ther sample is a s tandard qua l i ty lea ther .

The uphols tery process

‘For H i l ton the process of producing a new design s tar ts w i th po lystyrene

model or a l ine drawing. The des ign is worked up through a ser ies of

prototypes. The f rames for h is sofas and chairs are produced by makers Rider

and Dunnet t , a lso in At t leborough, whose sk i l l and exper ience are important to

the development o f a successfu l des ign. Oak is used for support ing legs and

beech for the f ramework, forming a r ig id s t ructure of great s t rength and

durabi l i ty .

At Thet ford Design the f rames are covered wi th Hessian and f i t ted wi th

spr ings in d i f ferent gauges of z ig-zag s tee l , the s t rongest be ing in the seat .

H igh-densi ty foam supports for the uphols tery are cut to pat terns and

del ivered to the workshop as s tandard p ieces, ready to be g lued to the f rame

wi th contact adhesive.

Making pat terns for the uphols tery is much the same as for dress-making,

us ing ca l ico p inned, marked and s t i tched, f rom which cardboard templates are

made. The cover ing leather or fabr ic is cut us ing the templates, machine-

st i tched and s t re tched over the furn i ture and cushions, which are f i l led wi th

duck feathers.2

2 Ma t thew H i l t on – Exh ib i t i on Ca ta logue , Ge f f y re Museum 2001



Page 18

None of the development or product ion

used by Thet ford Designs re l ies on a

modern uphols tery technique, instead uses

t rad i t ional ones but w i th a h igh sk i l l and

qual i ty . Design and qual i ty are a b ig reason

for what makes the products h igh ly

se l lab le .

29 t h March Good Fr iday, Personal break to 1s t Apr i l 2n d Apr i l Br i t ish Vita, Middleton meet ing with Peter Kinghorn Br i t ish V i ta (web s i te) is par t o f the largest company in Europe producing foam products . There are three main considerat ions in foam product ion and use in Br i ta in , these are:

F i re re tardancy – government leg is la t ion for safety reasons. Env i ronmenta l cons iderat ions – chemica l used and product ion safety . Product ion ef f ic iency - cost sens i t ive to raw mater ia ls suppl iers but consumer

pr ice po in ts f ixed. Foam is a re ta i l dr iven market w i th po lar isat ion of manufactur ing companies by consol idat ion of large companies and specia l izat ion growth The b ig get b igger , the very smal l surv ive and the middle d isappears. CNC cut t ing equipment has created a capabi l i ty to produce specia l gut foams. The idea is to a l low the foam to co l lapse loca l ly to g ive bet ter overa l l support .

Ba lzac Cha i r upho ls te ry sequence Pho to f rom Ge f f y re Museum Ca te logue 2001



Page 19

F ig 2 .10 3D Foam Cu t t i ng Pa t te rn

b

F ig 2 .11 Cush ion Cross Sec t ion Br i t ish V i ta has in t roduced a pressure test ing fac i l i ty to compare pressure created whi le a person s i ts on the foam of a chair . Appendix 4 i l lus t ra tes Ref lex ion VS, a s low recovery foam. I t demonstrates how pressure bu i lds up over t ime. Appl icat ion could inc lude ca l l centers , hospi ta ls , power p lants and where people s i t for long per iods of t ime. The company manufactured co ld foam in Bol l ington, Cheshire and was very expensive to set up and in f lex ib le in des ign. I t would be su i ted to modular furn i ture. B lock foam is much cheaper to produce and can be cut to any form as long as i t was not compound. May be i t is the convers ion of the foam we can improve. Reading the companies magazine the were are two ideas:

1 . “A i r isn ’ t f ree” – the ar t ic le d iscussed the improvement in compressor use. Doubl ing the pressure roughly quadrupled the cost o f generat ing compressed a i r .

a . Check for leaks b. Compressors turned of f when not needed c. Reduce pressure i f can d. Insta l l a var iab le compressor .

2 . “Energy ef f ic ient machines and waste reduct ion” – wake up to c l imate

change.



Page 20

f i g 2 .11 Re f lex foam des igned to s imu la te l a tex foam

Comments f rom Peter K inghorn:

Br i t ish furn i ture manufactures lag behind in technology. They are very conservat ive ‘as long as i t seems the same’ they would be happy Foam is not a b ig feature in the UK, the publ ic l ike very sof t w i th 6 inch

cushions. Cost is a major dr iver . V i ta cannot increase pr ices as customers would go e lsewhere. Suppl iers can ra ise the i r pr ices for the raw mater ia ls as they have are very

large mul t i -nat ionals who contro l the market (Shel l , Bayer) . Leg is la t ion in f i re re tardancy reduces ab i l i ty o f innovat ion in products .

3 r d Apr i l Sher idan Coakley, owner/d irector, SCP, London SCP www.scp.com.uk s tar ted as bus iness in the ear ly e ight ies se l l ing second hand c lass ic furn i ture in Shord i tch, London. The r is ing s tars o f the la te e ight ies and ear ly n ight ies: Jasper Morr ison, Mat thew Hi l ton and Tom Dixon were engaged to des ign new products . The des igners grew wi th the company to be a leading force in the resurgence of Br i t ish des ign. SCP has shops in London and Manchester and exhib i ted at 100% design and the In ternat ional Furn i ture, Salone del Mobi le , Mi lan. Other products so ld inc lude h igh design p ieces such as F i tz Hansan and Zanot ta . Sher idan be ing a h igh prof i le f igure in the furn i ture re ta i l sector had a great depth of knowledge of t rends. He was rea l ly approachable and helpfu l w i th contacts in the industry and h is ass is tant Kat i Pr ice a lso was extremely he lp fu l and very in terested in the fe l lowships ideas. Sher idan inv i ted me to the opening n ight o f the i r s tand at the Salone del Mobi le , Mi lan.



Page 21

Sher idan’s comments inc lude:

A l l uphols tered p ieces are wool or wool / fe l t mix . Fabr ics are p la in (Kvadrat) , which make them t imeless and us ing wool / fe l t mix

is good for cover ing imperfect ions. UK has very few “ furn i ture manufactures” le f t w i th near ly a l l subcontractors ;

tube benders, a luminum castors , uphols terers and cabinet-makers. Chr is topher Ty ler is probably the largest in the UK. Des ign has now more in f luence on purchase considerat ions. H igh s t reet re ta i lers contro l the market . Qual i ty and de l ivery on t ime are the most important buy ing dr ivers for SCP

customer. Pr ice is not an issue des ign is . Europeans too led up – Br i ta in went for qual i ty or went bust . The cost o f European furn i ture is just as h igh i f not h igher than top qual i ty UK

wooden f ramed p ieces. Des igned furn i ture in Europe is s l ight ly th inner . I ta l ian manufactur ing model was d iscussed. (see be low)

F ig 2 .12 Examp le o f I t a l i an mode l

Foam

Frames

Sewing

Assembly

Marketing Company

Most compan ies a re marke t ing she l l s w i th j us t an assemb ly p lan t and a ne twork o f spec ia l i sed subcon t rac to rs : me ta l t ub ing , f i n i sh ing , foam work , g lass , t imber and p las t i c

Subcon t rac to rs a re spec ia l i s t i n the p rocess they a re i nvo lved in . Th is a l l ows the compan ies to be adap tab le and no t res t r i c ted by p lan t and expens ive equ ipmen t



Page 22

4 t h Apr i l Contact w i th Natuz i , Bar i , I ta ly . Through Dr Michel le Per in i SAGSA head of Asso Lombardo I contacted Natuz i to t ry to v is i t the i r factory the fo l lowing week. Due to commerc ia l conf ident ia l i ty and not us ing co ld foam in i t ’s manufactur ing they dec l ined but the product ion manager emai led me the processes they used to produce the i r sofas. The fo l lowing is the paraphras ing of the I ta l ian:

In most cases, t imber is used for the s t ructura l e lement in main f raming whi ls t

in areas wi thout great importance/ loading. In armrests , areas rear o f the back-

rest , and to the s ides pressed cardboard and/or p last ic laminates are used. In

th is phase, the sourc ing of new mater ia ls such as meta l-based mater ia ls for

susta inabi l i ty needs, to reduce the use of t imber is be ing looked at . Some rare

t imes co ld po lyurethane product ion is cons idered, but th is so lu t ion is on ly

re la t ive to a par t icu lar n iche of the market (or product des ign) .

The second phase of set tee product ion consis ts o f the construct ion of

uphols tery , which can be rea l ised accord ing to the des igned funct ion of the

set tee and the par t icu lar market .

In the case of mass produced ( low end of the market) the uphols tery consis ts

o f back cushions of TNT (preformed polyurethane) which is covered in 18-

36mm of Dacron to f i l l the cushion case; for the seat ing, the cushions are in

po lyurethane wi th a densi ty 25-30 KG/M3, and rebound of 70-80, on a so le

po lyurethane st ru t 400g/m2, and p laced on a base of e last icated s t raps

grappled onto the edge of the t imber f rame.

In the case of set tees for the middle market , the padding of the back could

consis t on ly o f Dacron (18-36mm) th ick, or even made f rom a combinat ion of

reconst i tu ted rubber la t t ice/waf f le w i th feather and polyester f iber , p laced in

the in terna l sect ioned/pockets o f a cushion to opt imise the back comfor t .

Seat ing uphols tery o f ten consis t o f po lyurethane of var ious densi t ies,

potent ia l w i th a ***** o f 450-500 g/m2, and the d i f ferent appl icat ions of the

many grades of po lyurethane is ca lcu la ted by var ious test ing machines to

determine the required funct ion and a lso comfor t .

For h igh end set tees, the back uphols tery consis t o f t rans lucent cot ton

covered cushions, Mul t icamere, w i th an feather f i l l ing, o f ten the back feather

cushion ing requires to be beaten/puf fed to even out the feather densi ty . The



Page 23

seat ing consis ts o f a lower grade polyurethane, (15 mm versus the 25-30 of

o thers) , however most important ly and successfu l ly are cushions wi th a mixed

f i l l ing of feather and rubber la t t ice waf f le , are far more super ior to that o f

feather a lone

At the end, they are covered in a pre-sewn leather cover , which is f ixed to the

d ivan f rame by na i l gun/c l ips.3

4 t h Apr i l Travel to Weert , Nether land 5 t h Apr i l Trespa, Weert , Nether land The in format ion on th is v is i t w i l l be prov ided in a separate repor t on the f la t panel industry and CNC machin ing 6 t h Apr i l Rest Day 7 t h Apr i l Travel to Mi lan then onto Bergamo

3 T rans la t i on f rom I ta l i an by D iana Ros ica f rom B la B la , Na tuz i



Page 24

8t h Apr i l Baler i , Bergamo www.baler i - i ta l ia .com Baler i was founded in 1984 and is based in Bergamo 1 hour east o f Mi lan. They se l l a range of furn i ture produced f rom stee l and foam as base mater ia ls . Engineer ing and construct ion is a very important e lement in the i r des ign and manufactur ing ph i losophy. I have inc luded 5 des igns to demonstrate the deta i l Ba ler i has gone to develop a product that looks compl icated yet in a manufactur ing env i ronment the processes are s imple to ach ieve. 1 . Capr ichair , Hannes Wet ts te in , 1990 To produce a smal l armchair that is extremely re l iab le in terms of durabi l i ty and comfor t . The “Capr i ” ser ies is a lso des igned for publ ic use, for conferences, museums, exc lus ive a i rpor t lounges, h igh- t ra f f ic spaces: the construct ion deta i ls , especia l ly the rec l in ing back, make i t a very durable, re l iab le ob ject , so much so that test ing has guaranteed i ts durabi l i ty for over wel l over 200,000 cyc les. The f ive po in ts o f support , one of which is externa l , ensure s tab i l i ty and s t rength, in sp i te o f the smal l s ize of the un i t . 4

4 Unde rwear , Ba le r i I t a l i a 2001

Image o f Capr i cha i r f o rm Underwear . Ba le r i



Page 25

2. Mol ly , Enr ico Ba ler i 1993 Maximum comfor t in a min imal space, created in compl iance wi th the ru les of eco logy, the s tandards of the fu ture. Simul taneous chal lenge and homage to the forms of modern, us ing the technology and the forms of the Postmodern era: a system of uphols tered furn i ture wi th removable s l ipcovers, but w i thout the usual image of such products . The ind iv idual components are made wi th s ing le b locks of foam rubber, produced wi thout f reon in keeping wi th the most r ig id e th ica l and ecolog ica l s tandards, which wi l l hopefu l ly be those of the fu ture . 5


Image o f Mo l l y fo rm Underwear . Ba le r i



Page 26

Norman, Hannes Wet ts te in , 1996 How to fur ther per fect a per fect sofa. A d ivan wi th an in ternat ional ly c lass ic form, to “ last a l i fe t ime”: the on ly way to improve such a product is to work on i t ’s in terna l s t ructure. A sophis t icated system of smal l var iab le-res is tance leafspr ings, together w i th the c lass ic e last ic be l t ing, ensure maximum comfor t for a l l types of users, w i thout a l terat ions or deformat ion over t ime. Good des ign, good mater ia ls , opt imal pr ice-qual i ty ra t io .6


Image o f No rman fo rm Underwear . Ba le r i



Page 27

B i l l , Hannes Wet ts te in , 1994 A d ivan wi th a def ined form, in f in i te ly adaptable to ind iv idual comfor t needs. The decis ive e lement for the comfor t o f th is d ivan is the cushion which together w i th the s t ructure, is a concentrate of technology qual i t ies . The core and the in terna l f i l le r shaped in e ight t rapezoida l par ts and at tached to a r ig id , jo in ted gr id , make i t poss ib le to obta in – in keeping wi th the cushion pos i t ion se lected by the user – gradual sof tness on one s ide and equal ly wel l -ba lanced support on the other . 7

Image of B i l l construct ion

7 Unde rwear , Ba le r i I t a l i a , 2001



Page 28

9 t h Apr i l B iesse, Peraso www.biesse. i t /eng/menu.html The in format ion on th is v is i t w i l l be prov ided in a separate repor t on the f la t panel industry and CNC machin ing 10 t h Apr i l Sa lon de l Mobi le , Mi lan www.cosmit . i t Zanot ta Cubica, Ti to Agnol i F la t pack uphols tered furn i ture – space sav ing in t ransport

A fo ld ing chair w i th meta l f rame and hook and loop fasten ing methods. Moroso www.moroso. i t Wool p la ins, net t ing fabr ic and sofas wi th low arms:

Kvadrat fabr ic is a dominant force in the contract market w i th the p la in wools l ike Div ina 2 and the net t ing fabr ic Act ion Fabr ic a used wel l a t the show.



Page 29

Ross i d i A lb izzate spa, www.ross id ia lb izzate. i t No corners a l l rounds and creams and browns Campeggi sr l , www.campeggi . i t Furn i ture wi th someth ing e lse Sofas to tab les low tab les to beds and l ights to tab les. L igne-Roset , www. l igne-roset .com Var ious products . New products inc luded lounge chair w i th magnet ic cushioned pads on head-rest and seat . The magnets were in the f rame and the pads had meta l p la tes. The quest ion would be does the magnet ic f ie ld a f fect the body as i t so c lose to the head?



Page 30

Leolux Meubel fabr iek bv, www. leo lux,com One manufacture that can produce so d i f ferent products ; Par is was h igh qual i ty whi le Mi lan was fun and innovat ive. Ar t i for t , www.ar t i for t ,com Seamed uphols tery .

Pa r i s January 2002 M i lan Ap r i l 2002



Page 31

11t h Apr i l B&B I ta l ia , Novedrate h t tp : / /www.bebi ta l ia . i t A Br ie f h is tory . B&B I ta l ia s tar t out in 1966 the same year I was born as C&B I ta l ia , a par tnersh ip between Piero Busnel l i and Cesare Cassina, hence the name. In 1973 Cassina wanted to buy out Busnel l i but he re fused and countered to buy Cassina out . With l i t t le capi ta l to ca l l upon Busnel l i had to br ing in two banks to f inance the deal . Busnel l i jok ing ly say that ’s how B&B I ta l ia s tar ted: Banks and Busnel l i . One of the founding pr inc ip les the company s t i l l ho lds to is rea l ism: facts and resul ts . The company is a combinat ion of leading contemporary des ign and rea l product ion techniques us ing new product ion techniques and new mater ia ls . One of the most important par ts o f B&B success and longevi ty a t the forefront o f qual i ty products is the i r Research and Development Centre. I t has been a conjuate between des igner and the industr ia l manufactur ing that make B&B so prof i tab le . I w ish to quote f rom the book g iven to me by Mr Gaviraghi on leav ing the factory a t Novedrate which ta lks about how the RDC operates. : ‘F i rs t come the moulds for the furn i ture bodies, one of the f i rs t th ings to be mass produced by the company. They were a pro ject choice because the product ion of the shel ls not on ly rep laced the t rad i t ional method for the manufacture of padded furn i ture, i t a lso changed the bas ic des ign. Another major feature of the innovat ion in t roduced to both des ign and product ion was the use of foam – the best answer yet to the prob lem of padding. The work conducted by the Research and Development Centre in th is f ie ld is probably the most advanced in the sector . The structures w i l l a lso be descr ibed because, o f course, sofas and armchairs must support the i r own weight and that o f o thers. Th is subject w i l l be deal t w i th as i f arch i tectura l s t ructures. The next sect ion deals wi th upholstery . The layman might th ink i t unusual to apply terminology of the c lo th ing industry to the product ion of furn i ture. However, the choice of c lo th , leather , s t i tch ing, qu i l t ing and sof tness accounts for much of the work. Last , but not least , comes the par t deal ing wi th other materia ls , those not normal ly used in B&B I ta l ia ’s padded furn i ture product ion. The s tudy in th is area is one of the most d is t inct ive features of the Research Centre. ’8 8 P ie rpa r ide V i ta r i (May 1982 ) , p89 , An Indus t ry fo r Des ign , Ed iz ion i Lyb ra Immag ine 1999

Guido Besana , qua l i t y Un i t manager B&B I ta l i a



Page 32

I w i l l not go in to too much deta i l here as the in format ion on the construct ion of the B&B I ta l ia range is set out in the book l is ted be low. Ref lect ions on the factory . On enter ing the factory space my f i rs t impress ion was where were a l l the workers. On fur ther d iscuss ion wi th Guido Besana, the qual i ty contro l manager, the on ly manufactur ing done ons i te is the foam mold ings, fabr ic and leather s torage and check and cut t ing and the f ina l assembly. A l l the meta l f rames are fabr icated externa l ly . A l l the sewing is outsourced which bas ica l ly le f t assembly as a f ina l B&B par t . B&B I ta l ia are s t i l l producing c lass ic des igns f rom the s ix t ies as wel l as la test ranges of fu l ly uphols tered chairs . The key was f lex ib i l i ty as the foams and fabr ics s tayed pret ty constant . The three areas I saw as ahead in product ion terms were:

1 . D ig i ta l ly Laser nested pat terns on leather h ides and a 10% bet ter y ie ld f rom each h ide.

2 . Hook and loop fasteners for most uphols tered fabr ic un i ts and us ing removable covers for a l l des igns.

3 . Dacron outer cover is sewn and s tap led to p last ic runners in the f rame. The cover is po lyester fabr ic backed to a l low for the hook and loop to ho ld to .

Other comments:

A very c lean process as most is fabr icated outs ide (meta l work) The process on ly uses the foam needed so do ing sav ing waste and cost . Reduced labour t ime in each sofa wi th no s tap l ing and foam cut t ing. Qual i ty checks at a l l s tages. (The company has in s tore the f i rs t o f every sofa

made Customer requirement in sof tness can be achieved eas i ly . A l l seams are double s t i tched and over- locked to prevent f ray ing. Carry s tock l ines of fabr ic and s t r ic t ly check a l l s tock enter ing the factory . Can change foams quick ly , Br i ta in requires combust ib le modi f ied foam. Use smal l sect ion s tee l in f rames to s top the f rame being fe l t by the user .

The B&B model rep l icates Sherr idan Coakley s ta ted I ta l ian model l is ted ear l ier in the repor t . The comment f rom some designers was i t is near impossib le to v is i t factor ies around Mi lan as near ly a l l are just marketers o f assembled furn i ture. Th is a l lows f reedom for them to change and adapt to market demands quicker as the capi ta l in p lant is less.

A lma Rober to Ba rb ie r i Pho tog rapher : j u l i an P ra t t



Page 33

B&B I ta l ia ’s new products

Detai l work From Mi lan Fe l t

Z ipp ing

Fe l t Wa l l Lady Fa t – Pa t r i c ia U rqu io la Me t ropo l i t an – Je f fe ry Benne t t Pho tog rapher : Ju l i an P ra t t



Page 34

Fo ld ing

Compound corners

Inver ted seams



Page 35

In terna l curves

Techno fabr ics



Page 36

VIA –(Valor isat ion of Innovat ion in furni ture) VIA was set up in 1979 on the in i t ia t ive of the development commit tee of the French Furn i ture Industr ies wi th the support o f the Min is t ry o f Industry . h t tp : / /www.v ia .asso . f r /gb /ga le r ie /de fau l t .h tm I t ’s miss ion is to va lor ize and promote contemporary creat ion in furn i ture des ign ( furn i ture, l ight ing, tab leware, decorat ion accessor ies, text i les….) both in France and abroad. *3 In Ju ly 2000 I met Gerard La ize, the Chief execut ive of VIA when RMIT hosted a luncheon for Furn i tex 2000 in Melbourne. Through contacts over t ime Gerard has been shown to have a great ins ight in to the furn ish ing industry wor ldwide. In January, as s ta ted before, I spent somet ime ta lk ing wi th h im and VIA at the Par is In ternat ional furn i ture fa i r . So I arranged to meet up again at the VIA “Shed” o f f s i te f rom the main exhib i t ion s i te . Most o f the furn i ture d isp layed was not uphols tered yet was very in terest ing f rom a des ign v iewpoint . Probably the most re levant p iece on d isp lay was the Pouf Doum Designed by Sophie Larger , www. inouides ign.com

Mobi Discovery Chi ldren project VIA had just f in ished a pro ject to put des igners in to pr imary schools and k indergar tens around France. Gerard and h is ass is tant were very exc i ted about the Mobi pro ject , as i t had been a great success. The fo l lowing is a paraphrased t rans la t ion of the pro ject out l ine and outcomes:

Pou f Doum- Des igne r Soph ie Lage r A i r f i l l ed cush ion

Image by Ju l i an P ra t t

Mob i exh ib i t i on , V IA Ga l le ry Image f rom V IA web s i te



Page 37

MOBI-DISCOVERY: CHILDREN DESIGNERS

Operation: “Mobi-discovery” results of a close collaboration between the

French Furnishing Industries and the French Ministry of Education (IFA)

Aim: - Develop a “ furn i ture creat ive sp i r i t ” in pr imary school ch i ldren

- Tra in ing of a cr i t ica l look at everyday ob jects in the everyday l i fe o f

these ch i ldren.

Thus, ch i ldren d iscover a un iverse that is

not that fami l iar to them. Two years

exper iment w i th a Par is ian pr imary c lass,

then a secondary one has he lped teachers

and des igners bu i ld many pedagogica l

“br idges” .

I t has come to f ru i t ion through the

manufactur ing and exhib i t ing of furn i ture

prototypes imagined/des igned by the pupi ls

then brought in to l i fe / rea l ised together w i th VIA.

(The importance of innovat ive furn i ture or the he ighten ing awareness of

innovat ion in furn i ture) .

For a great v isual d isplay of the project fo l low th is l ink and c l ick on the MODE TV report icon.

http://www.via.asso.fr/gb/galerie/default.htm

Mob i exh ib i t i on , V IA Ga l le ry Image f rom V IA web s i te



Page 38

Mobi-Discovery

The success of f i rs t exper iment brought about by the “Mobi-Discovery” program, could

be at t r ibuted to the Min is t ry o f Educat ion ’s 5 year p lan in the development o f Ar ts and

cu l ture in schools ; “The estab l ishment o f ar t is t ic and Cul tura l Pro ject in schools”

(PAC).

The French Furn ish ing Industry has made avai lab le a budget o f 304,900 euros. 40

pr imary c lasses or pre-pr imary c lasses (nursery school , K inder) in 10 schools have

been put in contact w i th des igners and loca l communi t ies, th is be ing in l ine wi th a 30

year po l icy (o f these Industr ies) a iming at s t imulat ing the leve l o f demands and

requirements of French homes and the i r aesthet ic sens i t iv i ty for the i r immediate

env i ronment.



Page 39

1998 – 2000. A pilot operation that brings about its fruit .

S ince b i r th , a ch i ld d iscovers a space where furn i ture is adapted to i ts s ize. (Cot ,

h igh-chair then a b ig bed etc) . Of ten the magica l aspect o f these p ieces of furn i ture

are rep laced by i ts funct ional one

1998 Operat ion ‘Mobi – Discovery ’ s tar ted wi th a pr imary school c lass that fo l lowed on

in to e lementary cer t i f icate, (Yr 6 pr imary school) . These ch i ldren through the i r

teacher ’s + VIA’s he lped d iscover the un iverse of furn i ture through workshops in

express ion and creat ion in i t ia t ion in to d i f ferent s ty les and mater ia ls , v is i ts to

specia l ised museums.

The s tudent ’s des i res, expectat ions be ing expressed, they par t ic ipated in the

concept ion of the i r dream furn i ture.

Th is operat ion cu lminated wi th the achiev ing of three p ieces of furn i ture.

1 . A chest o f drawers recto/verso (back to back)

2 . The boat-bed

3 . Sofa/heads or ta i ls .

A l l were exhib i ted in the VIA Gal lery Ju ly /August 1999, 13th around Town Hal l in

Par is then in the Salon du Meuble (Par is , Jan 2000).

Furn i ture des igned by the ch i ldren and rea l ised by des igners was scu lpted in

po lystyrene, then manufactured in one of f samples/models .

2000/2002



Page 40

A development of national scale and proportions Min is t ry o f Educat ion created a f ive year p lan of Ar ts and Cul ture development in

schools . French Industry and the Min is t ry o f Educat ion wish to pro long th is

adventurous pro ject , a par tnersh ip agreement could be s igned in the near fu ture.

Th is operat ion “ch i ldren des igners” br ings about a deep ref lect ion on the concept o f

furn i ture, i ts funct ions, work, s tudy, teaching, s leeping and wi l l a l low us to co l la te the

ch i ldren ’s expectat ions in the matters o f des ign, aesthet ics and comfor t and the very

d iscovery of furn i ture through meet ing des igners, v is i t ing manufactur ing s i tes eg. VIA

Gal lery .

C lass pro jects encompassed l i festy les, h is tory o f s ty les and des ign creat ions.

Workshop act iv i t ies were adapted to ch i ldren ’s ages and c lass leve ls , adventure and

p lay be ing the s t rong po ints in the learn ing process of genera l d isc ip l ines.



Page 41

Creativity and Technologies

This invo lved the awakening of ch i ldren to the i r da i ly env i ronment ’s and the i r

par t ic ipat ion in develop ing the i r cr i t ica l minds when fac ing consumer

movements/act ions.

Design: Opportunity to better understand the world. Min is t ry o f Educat ion env isages des ign to lead to a bet ter d iscernment in

communicat ion procedures and consumer issues, develop ing ch i ldren ’s sensi t iv i ty in

behavioura l , re la t ional ( the ch i ldren ’s) , env i ronmenta l and economic issues, thus

educat ing the i r cr i t ica l capaci t ies when confronted wi th consumer ism issues. Th is

concords and meets wi th the wishes of French Furn ish ing Industry for whom the

development o f the leve l o f demands and requirements in the f ie lds of qual i ty and

aesthet ics is a pr ior i ty .

Ministry of Education and French Furnishing Industry This par tnersh ip inc ludes enterpr ises which are keen to estab l ish exchanges wi th the

publ ic and which are prepared to open the i r manufactur ing s i tes to the ch i ldren to

in t roduce them to the i r profess ional sk i l ls . Th is invo lved 40 c lasses in approx imate ly

10 schools , des igners and des ign schools as wel l as profess ionals , technica l h igh

schools and loca l communi t ies.

March 2002 Children designers

An exhib i t ion in Par is Gal lery VIA and a tour o f France.

The years 2000 and 2001 have wi tnessed the achievements of

• The par tnersh ip between the Min is t ry o f Educat ion and French Ind.

Of Furn i ture, the launching of the pro ject and the s tar t o f act iv i t ies in des igner schools

work ing in c lose co l laborat ion wi th the teachers. As for the ch i ldren i t ’s another look

has penetrated the c lassroom* * No te o f t rans la to r . I t cou ld a l so mean the ou te r wo r ld l ooks a t t he c lass room d i f f e ren t l y , bo th mean ings cou ld be taken



Page 42

VIA: Thirty projects The f i rs t se lect ion of works and the manufactur ing of the prototypes were carr ied out

and 2002 exhib i t ion pro ject arrangements. VIA Gal lery f rom 28 March to 16 June

2002 then a tour in the prov inces.

With ‘Mobi-Decouverte ‘ , furn i ture as emot ional symbols o f our cu l ture and soc ie ty has

entered the school , invo lv ing every ch i ld in the recogni t ion of sens i t ive and rat ional

in te l l igence.

Pedagogica l re investment in to the educat ional impl icat ions of ar t is ts in schools ,

he ightened the ch i ldren ’s sensib i l i ty thus French Furn ish ing Industry and the Min is t ry

o f Educat ion jo ined forces in the i r w ish to see an evolut ion of menta l i t ies through Arts

& Cul ture.

Quotes

“See the wor ld through ch i ldren ’s eyes”

“See the furn i ture through ch i ldren ’s eyes”

“One day we were ch i ldren”

“One day we wi l l have ch i ldren”

Let us a l low them ( f ina l ly ) the poss ib i l i ty to express the i r approach

Let us estab l ish a d ia logue wi th them to exper iment to construct [a hauteura l

e leve]

Who wi l l learn more f rom the other?



Page 43

Gerard Laize, VIA Manager The or ig ina l i ty o f Mobi-Decouverte has touched VIA whose miss ion is to encourage

innovat ion in a l l f ie lds concern ing our surroundings and l i festy les. Profess ionals are

aware of the d i f f icu l ty o f p lanning furn i ture dest ined to ch i ldren. Therefore inv i t ing

ch i ldren to re f lect about the i r env i ronment a l lows the understanding of the log ic w i th

which young ones perce ive the i r surroundings and to br ing to the fore the i r formal

codes and co lour choices. Considerat ion by parents and teachers of the importance of

the i r space management thus is a pedagogica l p lus.

Th is program inv i ted adul ts to take in to account the ch i ldren ’s expectat ions and

demands by invo lv ing them in as far as choice is concerned ( Isn ’ t that the case wi th

c lo th ing?)

F i rs t exper iments have shown that ch i ldren v isual ize ob jects wi th the concept

down/up, the opposi te apply ing to adul ts (up/down). We cannot constra in the ch i ldren

to s ta t ic posture through r ig id type furn i ture, as they ( the ch i ldren) tend to move every

45 seconds. I t is not surpr is ing therefore that they create, imagine and wish for round

shapes favour ing movement.

I t is necessary to remind ourse lves that the human body does not conta in any r ight

angle?

Colour codes dest ined for ch i ldren cannot be set in s impl is t ic terms.

Preferences in co lours are in t imate ly l inked to v isual educat ion ( i f TV screen s i tuated

wi th red) . Other factors namely cu l tura l as age wi l l in f luence these choices of ten

unconsc ious ly .

Invo lv ing them in re f lect ing upon th is process wi l l cer ta in ly br ing about consequences

in how they wi l l env isage the i r in ter ior décor in the long run.

A l l these factors conf i rms the VIA a ims to be an act ive par tner in th is pro ject ,

sponsor ing the f i rs t nat ional re t rospect ive of these act iv i t ies f rom 28 March to

16 June 2002.



Page 44

Two schools present their work. Beuzeuvil le and Pont-a-Marcq Boat/Shelter and Star/sofa. Proud ch i ldren presented d ic t ionar ies, reper to i res, moulds, in ternet s i te , CD Rom,

p last ic par ts workshops, wr i t ing of a ta les, h is tor ic f r iezes, deta i led accounts o f the i r

d i f ferent v is i ts to the Salon du Meuble Par is 2001 and meet ings wi th des igners and

craf tsmen.

Buronomic Enterprise. Beuzevi l le ’s par tner presented the f i rs t fu l l s ize model : Wardrobe/h id ing p lace.

Aura Leblanc bu i l t one of the “branches” o f the i r s tar /sofa for Pont-a-Marcq School .

P i lo t commit tees have set up a pedagogica l prof i le through meet ings which teachers,

industr ia l is ts , des igners out l in ing the i r ob ject ives and constra in ts .

Children furnish their school l ibrary at Pont-a-Marcq. Through the Mobi-pro ject the pupi ls have act ive ly par t ic ipated in the furn ish ing of

the i r l ib rary and the creat ion of seat ing. They were ab le to create a model to sca le ,

tak ing in to account the pract ica l , aesthet ic and warm aspects o f the env i ronment. I t is

through the i r par t ic ipat ion, the s tudents became aware of the i r in teract ion wi th in the i r

env i ronment through layout and p lanning. Together they imagined a s tar /sofa which,

thanks to i ts branches, a l lows a whole c lass to s i t together or they invent a bus

shel ter in the form of a boat (a t Beuzevi l le) .



Page 45

The Artistic and Cultural class Project (PAC) class. A realistic ambition I t a ims to in teract in school teaching, ar t is t ic and cu l tura l educat ion, th is be ing bu i l t

around 3 pr inc ip les.

1 . Bui ld ing br idges between the ar t is t ic and cu l tura l f ie lds and other f ie lds of

knowledge of compulsory subjects .

2 . I t assoc ia tes teachers wi th researchers and ar t is ts .

3 . I t a l lows as far as poss ib le the achievement o f an ar t is t ic pro ject w i th in s tudent

leve l /potent ia l .

PAC c lasses are compulsory. Educators us ing competencies of an ar t is t or cu l tura l

consul tant e laborates a pedagogica l /ar t is t ic pro ject (8 – 15 hours) us ing the cu l tura l

resources wi th in reach.

A ful l spectrum of f ields

• Themes of PAC were le f t to the educator ’s in i t ia t ive, par t ly determined by the

cu l tura l pro jects o f the school (music , p last ic ar ts , c inema, audiov isual , dance,

theatre , photographs, nat ional her i tage etc) .

• A s imple and access ib le pedagogica l f ramework of re ference.

• Genera l format o f PAC c lasses were based on academic or departmenta l p lans

for Ar ts and Cul ture.

• Academic inspect ion ( f rom k inder to High School) avo ided formal is t ic excesses,

respect ing l ight , easy-going procedures and qual i ty requirements.

• Every endorsed accepted pro ject were g iven 610 euros per c lass per annum

from Min is t ry o f Educat ion and i t can receive addi t ional contr ibut ion of o ther

par tners eg. Min is t ry o f Cul ture and/or loca l communi t ies.



Page 46

Designers relating their meeting and working with children. Cherif, Cherif Creations When the ch i ldren des ign a p iece of furn i ture they re la te to a s tory . Cher i f has been

h igh ly in terested by the i r innocent spontaneous approach and aston ished by the i r

pract ica l very prec ise and creat ive mind. Chi ldren love furn i ture they can co i l in , ro l l

themselves in , a t t racted by that which can be touched.

The Designer , a gu ide, he lps them to re la te what they see, t ry ing to reproduce not an

ob ject but a gesture, an act or a deed. The prototype is the resu l t o f the express ion

of the i r un iverse.

A. Fernoglio and F. Lecourt, Siamo design. Very surpr ised by the ch i ldren ’s ab i l i ty to express what they have observed; through

dreaming they imagine furn i ture in a very rea l is t ic un iverse, a concept “a s t rong

cast le” or a boat /bed.

Many ch i ldren saw themselves ins ide the furn i ture, eg. a l i t t le g i r l in her drawings

p ic tured herse l f locked in a wardrobe, a few weeks la ter the door was opened and th is

matched the considerable progress she had achieved.

Sonio Deleani and Eric Fache – E & S Design We are leading an in-depth re f lect ion wi th the ch i ldren s tar t ing f rom an analys is o f the

spaces at home estab l ish ing the d i f ferences between the furn i ture to the express ing of

the i r dream-furn i ture.

We t ry to in t roduce them to the r ichness of mater ia ls : wood ( for them a p iece of

furn i ture is made of wood) but a lso others: meta ls , p last ics , foam as wel l as co lours

and shapes. In 3D objects Chi ldren tend to draw f la t and making of models has been a

de l icate operat ion. Chi ldren s tar t w i th anecdota l and personi f ied drawings, cat /bed,

whale/chest o f drawers, man/armchair and they have to be g iven keys to overcome the

f i rs t s tage.

We were surpr ised by the way they t ransformed the i r surroundings: a wardrobe

becomes in terest ing i f they can enter and l ive in i t , a carpet is fasc inat ing i f i t can

emit l ight e tc…



Page 47

Sophie Larger - Inoui design Sophie Larger has realised that contemporary furniture is also a discovery

for the adults. She expects a lot from the children; they possess a more

simple vision, more spontaneous, quite precise- this fact helps her to

simplify her professional approach.



Page 48

12 t h Apr i l Travel back to UK 13 t h Apr i l F ly back to Melbourne 3.3.3 Austra l ian Context S ince re turn ing f rom Europe I have at tempted to d iscover i f any of the technolog ies and mater ia ls are a l ready avai lab le here in Austra l ia . I have a lso spent t ime d iscuss ing the des ign and uphols tery o f many of products I brought back in image form. Pressure test ing. Herman Mi l ler , www.hermanmi l ler .com This is a very in terest ing company who has been forward th ink ing in most areas of furn i ture for many years. The repor ts ava i lab le over the in ternet on the env i ronmenta l aspects o f the i r product ion and products are immense. They are a l ready us ing pressure test ing of the foams in the i r o f f ice chairs . F lowtex, Steven Kel ly Steven Kel ly is an ex-s tudent o f mine f rom Box Hi l l TAFE Inst i tu te and is now work ing for a company producing chairs for the medica l market us ing the same technology as Herman Mi l ler and Vi ta in the UK. This has poss ib i l i t ies to be developed. Environmental Fabr ics. I have spent a long t ime t ry ing to t rack down the Kvadrat fabr ic in Melbourne. None of the fabr ic used in the ‘modern ’ sect ion at the European shows I cons idered to be forward th ink ing are not ava i lab le as yet . The Messenger fabr ic marketed as an env i ronmenta l fabr ic in Europe by Kvadrat is actua l ly made by another company in the Uni ted States. There are ‘Env i ronmenta l ly Fr iendly ’ fabr ics based on the recyc led mater ia l focus avai lab le in Melbourne: Designtex fabr ics ( f rom the US www.dtex.com ) are avai lab le f rom Ar l i tex in R ichmond www.ark i tex.com.au . They have a “waste not , want not” 100% recyc led so lu t ion dyed polyester fabr ic . At present I am d iscuss ing wi th severa l manufactures about the v iab i l i ty o f us ing th is type of fabr ic as i t does not cope wi th heavy wear and therefore unsui tab le for the contract market . Unfor tunate ly th is is the on ly sector that w i l l pay the pr ice the fabr ics cost . Other suppl iers o f th is type of fabr ic are Terratex, www.Terratex.com and Nuno www.nuno.com . Local manufactures of green processed fabr ic inc lude Macquar ie Text i les , www.macquar ie text i les .com.au .



Page 49

Modern Techniques and machinery There are two areas that need to be explored in th is sect ion:

Automot ive Uphols tery Machinery imports

At present I am wai t ing to v is i t Holden to invest igate the opportun i t ies for cross over o f technolog ies between the furn i ture and car industry . The automot ive industry is dr iven by innovat ion and a manufactur ing ethos so any poss ib le benef i ts should be invest igated fu l ly as the furn i ture industry t r ies to compete on a wor ld s tage. The import o f complex machinery to improve product iv i ty in the uphols tery industry has main ly focused on CNC technology. The technology that I saw in B7B I ta l ia was shown for the f i rs t t ime in Melbourne at Furn i tex, the annual furn ish ing show case. Severa l major manufacturers , inc lud ing Moran of Melbourne are very in terested in t r ia l ing the technology. 3 .4 Other p laces & People v is i ted 10 t h Apr i l Meet ing with Tony and Peter Schiavel lo for evening meal at their hotel Hotel Meldia Mi lan Genera l conversat ion about why we were a l l a t the Mi lan show. We d id touch on the at t i tude of many of the workers coming in to the industry : very l i t t le pr ide in the i r work and understanding of bas ic construct ion and mater ia ls is lack ing. Schiavel lo is run on a qual i ty pr inc ip le , Tony descr ibed i t as a cost sav ing as there are very few returns now as they t ry to min imize the poor ly made product by des ign ing in qual i ty . Env i ronmenta l issues wi l l grow and the industry needs to pressure the suppl iers to l i f t the i r game on waste reduct ion an product take back for source recyc l ing, eg. Laminex and par t ic le board. Meet ing with Susanna and Dr Michele Per in i on the SAGSA stand in the contract sect ion of the Salon del mobi le, Mi lan. They inv i ted me to the i r 80 t h anniversary par ty on the 12 t h but I was unable to a t tend as I was f ly ing out on the 12 t hback to the UK to co l lect a l l my be longings to f ly back to Melbourne the next day. Dr Michele Per in i was very he lp fu l in organiz ing the B&B I ta l ia v is i t a t a t ime when he was incred ib ly busy wi th the Mi lan show. Contacted James I rv ine and ta lked on the phone about work ing as a des igner wi th manufactures in I ta ly and main ly Mi lan. www. james_irv ine.com



Page 50

As s ta ted before I v is i ted Biesse in Peraso and Trespa in the Nether lands whi ls t on my study tour I w i l l compi l ing another shor ter repor t for these v is i ts in January 2003.



Page 51

4.0 FELLOWSHIP CONCLUSIONS Lack of Design in Development of Upholstered Product Europe is very different yet, has a lot of similarit ies to Australia. It has a larger market yet the industry is in the same boat as Victoria has found itself over the last f ive years: cheaper imports and skil l shortages. Countries have responded differently. Britain has gone design or die, France is educating its youth to grow demand for quality design, Italy with its rich 20th history of design has specialised (craftsmen) the skil ls into sub contracting companies. Germany has always prided itself on the build of products so has only marginally been affected. Their use of technology is the key to competit ive edge. The UK relies on a tradit ional skil l base with l i t t le CNC for components and focuses on the design (style) to increase sales. The Ital ian model rel ies on vision of subcontractors to set up business. Specialisation is starting to happen in Victoria. This production model wil l suit the shorter development and sell ing cycles we are now encountering in Australia. New is now.



Page 52

5.0 Recommendations Series of workshops

a. Upholstery construction and materials for designers b. Upholstery design for production c. Design (creativity for teachers) d. Joint projects designer/manufacturers produce upholstery

prototypes for annual exhibit ion. Sponsored Look at possibil i ty of sett ing up a (upholstery) furniture research centre to investigate new ideas, techniques and materials. Designers in schools project: Funded art ists in residence in primary schools – products made by industry (colleges) RMIT. Further study into auto upholstery, pressure testing and environmental design in upholstery. Develop further l inks with B & B Ital ia’s Research Centre to see if ISSI can bring a person from their DRC to work in one of the workshops for designers. Develop ways to combat retailers de-branding of product for the mass market. Feed ideas to industry and Education. Increase design awareness of public Improve product quality – lift level of product.

Documents

MODERN UPHOLSTERY TECHNIQUES AND MATERIALS