Watson Furniture maintains that despite how work has changed, the physical office remains an important hub for efficiency, networking, and collaboration. This philosophy is reflected in Watson’s diverse product offerings, but it comes to life through its Studio Team. This team specializes in customizing products and designing unique solutions for customers, an offering that represents 40 percent of Watson’s total business. Through prioritizing listening to and engaging with past and present customers, the team periodically produces solutions that are so compelling that the company brings them to market, like with its newest launch, the Edison Workbench.
Designing the Edison Workbench
The development of what is now the Edison Workbench was spurred on by a customer’s need to easily and cost-effectively reallocate workstations based on their office’s shifting density. “Workbenches, due to their economy of space and traditionally lower price point, were an obvious starting point,” said Lucas Pearl, VP of Product Development at Watson. “In devising a solution, our team needed to engineer a product that is adaptable enough to easily add or remove workstations – and spare facilities the headache of keeping track of additional hardware – at an accessible price point, and that is, of course, beautiful to look at.”
Through on-site, in-person meetings with the customer, the team brought the product from a design proposal to launch in under ten months. An existing Watson offering further sparked the customer-focused development of the Edison Rail.This rail system is defined by the revolutionary way it can be angled at joining rail segments to create non-linear layouts and easily adapt to its environment in real-time. The concept of a flexible, bending workbench designed to complement the rail had been simmering for a while. As they delved deeper into the customer’s needs—specifically the ability to swiftly adapt to fluctuating numbers of in-office staff and their spatial requirements—the team realized the potential for adaptability on a new level. This led to an innovative solution: workbenches that could be seamlessly linked to add workstations and detached from one another to remove them while ensuring a complete product at any reconfiguration stage. Eventually, the Edison Workbench was born – and though its form factor is familiar, it is a radical departure from other height-adjustable workbenches on the market.
Individual workbenches, whether single-sided, dual-sided, fixed-height, or height-adjustable, can be connected and placed throughout a floor plan. They can be connected or disconnected without additional components and finished with a small metal plate that attaches to its end. Though the Edison Workbench configures beautifully in traditional linear setups, it shines as an engaging way to create pockets for focus in an open plan.
Early in development, the original customer had pushed for a design with an attractive visual impact to make the workbench stand out from others on the market – resulting in a graphic side profile and a modern, lightweight form. Taking a cue from the Edison Rail’s rail-mounted accessories, the workbench also supports the addition of planters, lighting, and privacy screens.
The Edison Workbench is more than just a well-designed product; it demonstrates the value of listening to an industry at the individual level and devoting the care and resources necessary to design impactful solutions. It’s a proactive design that allows decision-makers to strategize rather than merely reacting to last-minute changes. Watson’s belief that the physical office is still an essential part of the working landscape is carried out through its products and the collaborative, relationship-driven way it does business.
About the Edison Collection
Edison is Watson’s adaptable office furniture collection for designers who want complete freedom to lay out an office like never before. Edison gives unlimited ways to design a floor plan that can adapt, evolve, and change down the line. The Edison Workbench is the latest addition, and the modularity of the collection makes it easy to configure, install, and rearrange.
The Edison Workbench and all Watson products are available to order now with 5-7 week lead times.