businessinfomag.uk
magazine
36
Time to adopt the
LOTUS position says Fellowes
Tayla Ansell tries out a
Varidesk sit-stand platform
Business products manufacturer
Fellowes, which celebrates its 100th
anniversary this year, has launched its
next generation Sit-StandWorkstation
to help improve wellbeing and
productivity in the workplace.
With 22 different height settings and
integral cable management, the LOTUS
sit-stand work surface encourages
staff to alternate between sitting and
standing positions, with no loss of
productivity. The LOTUS arrives fully
assembled and no mounting is required.
In an independent survey
commissioned by Fellowes, 94% of
European office workers admitted to
sitting at their desks for long periods.
One in three says they suffer from
ailments caused by computer use. Of
these, 60% claim their performance has
been either significantly or moderately
affected as a result.
Retro-fit workstations like LOTUS are
a cost-effective alternative for businesses
that might not have the budget to buy
purpose-built sit-stand desks, though
even these appear to be in hot demand.
The Varidesk sits on top of an existing desk and uses a spring-
assisted lift mechanism to raise the monitor, keyboard and mouse
to a standing height. It comes fully assembled and is available in a
variety of sizes.
I tested a Varidesk Pro Plus 36, which is designed to accommodate
dual-monitors and can support up to 15.8kg in weight.With a price tag
of £365, this is one of the cheaper sit-stand solutions on the market. It is
not as flexible as desks with a counterbalance mechanism or electronic
height adjustability, and the distance between the two decks (one for the
monitor and one for the mouse/keyboard) is fixed, which is a limitation.
Another potential drawback is that when the Pro Plus 36 is raised, it
also moves outwards so that you have to step back to work in a standing
position. This could be a problem for workers with little room behind to
back into. There is also a slight risk of trapping cables when raising and
lowering the Varidesk, though this can be avoided by taking care and
using the pack of velcro cable tidies supplied with the product.
These quibbles aside, the Varidesk Pro Plus 36 is solidly built and feels
reasonably sturdy when fully extended. Best of all, it is highly effective
and has done wonders for my circulation. Before installing the Varidesk,
my legs would become very painful after a day spent sitting down. Now
that I work standing up for 20 minutes in every hour, all pain has gone.
I never thought that simply standing up to work would produce such a
noticeable and rapid improvement in my well-being.
The Varidesk might not be as stylish, minimalist or adjustable as more
expensive products, but it does the job for me. After experiencing the
benefits of sit-stand working, I would urge everyone else to give it a go.
Research by project
and cost management
consultancy TowerEight indicates
that in the last year demand
for standing desks has grown by more
than 20% – a trend that has also been
noted by Mark Shepherd of theWagstaff
Group.
He said: “Any major UK project
we work on now has a big focus on
incorporating more sit/stand products,
together with the need to accommodate
more third space break-out areas. This is
an interesting modification in a client’s
wish list that we were not seeing three
years ago.”
He added: “Sit/stand desks will
quickly become a commodity-type
product and, along with break-out
areas, will take a large amount
of the project value in cash. The
demand is clearly there, although
price is still a key inhibiting
factor.”
That said, Shepherd
expects prices to fall as
demand grows and more
suppliers enter the market.
PEN TO PAPER: STATIONERY & OFFICE PRODUCTS UPDATE
ON TEST
FELLOWES :
LOTUS
ISSUE 131
