Tag Archives: assembly

Ukrainian-designed furniture collection returns to the basics of simplicity and ease

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Two separate but complementary design movements have given rise to a new furniture market. The minimalist design trend embraced simpler shapes and structures, which made DIY or do-it-yourself furniture become more accepted than ever before. Even flat-packed furniture, however, has started to sway to the opposite side, increasing the complexity not only of the design but also the assembly of these products. While that definitely has some aesthetic appeal, it came at the price of losing what made such furniture convenient and flexible, especially when it comes to moving around from place to place. Seeing the transition from lockdown trends to the migration crisis, a group of Ukranian designers set about to create a set that goes back to the roots of flat-packed furniture, putting the focus back on simplicity, mobility, and ease of self-assembly.

Designer: YourFoRest

“Simple” doesn’t have to mean boring. Combining simple shapes can lead to interesting forms that delight the eyes just as much as complex curves or intersecting lines. This furniture collection’s simplicity, however, isn’t just in the way it looks. The more important mark of simplicity is the patented fastening system that makes it easy to put pieces together without the use of nails or screws, unlike other DIY furniture.

“Ease” is the predominant theme of this set, as made apparent by its name. The EasyStory collection is made up of six products that can stand on their own or be used to complement each other. They’re easy to put together and easy on the eyes, but they also exhibit non-trivial shapes like arcs and curves. That said, there are no hidden tricks or compartments to each piece, with all of its features and spaces available for anyone to easily see.

EasyBed is a low bed that is a perfect match for the equally low EasyTray. Likewise, EasyDesk is a straightforward work surface that you can use together with the EasySeat stool. EasyHanger is an open-style closet with space for shoes at the bottom and other items on top, while EasyTable is a single-layer side table with horizontal beams crossing its legs to give it a more interesting silhouette. All six pieces are made from natural ash wood and coated with a matte water-based varnish.

The EasyStory furniture collection uses an intersection of horizontal and vertical pieces to create its different shapes, and it’s this simple design that helps make it more understandable and approachable. More than just its static form, however, the design puts a heavy emphasis on ease of assembly and transportation, two essential properties where people find themselves constantly on the move, such as when evacuating their homes due to calamities or wars.

The post Ukrainian-designed furniture collection returns to the basics of simplicity and ease first appeared on Yanko Design.

This ready-to-assemble chair brings a distinctive look to your dining room

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Furniture that can be assembled at home has seen a rise in adoption over the past years, in no small thanks to the popularity of minimalist designs from the likes of IKEA. The idea is to allow these products to be shipped more efficiently while offloading the task of assembling the final piece to the owner. While it might be cheaper in terms of shipping and space, there are hidden costs to this system, such as the effort required to put everything together as well as limitations in design because of space requirements when being packaged and transported. These factors might actually be deal-breakers for some homeowners, which is why this wooden dining chair concept is particularly interesting in how it solves almost all those problems by being trivial to assemble while also looking quite unique and appealing.

Designer: Gabriel Emilio Portela

Ready-to-assemble or RTA furniture often comes as flat-packed products these days. They take up less space in storage or in transit and are often minimalist by nature to be easy to assemble. Despite that fact, it’s not always easy to actually assemble these pieces of furniture, with many of them requiring the use of at least a screwdriver or an Allen wrench, which are thankfully included in the box at times. Depending on the complexity of the design, that work can take anywhere from 30 minutes to hours.

The Yugan Chair, in contrast, can be assembled in just five minutes without using anything other than your two hands. The wooden chair’s design only requires fitting pieces together into holes, not unlike those wooden puzzles that form animals or popular landmarks. It uses a combination of architecture and physics to keep the chair together and support the person’s weight when sitting on it.

Of course, that isn’t the only admirable quality of this concept design. Specifically designed for small living spaces, the dining chair has a distinctive form you wouldn’t normally associate with this kind of furniture. There is almost no straight edge or surface in sight, with each part sporting soft curves that are eye-catching and pleasant. Admittedly, that does mean that this chair can’t be flat-packed, but its components will still take up less room than a fully assembled chair.

Although toolless assembly isn’t exactly new, the Yugan chair still manages to capture the imagination thanks to its curvy character. Even better, the design is finished yet. It is intended to go beyond being a dining chair and also function as a bench just by mixing parts. So while it will take up a bit more space in packaging and shipping, you are really hitting two birds in one with a multi-functional chair that won’t make you sweat too much just to put it together.

The post This ready-to-assemble chair brings a distinctive look to your dining room first appeared on Yanko Design.

MIT’s Self-Assembling Assembler Robots: Builders of the Future

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Researchers at MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms have developed an autonomous robot capable of assembling new versions of itself, as well as other building structures. Not only that, multiple robots can transfer both power and data modules from one to another, allowing the newly constructed bots to begin performing tasks on their own. The future, ladies and gentlemen! I’m pretty sure this is how Terminators are built.

The robots are also capable of determining the best building sequence to perform to minimize effort. Even I don’t have that capability! I always do things the long and hard way and am usually exhausted halfway through. I’ve never successfully finished a project.

The researchers imagine future versions of their robots constructing even larger versions of themselves, buildings, and even vehicles. Will it actually happen? Only time will tell. It wouldn’t hurt to have John Conner on speed dial though, just in case.

[via TechEBlog]

HUG embraces nature with a more sustainable way to make and assemble furniture

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Wood is a favorite among designers for its natural beauty, the random grains that make each piece unique, and its more sustainable source. But while it is definitely better than ordinary plastic in that regard, the extensive use of wood also has a negative impact on the environment if left unchecked. Unlike money, wood does go on trees, trees that need to be cut down in order to become the literal building blocks of furniture and other products. Those trees need to be replanted, of course, but there’s also the matter of pieces of wood that are wasted and thrown away. Plastic and metal aren’t the only things that can be recycled, and HUG tries to do the same for discarded wood that can then be used to create other pieces of wooden furniture.

Designers: Medeot Barbara, Piovesan Giulia

Using wood, a biodegradable and more sustainable material compared to plastic, doesn’t mean that there will be nothing wasted. While pieces of scrap wood do eventually decompose or can be used for smaller items, they’re still considered wasted materials and wasted potential. Pieces of plastic can sometimes be broken down and recycled into other compounds, and cutoffs can be used to make other textiles. Scrap wood, likewise, can become the foundations for other products, like furniture built from the building blocks of Progetto or “Project” HUG.

HUG isn’t simply about recycled scrap wood, though that is part of its appeal. It is defined as a “multifunctional object made up of simple elements” that can be assembled in different ways to create different pieces of furniture. In a way, it’s like a simplified LEGO system made of wooden parts, giving people the freedom to create chairs, shelves, or even benches that alternate between facing opposite directions. Best of all, you can even reassemble them as your needs change over time.

That is the third part of HUG’s appeal that they can be assembled and reassembled just as easily as LEGO bricks. That’s because the system doesn’t make use of nails or even glue, the latter being a potentially dangerous chemical that will harm the environment when it comes time to dispose of the product. Then again, HUG is designed to be reused again and again, so it’s not like it will meet the trash heap or the recycling plant anytime soon.

Progetto Hug is still in its infancy, but it definitely has a lot of potential, both in theory and in practice. The simplicity and modularity of the design make it easy to cram the parts in a flat-pack, and the flexibility of its assembly could see odd furniture constructions and ideas grow over time. The current iteration of HUG comes in a natural finish, but there could be more colors available in the future.

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This LEGO kit comes with LED lights to build your own Flux Capacitor, like the one in ‘Back to the Future’

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In Back to the Future, Doc Brown warns Marty, “Whatever happens Marty, don’t go to 2020!” Wise words, Doc. While 2020 certainly wasn’t our golden year, 2021 is making up for the lost time. Alternatives for safe travel are cropping up and product designs for playing and relaxing at home are too. While we don’t want to travel back to 2020, perhaps some point in the distant future sounds more like it. While electronic hobby group Brickstuff has yet to construct an IRL version of Doc’s Flux Capacitor, a miniature LEGO replica will suffice for now.

Building with LEGO blocks will never go out of style. If I had a bucket of LEGO bricks in front of me right now, I wouldn’t waste any time before getting on the floor to build my dream home, making my younger self proud. Fusing the nostalgia of watching ‘80s cult classics like Back to the Future and spending entire afternoons building with LEGO bricks, Brickstuff designed the LEGO version of Doc Brown’s Flux Capacitor as a kit for anyone to construct, all ages welcome. The kit comes complete with a whopping 18 new LEGO bricks, a pre-assembled pliant circuit board, LED lights that actually glow with the help of a battery pack, and three AA batteries. You’ll have to buy the batteries separately, but the kit comes included with illustrated assembly instructions to aid in the building process.

LEGO bricks are the type of toy that instantly brings us back to our childhood. There was a time when LEGO was my whole universe. Back to the Future is nostalgic in itself, and I can still remember the first time I watched the movie–English class, sophomore year of high school. Brickstuff brings together these two forces from our childhood to create a miniature collectible item that we can build ourselves, reminding us that we can accomplish anything if we put our minds to it.

Designer: Brickstuff

Brickstuff’s LEGO replica of Doc Brown’s Flux Capacitor features glowing LED lights and a miniature circuit board.

Users can open the Flux Capacitor to mimic iconic scenes from Back to the Future.

An attached battery pack requires three AA batteries for the LED lights to turn on.

The kit comes with 18 new LEGO bricks and illustrated assembly instructions.

The kit comes with everything you might need to build your own Flux Capacitor – just add batteries.

This circular lever makes easy-assembly furniture much easier. Watch the video!

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This simple lever mechanism makes assembling furniture a lot easier than the current solutions from brands like IKEA who are known for having a fuss-free assembly.

Nine Stories Furniture takes it to a whole new level with an internal spring plate. This minimal design increases the potential for modularity and expansion in furniture exponentially; with the right parts and this mechanism, you can have a super flexible range that will work exceptionally well for smaller apartments. Modular and flexible furniture is usually multifunctional, and the key is that it has to be quick to assemble/disassemble. This function allows you to invest in a few critical pieces without compromising on functionality and reducing waste. Forget house warming parties; with this system, we encourage furniture assembly parties!

Designer: Nine Stories





Screw Together Your Own NASA Space Shuttle

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You ever catch yourself staring at the sun and daydreaming about building your own rocket ship? Well, how about this NASA Space Rocket Deluxe Construction Kit? The 134-piece kit includes a bunch of plastic and metal bits that, when assembled correctly, resemble the Space Shuttle atop its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters. To infinity and beyond!

Available from Firebox for $43, the kit comes with a medium difficulty rating, so it isn’t for people who can’t tell the difference between a hex key and their house keys. Everyone else should be fine though.

I just built one, and if there’s any proof NASA should pick me to be the first person to send to Mars, I think this is it. I mean, sure, it’s missing a wing and I have a bunch of other bits and pieces left over, but I also didn’t follow the directions. And I’m exactly what NASA is going to need if we’re going to survive on the red planet: an outside-the-box thinker.

NASA’s X-59 supersonic jet is cleared for final assembly

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NASA's experimental X-59 jet, which could make supersonic commercial travel a reality, has been cleared for final assembly. The X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology (QueSST) aircraft, designed by Lockheed Martin, could take its first flight as soon as 20...

Tesla workers say they used electrical tape in Model 3 production

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Tesla may have broken its own records, manufacturing 72,531 Model 3 sedans in the three months that ended June 30th. But employees say in the push to ramp up Model 3 production, they were forced to cut corners and work in difficult, unsafe conditions...