The difference between the space and a workstation at workplace is people can get up whenever and do whatever else to shake things up without risking their livelihood (and the chair isn’t shared with over a thousand other people). I think several hours of continuous use is a reasonable expectation for a chair in this setting of the space. I think durability and cleanliness should outweigh comfort over an 8+ hour sitting in this setting.
6 Likes
I think this is important. The typical use case at DMS seems to be closer to that of a conference room chair than a desk chair. Some members may sit in them for longer periods but I suspect that 0-2 hours is far more common than >2 hours and even on longer intervals the occupant is likely taking breaks that are more frequent and longer than a typical office worker.
2 Likes
We have Steelcase Criterion chairs at work and if this fabric resists stains and odors, I’d hate to see what they consider “non-resistant” fabric. The fabric also wears quickly.
1 Like
Similarly unimpressed with the Steelcase Leap. Cylinders failing after <2 years - especially in conference rooms - upholstery fraying after the first year, padding going flat after the first year, arms failing in <2 years after casual contact with desk edges. Not sure how “stain resistant” the upholstery was, but I’m pretty sure the black fabric was hiding innumerous stains … I thank my below-average sense of smell that I was unable to detect odors.
1 Like
There’s nothing like rolling your chair to the conference room for a departmental lunch and then getting back to your desk with someone else’s chair and its incumbent odors and stains… 
Have a techie member design the chairs, then let’s build a prototype, then enlist one area to build the parts, one to sew covers, another to paint said parts, assembly by everyone, put em on the interwebs, and sell a million…bingo, no more budget worries! 
Of course then the name would have to change to Dallas Chair factory…
.
1 Like
Layer chairs for everyone!
I’m not a giant fan of the Criterion chairs for similar reasons. These were the standard chairs for the non-management worker in most of the corporate offices I’ve done printing for. Can’t say I knew any worker that loved them. I’m really not a fan of Arm rests for multi-use chairs. They just fail so often.
1 Like
Fabric and padding for comfort? Or Non absorbent, more durable seating? That is obviously the difficult question DMS has to decide and unfortunately, as evidenced by ongoing discussion by members, it will never meet everyone’s needs. Regarding Steelcase chairs, I’m just sharing my experience with it over 30 years in office facilities with hundreds of people in each building. Its proven very durable and reliable to the extent that fabric cushioned chairs would be expected to. My guess is that Herman Miller is probably the same quality, but I’ve not worked it. I think the most important thing the committee can take forward is to chose a few different types of chairs to match the usage in the different areas and understand the decision will forever be debated 
1 Like