It will come as something of a surprise to many people to hear that the humble office chair is one of the most essential pieces of apparatus in an office. No, it will not get any work completed, like a computer will and it will not store any documents like a filing cabinet will, but it will help look after the health and safety of any company’s most precious asset - its personnel.
Make no mistake about it, an office chair, or at least a good, ergonomically designed office chair is heath and safety gear for office workers, just as much as a safety helmet is health and safety equipment for site workers. In fact, the quality of the standard office chair has come a long way over the last twenty years.
The majority of office chairs these days are designed to permit the user to sit correctly in a good posture for seven or eight hours a day and do it in comfort. For an office chair to be able to do this, it either has to be custom made or adjustable. Little surprise then that most office chairs are adjustable. This is necessary because the human body comes in different sizes.
These office chairs can usually be adjusted is a number of ways, all of which are meant to encourage a good posture and therefore reduce the possibility of injury. The correct height for a chair is when your thighs are parallel to the floor and your feet are flat on the floor and any office chair you use for any length of time should be altered for height. The back rest should also incorporate a lumber support.
This lumber support should be movable so that it fits in the small of your back. Similarly, if the back rest does not reach your head, there should be a head rest, which should also be movable. Arm rests are not absolutely essential but can be helpful for reading. If your chair has them, they should be set at a comfortable height.
There have also been attempts at designing other styles of chair - chairs which might help cure a bad back for example. Some of these are the kneeling office chair, the saddle chair, the exercise ball chair and the spring-loaded chair.
The first three of these are eccentric chairs, but are useful for some people and are definitely worth a try. They all try to force the body to assume a good posture. The kneeling chair is shaped like two steps - one for your knees and one to sit on. They are angled forward in order to force you to sit upright. The saddle chair is like riding a horse and also promotes good posture, while the ball chair involves some balancing, which means movement and therefore better circulation
The spring-loaded chair will adjust to the length of your calves automatically so that your feet stay flat on the floor. Whichever chair you decide to opt for, one of the best pieces of advice, is to get up and move around a bit every so often, say, once an hour for three or four minutes, just to maintain good blood circulation.
Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with the office chair recliner. If you are interested in a black recliner or any other type, please click through to our site.