News room

ITOKI CORPORATION (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Koji Minato) is pleased to announce that it has won seven awards in the 2024 Good Design Awards sponsored by the Japan Design Promotion Organization, a public interest incorporated foundation, and that two of these, "vertebra03 WOOD" and "hako," have been selected for the Good Design Best 100, which is given to particularly highly acclaimed products.

vertebra03 WOOD is a wooden work chair that combines a comfortable seating experience with a light form and a mechanism that naturally guides you to the correct sitting posture. It comes in three wood colors, four body colors, and a variety of leg types, including five-legged with casters and four-legged.

(Judges' comments)
The natural and warm wood material blends seamlessly with the mechanical functions, realizing a relaxing appearance while maintaining the comfort required for work and tasks. The color development that makes use of the wood grain and the possibility of combining it with fabrics expand the options for where it can be used and increase the freedom of working style. The three-dimensional wooden parts, created through joint development with a wooden furniture manufacturer, ideally reflect the knowledge and technical capabilities of each company, making this an excellent initiative that expands the possibilities of Japanese manufacturing.

Designer: Fumie Shibata, Design Studio S Co., Ltd.
Product page: https://vertebra.jp/lineup/vertebra-wood/

This portable battery blends in with the space when in use, when transporting, and when charging, allowing you to work anywhere you want. It has a strap on the back, so you can easily carry it around when moving between locations for online meetings. The design was inspired by paper boxes, and the colors were adjusted to a certain tone, such as colors that go well with interiors and colors that match the image of paper. By reducing the gloss, we were able to reduce the gadget-like feel and create a design that doesn't draw attention to the design.

(Judges' comments)
With the diversification of work styles and changes in devices, the need for portable batteries has increased in recent years. This product has been highly praised for its functionality and beautiful appearance. The simple shape of the product has all the necessary functions, such as a USB port, an LED display that shows the charging status, and a power switch, seamlessly arranged, and its color that blends in well with the environment and its subdued texture set it apart from existing products. It is lightweight, and the carrying strap on the back of the main unit is highly useful, contributing to the creation of an environment that improves productivity regardless of where you work.

Designer: Fumie Shibata, Design Studio S Co., Ltd.
Product page: https://catalog.itoki.jp/series/ShowSeries.action?seriesCode=2501

In response to the trend towards wooden interiors, which is following the trend towards wooden construction and wood-based structures in buildings, this is a non-flammable partition with a veneer finish that creates a comfortable space. It reproduces the texture of solid wood while also being fireproof, and by unitizing it with a unified design, it can be smartly coordinated with the wood-based office space.

(Judges' comments)
Wooden partitions can completely refresh a drab office interior, but they cannot be used as is due to fire resistance. This product uses a unique method of application, using metal as the base, and we highly evaluated the fact that it has the warmth unique to wood while ensuring the precision of an industrial product. In addition, by following the size of wooden fittings and using veneer instead of sheets, we have succeeded in approaching the impression of wooden fittings.

Designer: Ryu Yamamoto, Product Design Department, ITOKI CORPORATION
Product page: https://www.itoki.info/products/zoning/feels/

This is an unprecedented partition from the "common furniture" series, a brand that includes furniture and partitions that realize free and creative spaces based on the concept of "universality. Freedom." We aimed for a neutral yet endearing design that embodies the necessary functionality and strength by freely combining a variety of frame styles, surface materials, and colors.

(Judges' comments)
It perfectly embodies the concept of "universality and freedom." Its quality is suitable not only for diversifying office environments, but also for commercial spaces such as restaurants, retail stores, and hotels. Its design allows for a high degree of freedom in the combination of function, strength, frame, surface material, and color, allowing for flexible adaptation. Another advantage is that construction time is short when newly installed, and it can be dismantled and re-installed when relocation is required. It is also expected to be effective in reducing on-site loss of parts when installed, and in reducing waste loss when dismantled, making it an excellent product from an environmental perspective.

Designers: Naruse-Inokuma Architectural Design Office (Yuri Naruse, Jun Inokuma, Ryo Odaka) + Yukiyoshi Kato, Product Design Department ITOKI CORPORATION
Product page: https://www.itoki.jp/special/common-furniture/index.html

This box-shaped sofa provides a comfortable sound environment for both the person sitting and those around them during web conferences held in open office spaces. The directional speaker attached to the back of the sofa controls the sound of the web conference to the optimal range, allowing the person sitting to hear it clearly and reducing sound leakage to the surrounding area.

(Judges' comments)
The functions necessary for web conferencing, such as digital devices and audio equipment, are appropriately built into the box, providing new value in the form of "you can hear when you sit down." It reduces sound leakage to the surrounding area while enabling comfortable meetings inside the box, providing a good environment for both the user and those around them, and improving the sound environment issues in the office. The seats are also highly rated for their specialized design for web conferencing, such as being angled to make the display easier to see and easier to capture on camera. It is available in a wide range of materials and colors, making it suitable for a variety of office spaces.

Designer: Hiroki Sato, Product Planning Department ITOKI CORPORATION
Product page: https://catalog.itoki.jp/series/ShowSeriesSection1.action?seriesCode=2480

This is a reservation status display label that allows you to check hoteling (seat reservation) status on the spot.
The simple and easy-to-understand screen design, wireless and operation-free system, visualizes reservation status, and facilitates the selection and use of work locations.

(Judges' comments)
The design of the Workers Trail Hoteling Label features a simple and intuitive UI, smoothly supporting the selection and use of workplaces. It promotes efficient use of office space with real-time availability display using electronic paper and a QR code function that enables on-the-spot reservations, and was highly praised for its completely wireless design and flexible installation method that allows it to adapt to a variety of office environments. It is a design that combines simplicity and functionality.

Designers: Takamura Eka and Ishizuka Miharu, Product Planning Department ITOKI CORPORATION
Product page: https://catalog.itoki.jp/series/ShowSeries.action?seriesCode=2481

This is the 13th floor of ITOKI TOKYO XORK the ITOKI headquarters office, which was renovated in 2024 with the concept of "Return to office for now" based on the office workers.
With the aim of encouraging people to return to the office, the space is based on the three themes of co-creation, collaboration, and symbiosis, and pursues a design that is comfortable and brings people together naturally, fostering connections, while providing seamless working styles and being environmentally friendly.

(Judges' comments)
This office design can be highly praised as an "office you want to visit" that looks ahead to post-COVID-19 work styles. It is outstanding in that it blurs the boundaries between inside and outside and skillfully incorporates natural materials to create a comfortable place to be. In addition, the lighting design creates a space that changes over time, bringing a sense of seasonal change and openness to the working environment, encouraging workers to refresh their minds and bodies. This is a wonderful way in which the office is redefined as not just a place to work, but a space where people want to gather.

Designers: Shinya Nakamura, Miki Tsuchida, Yusuke Ebihara, and Akihiro Fukuda, Design Division, ITOKI CORPORATION WORK STYLE CORPORATION
Introduction page: https://www.itoki.jp/special/xork/

Established in 1957, it is Japan's only comprehensive design evaluation and recommendation system. A variety of things, both tangible and intangible, are comprehensively evaluated not only in terms of design, but also in terms of process, philosophy, significance, etc., and the 100 projects that received particularly high evaluations by the judging committee were selected as the "Good Design Best 100". will be done.

Good Design Award official website: https://www.g-mark.org/
Itoki's Good Design Award history: https://www.itoki.jp/gda/