Inhabitat

September 11, 2008

LONDON DESIGN WEEK: Formtank’s Stunning 2d3d Tables

We can’t wait for this year’s London Design Festival, and we’re excited to announce that London-based furniture design company Formtank will be launching a series of sustainable table designs at 100% Design next week! Using a single sheet of industrial steel in the most efficient way possible, these cutting-edge “2d3d” tables are constructed to maximize yield while minimizing waste to less than 4% per linear meter.

Formtank, flatpack table, london design festival 2008, sustainable design, waste reduction, sustainable furniture, green design

Capable of carrying a considerable load, the volume of each table’s base is just ¼ of the volume of the glass it supports. Formtank’s 2d3d tables are manufactured by CAD/CAM technology and once cut, the steel is hand formed and finished. All Formtank products are manufactured in the UK.

If you are in London between the 18-21 September, you can see Formtank’s furniture at stand H94 at 100% Design, Earls Court.

+ Formtank

+ Formtank at 100% Design 2008

Formtank, flatpack table, london design festival 2008, sustainable design, waste reduction, sustainable furniture, green design

3 Responses to “LONDON DESIGN WEEK: Formtank’s Stunning 2d3d Tables”

Barbara P. Says:

September 12th, 2008 at 10:56 am

These designs look like they waste a lot of material for their leg design considering that a Parson style table is the most economical materialwise. You might celebrate the design but, please, not the unefficient use of material.

eliahu77 Says:

September 15th, 2008 at 11:08 am

I disagree with you Barbara. This is a very efficient use of material Considering steel can be almost 100% recycled, as well as the table glass, and it is cut from a single sheet, this is a very efficient use of materiel. Please explain how it is not.

Beautiful forms as well. Thanks!~

On your left Says:

January 9th, 2009 at 9:08 pm

The basic premise of this table- to efficiently use a full sheet of steel- is flawed in terms of “sustainability”. Why use a full sheet when a fraction of that would work?

“4% Waste” on the factory floor is not a measure of environmental or material efficiency. Its a measure of how much of a sheet was used. I would rather they “waste” 50% of the sheet and use it to make a second table.

Seriously, 3 or 4 legs, trusses between them and some cross-bracing would be plenty strong. This table is an extremely inefficient use of steel!!

Lastly, shipping that table would be ridiculously expensive and take up a large volume (more fuel), A light-weight and compact-able design would be preferred.

From a user point of view I imagine bumping my knees on it trying to sit.

If this is a typical level of criticism Inhabitat.com puts into posts, I am off-put and disappointed. Shame on you.

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