All You Need To Know About Ergonomic Seating

What does Ergonomics Mean?

Ergonomics is the science of designing office environments and products to match the individuals who use them. The word ergonomics comes from the Greek “ergon” meaning “work” and “nomos” meaning “law.”

How Can Ergonomics Help?

Ergonomics can promote better health, improve body posture, and reduce absenteeism. It also provides relief from stress, fatigue, eye strain, headaches, blurry vision, back problems, and neck problems. Ergonomics can reduce the risk of Receptive Strain Injuries and carpal tunnel syndrome.

What Should I Do?

No one can afford to miss work because of serious health problems that can occur from sitting the wrong way, so we feel it is important to share our knowledge on the subject. For today, the focus is going to be on proper seating. The goal of ergonomic seating is to make sure you are continually in a comfortable working posture that naturally aligns with all of your joints.

A sturdy frame makes a big difference for both durability and comfort. Most office chairs can handle weights of up to 250 lbs. However, 3.8 million Americans actually weigh more than 300 lbs. Fortunately, there are manufacturers out there making chairs that can hold greater amounts of weight comfortably and stylishly. Many, like the chairs over to the left can hold up to 500 lbs.

LOWER BODY: For your feet should either rest comfortably on the floor or you should use a foot rest. The seat should be well padded to support your hips and thighs. The seat should at least be 16 inches off the ground. Proper seat height determines how much pressure is placed under your thighs, which affects blood flow to your legs. The length of the seat pan should be between 15 and 17 inches and it should be at least 18 inches wide. The edges should be padded and shaped with soft, firm material. However, it shouldn’t be too contoured since this will restrict changing positions when needed. The depth of the seat pan should be adjustable for shorter or taller users. A waterfall seat edge helps reduce pressure at the back of the knee, contributing to good blood flow. Following these simple rules helps you avoid pressure under your thighs, easing blood flow.

BACK: It is important that the backrest of your chair corresponds to the natural curvature of your spine. Support for the lumbar region is vital! A good ergonomic chair should allow you to adjust the back height, which helps create proper lumbar support. If you don’t have access to an ergonomic chair, roll up a towel or use a cushion to support your lumbar region. Your head and torso should be in-line with the head bent slightly forward. Your shoulders should be at ease. The backrest should widen at its base and curve in from the sides, like the human back does. It should be at least 15 inches high and 12 inches wide. The backrest should also let you recline at least 15 degrees and lock into place if you need it to. It should go up high enough to provide enough support for your upper trunk, neck, and shoulders. Following these simple rules reduces the likelihood of back pain.

ARMS: Your hands, wrists, and forearms should be in a straight row and nearly parallel to the floor. The elbows should be close to your body. The bend of elbows should be between 90 and 110 degrees. The distance between the armrests should usually be at least 16 inches. It is a good idea to have a chair that has removable and adjustable arm rests. The length and width of the arm rests should be large enough to support your forearm. Armrests should also be firm and soft. Following these simple rules reduces muscular effort in neck and shoulders, minimizing risk of pain in these areas.

OTHER ERGONOMIC SEATING TIPS: Though the rules above may give you the image of a very stiff individual that is simply not the case. It is greatly important that you move around once in a while. It is not healthy to remain in one posture for too long. Remember to change your position occasionally. Adjust your chair and backrest regularly. Also, stretch your fingers, hands, arms, and torso throughout the day. Mesh chairs are becoming more and more popular. When purchasing a mesh chair, it is important to make sure the mesh offers proper support and is not too flimsy or stiff. Lastly, many health insurance policies cover special ergonomic chairs. Be sure to check if yours does too!

For more information on ergonomic seating, contact us at (904) 724-6400 or visit our website. You can also follow us on twitter: @GatorOfficeFurn

Buy Used Furniture to Look Great, Save Money, and Help the Environment!

We enjoy providing our customers with quality new products, but we are incredibly proud of our reputation as a retailer of quality used furniture as well. Before accepting used furniture, we check out the pieces in person first. We want to be proud of every item we sell. You have probably seen the large selection of used items and file cabinets out front of our showroom, but have you seen the Aladdin’s cave of quality furnishing inside?

At Gator Office Furniture, we’ve clearly separated our showroom into distinct areas; one area for our new furniture and the other for our used furniture. Considering that so much used furniture has that “just bought” look, we wanted to make the buying process in our showroom less confusing. So much used furniture looks like it has never been used. So many businesses decide to completely refurnish their offices every year or so. Businesses downsize and decide to cut their losses. Businesses change locations and do not want to lug their heavy furniture with them. Some big guy replaces another big guy, and wants to replace his predecessor’s furniture.

Obviously, a good reason to buy used over new is its price. In today’s economy, everyone needs to be careful with their money. Still, this is not the sole reason why we recommend used furniture. We prefer people to purchase quality items rather than furniture that will fall apart after a year of normal use. Individuals with tight budgets often wind up buying an inferior quality new chair that will last a short time when they could have purchased a better quality used piece for the same amount of money. Also cheaply built office furniture may not provide you with the ergonomic perks a better quality used one would.

Another important reason we urge our customers to purchase quality used furniture is that it reduces our environmental impact. Often times we see furniture sitting by the curb in a residential neighborhood and in dumpster alleys near many businesses. It takes years to break down wooden furniture in a landfill. What about all the partitions and workstations that also get left behind? Gator Office Furniture can pick up quality used furniture from businesses looking for a quick way to become free of furniture they are no longer using, in order to prevent this from happening. When customers purchase used furniture from retailers like us the recycling process continues and we all take part in doing a lot of good for our planet.

Many times the perception of used furniture is that it will be damaged or outdated. This is not always true. We get a large amount of modern and contemporary items coming into our store all the time! Most of it has not been used for long and looks as if it could be new. For any furniture that may have some damage, we have skilled craftsmen who are adept at repair and restoration work. We also offer custom color matching services for furniture additions that don’t quite fit the rest of the room.

So remember, buying quality used office furniture is smart. It is a wonderful way to look great, save money, and to do your part for the environment!

You can reach us at (904)724-6400, visit our website, or follow us Twitter to keep up to date with what's new at Gator Office Furniture. Call to find out how you can also receive our weekly email specials!

Office Furniture Cleaning Tips

Using the right materials and cloth is very important to clean any piece of furniture. Executive or office furniture should be handled accordingly so that they have long lasting functionality and use. Here are some basic tips you can use to keep your office furniture looking brand-spanking new.

Matte Wood Veneers Desks:
Clean with mild, soapy water, dry immediately.

Glossy Wood Veneer Desks / Home Office Desk:
Using a non-silicone furniture polish or mild soapy water, run in the direction of the wood grain. Always try to avoid any abrasives or wax.

Laminated Desks / Office Tables:
Cleaning regularly using a window cleaner or a non-silicone furniture polish. Always try to avoid any abrasives or wax.

Fabric Chairs or Lining:
Spot clean using mild, soapy water or a fabric cleaner.

Vinyl Chairs, Vinyl Tables, or Vinyl Storage:
Wipe clean with a damp cloth or sponge.

Leather Office Chair, Executive Leather Chair, Leather Trim Office Desk:
Avoid cleaning solvents. For spots, stains or regular cleaning, use a damp cloth or sponge with mild soap. For oil-based stains, blot dry and allow the excess to absorb into leather. Do not use water.

The 3 R's of Keeping Your Furniture

The three R’s environmentalists extol are reduce, reuse, and recycle. The three R’s we commonly use around here are repair, restore, and refinish. We are big believers in preserving quality furniture and for good reason. Furniture can hold great significance historically and sentimentally. It also makes great economic and environmental sense to make the best of the furniture you already own.

Upon entering our showroom, there is a chair that has been refinished, but only on one side. There is a clear difference between each side and we often hear amazement in the voices of those that take a look.

What seems to be magic is actually a service we provide on a regular basis. We provide hand rubbed finishing, water damage restoration, and antique restoration for both commercial and residential furnishings. We even do custom color matching to transform a motley collection of furniture into a more appealing and cohesive set. David and Terry, our skilled craftsmen, match the finest polishes and cleaners with modern technology to create breathtaking improvements. As always we offer pick up and delivery as well.

Though it often saddens our heart to see broken, damaged, and neglected furniture;

we enjoy taking on all challenges from small touch ups to a full strip and refinish project.

We take so much pleasure in bringing a good piece back to its rightful glory. If you have cherished pieces you would like to improve, please contact us at (904)724-6400 or email us at gof@gatoroffice.com . If you would like more information, please visit our site http://www.gatoroffice.com/ or you can follow us at http://twitter.com/GatorOfficeFurn for tips and customer support.