History of the Ergonomic Desk

For the majority of human history, little thought was given to human comfort when designing furniture like desks and office chairs. Recently, that has changed. One of the more recent developments is the ergonomic desk.

History of the ergonomic desk

Today, it is well known that people who are engaged in repetitive tasks, such as sitting at a desk typing on a computer, need special accommodation to avoid injury from overuse of a particular part of the body. These injuries can develop into chronic problems if they go untreated. While companies started developing ergonomic furniture, such as the task chair in the late 19th century, ergonomic desks did not turn into a necessity until the average person started using a computer multiple hours a day. The design of ergonomic desks reflects that a desk is not "one size fits all." Instead, the user needs to adjust the desk to suit his or her individual body. An ergonomic desk allows the user to easily change the height throughout the day. This prevents repetitive use injury as users can vary the angle of their arms, wrists and back. Some experts recommend that workers should even use the desk while standing for a portion of the day. This is only possible when the worker uses an adjustable desk that is raised sufficiently to accommodate typing while standing.

By using an ergonomic desk that allow a worker to change working positions throughout the day, the risk of injury from repetitive use is minimized. While people have attempted to make chairs and machinery ergonomically for well over a hundred years, the popularity of ergonomic desks emerged after the proliferation of the computer.