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Is there a future for the table in the 21 st century office? Think about it. A laptop computer, the ultimate office-to-go, will roll right off your lap on its way to the floor-unless you rest it on a table. Starbucks, the virtual clubhouse of Gen-Xers, is filled with twentysomethings and thirtysomethings seated with laptops, books, magazines and office work-at tables. A visit with Silicon Valley software publishers demonstrates that certain icons have remarkable staying power in cyberspace, including coffee mugs, beanbag chairs-and tables. However, the traditional role played by the contemporary table is not immune from change. The paradox is embodied in the modular furniture that JOFCO recently introduced as Partner-M. Its modular tables, accompanied by mobile and stationary display boards, freestanding and table top lecturns, stationary and mobile storage units and audio-visual support elements, can be endlessly reconfigured by executives, managers and their colleagues for meetings, training and teamwork.
Does anybody really think executives and managers are going to trade in those hulking slabs of mahogany or granite to play musical tables with modular units? The idea is not so farfetched, according to Hank DeCillia, a respected marketing and product development consultant in the...