We walked the floors of NeoCon, the annual expo featuring commercial interior products and spaces. We see attendance important as we create products for making air travel more enjoyable and technologies for connecting and empowering people wherever they may be.
We welcome questions and would love to talk about your product development goals.
Even somewhat traditional workplace designs had an element of modernity. Whether enabling standing, dividing space through suggestion rather than walls or offering privacy in unique ways, this isn’t the workspace of decades past.
When privacy is necessary, pods reigned supreme. None are made to make anyone feel comfortable staying for any amount of time, though, suggesting designers still see collaborative spaces as the future.
No, really, do not disturb! Signage signaling “this pod is taken” ranged from subtle to playful.
A bit of privacy was offered in many forms: desks and tables in nooks and crannies, moveable screens and desk dividers. None would insulate from noise completely, but might provide enough individual space to make concentrating or creating boundaries among work groups possible.
We covered dividers in the air passenger space in our recent report following the Aircraft Interiors Expo. How might the solutions shown at NeoCon inspire new ideas for use in flight?
Trends from Airline Passenger Experience Expo >>
Privacy is Just a Suggestion
Better Together
Collaboration remained a strong theme at this year’s NeoCon, continuing a trend we’ve seen for years. Spaces and furniture that encourage movement and quick meetings around the office prevailed.
Furniture created with students in mind followed the mobile and collaborative trend.
Learn More About the Now Generation in our CES Trends Report >>
Cord management and power are always challenging in environments where people need to use multiple devices. There were certainly some elegant, well conceived solutions, but as a whole, this issue still seems to be one in which much improvement is needed.
Much like our observation at the 2018 Auto Shows, very little wireless inductive charging seems to be integrated into new product offerings. Will this change soon?
Do these cords give anyone else anxiety?
Interesting outdoor charging station, taking some cues from electric vehicle charging?
Well Being/
Being Well
Whether designed to energize or calm, spaces promoting wellness- both physical and mental- was a predominant theme this year. Solutions and design decisions made to evoke a feeling or promote wellbeing promised to not just make spaces lovely, but to add real value, like increasing efficiency and employee performance.
This office 'perch' is an interesting concept in that it's ultra-portable and lightweight for spontaneous meetings in dynamic workplaces, but the fact that the front had to be labeled so a user knows how to use it lacks a touch of elegance.
Furniture isn’t just for function, and it isn’t just to make a space look nice. It can make a difference in your business.
There is beauty in honesty. There’s comfort in knowing. These pieces show what they’re made of - literally - in an elegant and straightforward way.
It seemed like the quickest way to modernize any piece of furniture this year was to slap a handle on it. While some were functional, many seemed to just be a way to communicate that the piece would work well in a flexible office space.
All Natural
Perhaps bringing the outdoors in will make people feel like they haven’t been inside in front of a computer all day...
Organic shapes and soft edges were fresh.
The pattern and color force was strong at this year’s NeoCon. One of the most interesting applications involved patterns that continued from one surface to another.
Playing with Scale
There were a lot of people gettin’ down at NeoCon 2018... literally. One way designers played with scale in the design of environments was by lowering furniture closer to the ground. Should we feel more relaxed? Are these spaces more casual? Does it make us feel more grounded?
Sometimes you’ve just got to go big or go home.
Color can be a tool in creating an environment that energizes or makes a bold statement about who you are. This year there seemed to be a significant effort by many to run with bold, bright colors and some 80s flare.
Color applied to a space outside of fabric and paint was a refreshing take.
Color
When going for glam, a bit of sparkle and shine is always a good bet. Subtle, muted sheens were popular, but some deep, saturated tones were also shown.
Soft/Neutral Palettes
Soft palettes have long been a popular choice in commercial interiors for their calming, welcoming aura.
Light It Up
Texture and interest can come from lighting too. Designers played with color, texture, form and scale when creating lighting pieces.
Really interesting and fun use of light to relay a message. We could certainly see this application in areas where dynamic directions have to be relayed... like an airplane or train.
Contributors: Gil Cavada, George Guffey, Erik Moses, Nicole Byer, Jake Vail, John Hannon
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