Orgatec 2006 - A Resounding Success for Haworth

Bad Münder, October 2006.

57,200 visitors from 122 countries - these are the impressive statistics from the largest office furnishings show in Europe. The numbers reveal an increase in visitor volume of over 5 per cent since the previous Orgatec exhibition. This year's event was held on October 24-28, with 678 suppliers from 40 countries presenting their latest products at the Cologne Messe exhibition centre.

One particular visitor magnet was the Haworth Group's 1,350 m² stand, in which the company presented its recently formulated company philosophy in the form of its show motto, Great Spaces. In this way, Haworth demonstrated its company claim to be more than just a manufacturer of high quality office furnishings. It was clear from the way the company presented itself in Cologne, that it is now regarded as an expert partner for architects, project managers and specialist retailers.

Great Spaces pursues a comprehensive approach. Nowadays, companies must realise that their employees are not only their most important capital but that they also constitute 80 per cent of the company's total costs. Once the company has declared its goal of motivating its employees to enhanced levels of creativity and performance, it will have been taken its first step towards the institution of individual, great spaces. Alongside the invisible aspects of a company's organisation and brand culture, there are also visible factors that should not be underestimated, including that of room furnishings. A well-designed office room enhances the personal involvement of each and every member of a team; it is a synergy that contributes directly to the success of the company as a whole. Haworth has already been living and working by this maxim for a considerable period of time.

One current result of this is the company's new range of conference furnishings, entitled Planes, and Cologne was the stage for the new range's launch. Planes is Haworth's way of forcefully demonstrating how to combine people, business goals and buildings in a perfect union. Planes makes optimum use of a room's environment, thus creating the right atmosphere for successful communication processes.

All in all, Haworth conducted a veritable product offensive in Cologne. The new Zody_System 89 swivel chair attracted a particularly high level of interest. This new chair incorporates an innovative, asymmetrical lumbar support system, the like of which has never been seen before in this form on the market. Another product presented here was the System 39, a chair that was conceived primarily for administrative use. The DSC Axis 9000 is a row chair system, designed for use in seminar rooms, auditoriums and lecture theatres. A new product in the company's exclusive range is New Symposium - an organic furnishing complete with integrated multimedia fittings, which can be combined ideally with the b_sit sledbase chair designed by Ballendat. The product portfolio on display also included the Tutti Light Evolution range of workbenches with adjustable cable canals and visibility screens, as well as the K22 designer furniture range. A special feature at this year's show was Haworth's brand new high-performance sound absorber, designed in cupboard format for low frequency absorption, the aim being to support the concentration of people working in the room in which they are installed. Their effectiveness was demonstrated at the show in a special, purpose-built room.

General manager Thorsten Prée was completely satisfied with his company's performance at the trade event. "We managed to make a great number of highly promising contacts. The majority of customer discussions were precise and specifically project related.

We have succeeded in giving the Haworth brand an excellent market position and to further enhance its establishment in Germany. This is also demonstrated by our forecast of 5-7 per cent growth in turnover for the coming year." Prée also positively assessed the development of the most important trade event for office furnishings in Europe: "the idea of transforming the Orgatec from a pure product exhibition to a multi-themed and solutions-oriented platform for architects, designers, decision makers and industry leaders is bearing fruit. Our motto, Great Spaces, is convincing from start to finish. We will continue to associate ourselves with this important exhibition centre in the future."