Steelcase Unveils Flex Collection Across Asia-Pacific

SYDNEY,Nov. 29,2019 --Steelcase® Flex-- an integrated collection of furniture and accessories designed to meet the needs of modern teams and their changing activities-- has now been unveiled to markets across Asia Pacific. The collection,honoured with Gold in Best of NeoCon for Furniture Collections for Collaboration,was designed to work in tandem with Steelcase® Roam™ Mobile Stand and easy-to-hang wall mounting system made for the Microsoft Surface Hub 2S. Available in Australia and across the region now,these new workplace solutions will create dynamic team neighborhoods which can be adapted on demand.

Steelcase Flex Collection includes moveable desks,tables,markerboards,carts,screens and accessories,allowing users to easily reconfigure its elements and adjust boundaries to provide the right amount of privacy for both team and individual needs.

As organisations strive for growth and innovation,teams need to quickly generate new ideas and solve complex problems. According to Steelcase's global research-- conducted in Australia,France,Germany,Japan,UK and US-- team-based work is on the rise as people now spend 54% of their time working with others,and the nature of teamwork has fundamentally shifted to become more interdependent,fast-paced and fluid. Today's high-performing teams are "hyper-collaborative" and have embraced agile and design thinking methodologies to help them move faster and stay more closely connected to their customers. These practices require rapid shifts between diverse activities.

What Teams Need

Teamwork used to be like running a relay where members work in parts with coordinated hand-offs in between. However,today's "Hyper-collaborative" teams are constantly moving projects back-and-forth-- more akin to a soccer or basketball team. This means that each player must work collaboratively in order to complete the task at hand. "Despite this dramatic change,most fixed workplaces are still designed to support a more linear work process. Teams need to be empowered to adapt their spaces for group and individual needs on demand. Flex was designed to support solo tasks whilst also seamlessly transitioning between different work modes without breaking the flow," said Samantha Giam,Product Marketing Director,Steelcase Asia Pacific.

Steelcase® Flex Collection

Starting in 2017,Steelcase researchers observed the daily activities of creative and high-tech teams globally. They found that these teams had become frustrated with their rigid facilities,and had hacked their offices around in a futile attempt to improve their space-- reclaiming territory with makeshift barricades,repurposing everyday objects to create places for group work,and covering walls and ceilings with sticky notes to share information and ideas.

These high-performing teams inspired the Steelcase Flex Collection,which includes moveable desks,screens and accessories. Wheels,directional rollers and glides make all the elementseasy to move. Anyone caneasily reconfigureits elements and adjust boundaries and screens to provide the right amount of privacy for both team and individual needs.

"To collaborate and work in new ways,teams need the flexibility to change how and where they work. Steelcase Flex Collection has been designed to deliver just the right amount of control to individuals and teams,allowing people to reconfigure their spaces in a matter of minutes. Each piece works well on its own,but-- just like a strong team-- they work better together," said Giam.

New Research: Teams Are Struggling

Steelcase's global research,conducted to understand the broader needs of hyper-collaborative teams around the world,found that 90% of workers believe working with others is essential to creating new and better ideas. People who work in teams are positive about collaboration activities overall,but also feel their workplaces and technologies don't fully support their new ways of working. The study revealed that most environments do not support hyper-collaboration:

70% of people are still trying to collaborate in traditional fixed conference rooms;

68% say they struggle to stay focused amid distractions; and

62% of people are unable to move their furniture to support changing activities,while the majority would like this feature.

Collaborate Anywhere

Steelcase Flex Collection seamlessly integrates with Steelcase® Roam™,winner of Best of NeoCon Gold in the Technology-Integrated Solutions category,giving workers the freedom to collaborate virtually anywhere. Made for the Microsoft Surface Hub 2S,Steelcase® Roam™ Mobile Stand and easy-to-hang wall mounting system give people the freedom to collaborate wherever their ideas take them.

Steelcase Flex Collection and Steelcase® Roam™ are available in Australia now.

Discover how Steelcase Flex can be configured to support different types of teams by visitingwww.steelcase.com/360-flex.

About Steelcase Inc.

For 107 years,Steelcase Inc. has helped create great experiences for the world's leading organisations. Our family of brands includes Steelcase®,Coalesse®,Designtex®,PolyVision®,AMQ™,Smith System®,Orangebox®,and Turnstone®. Our comprehensive portfolio of furniture and technology products is designed to help people reach their full potentialand support social,economic and environmental sustainability. We are globally accessible through a network of channels,including over 800 Steelcase dealer locations. Steelcase is a global,industry-leading and publicly traded company with fiscal 2019 revenue of $3.4 billion. www.steelcase.asia

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