Amazone with Backrest

No matter what worksurface you are working from, it is important that your sitting height allows you to maintain a neutral relaxed posture.

While most people will find that the 'standard' or 'medium' height gas lifts will be suitable for standard height office desks, if you are particularly tall or working at a high workstation you may need a higher seat height. Or, if you have the luxury of being able to lower your desk, a low gas stem may better suit your posture.

Here are a few posture tips to take into consideration when choosing the correct sitting height:

• If you are working with a computer keyboard, your forearms should be parallel to the floor/desk with your shoulders relaxed:
  
  
  • Raise or lower your current chair so that you are sitting with relaxed shoulders.
  • Once you are sitting at this height, if your feet are not firmly on the floor, a footrest or other posture aid may be required.
  • Your feet need to be supported without raising your knees above the hips.
  • When you are sat at this height, measure the height of the seat you are currently using, and choose a seat height within that range.
    
    
• If you find that the height of your current desk does not allow you to sit with the shoulders relaxed, feet supported and knees lower than the hips, your worksurface may need to be raised or lowered accordingly, to allow you sit at a height which opens your hip angle. This will help to encourage a neutral upper body posture.
  
  
  • Your desk can be raised with simple desk raisers to a maximum of 3” VIEW DESK RAISERS.
  • If your worksurface needs raising higher than this, or indeed you would prefer to sit at a lower than 'standard' desk (usually 72cm), then there are range of height adjustable desks which can offer you both an optimal sitting height and the option to stand and work. Our range of sit-stand desks can achieve a lowest height of 57cm. VIEW SIT-STAND DESKS.
    
    
• Once you are sitting in an optimal posture, the rest of your environment should be adjusted to fit you e.g your screen height, distance and other materials.
  
  
• If you are at all unsure, please do call us for advice on 01629 814656

What Castors Should I Choose?

The type of castors you should choose will primarily depend on your floor type:

- CARPET CASTORS should be used on floors with carpet flooring. These castors have a hard plastic wheel and will allow for easier movement on soft floor surfaces.

- HARD FLOOR CASTORS should be used on hard floor surfaces such as tiles, wood floor and concrete. They can also be used on some hard carpet tiles to provide additional friction if you are concerned about the wheels moving too easily. Hard floor castors have a soft wheel to provide extra friction, and to protect the floor surface.

Where applicable, other considerations may affect your choice:

- BRAKE LOADED or 'Locking by Weight' castors will lock the chair into place as soon as weight is applied. These are particularly useful if sitting at a high workstation, or using the a chair in a perching position, so that the chair does not suddenly move from underneath you (However, it may be that 'Glides' woudl be more appropriate in these circumstances. Please bear in mind that once the chair is locked in place, it will be more difficult to adjust you position and posture at the desk.  

- BRAKE UNLOADED or 'Locking when Unloaded' castors can be specified when a little bit of extra stability is required when getting on and off the chair, but movement is necessary once you are sat on the chair. However, if stability is paramount, and a 100% stable chair is required, a more advanced locking mechanism may be required (Such as that found on the VELA range of mobility chairs, or the add-on Movement Lock for the Adapt 500 & 600 range of seating)

- GLIDES are most often chosen where the chair is used at a high workstation, and stability is required when seated. Reception areas, checkout, and industrial settings may benefit from the application of GLIDES.