The modern office: light, simple and comfortable, the office of today uses furniture and interior design to create a positive and healthy experience for employees and customers.

• Author: Myers, Deborah J.

When clients visit a company's offices, the furniture tells them much about the corporate culture. Chairs and desks are not just things to sit and work on--they convey to clients and employees what the company is all about.

"In the workplace, we see a focus on creating a very positive experience for customers through the visual and physical presentation of a business," said Barbara Cash, president and CEO of RIM Design, an Anchorage-based firm that plans and designs business interiors. "Customers want to know they are getting a good deal; therefore the workplace must reflect an image of being a well-run, efficient organization."

Quality is vital to communicating the right corporate image.

"Customers want to know they are working with the best," Cash said, "so the workplace should reflect a professional attitude of top-quality work and cutting-edge abilities. Furnishings and interior finishes play into (that)."

Beyond its appearance, office furniture also must fit the company's needs. It must have both form and function.

LIGHTER WOODS VOGUE

Today's business furniture trend reflects that of modern homes: light, streamlined and practical. Designs such as Mission, Shaker and Urban Loft reflect cutting-edge style for the home and office. Their sparse trim and light finishes bespeak a lifestyle of simple elegance. Mission styling tends to be square, unadorned by scrollwork, tooling or elaborate trip. Drawer pulls, for instance, are a simple knob, not a carved seashell. The legs are plain, often square, and slim. Shaker styling uses many of the same techniques, but is usually rendered in lighter wood and with round legs (the origin is from the Shaker religious group that sought to simplify their life and thus they created simple, appealing furniture). Urban Loft is more an edgy style, with lots of metal and glass. Although streamlined like the former two styles, Urban Loft uses modern material like metal tubing perhaps, or vinyl upholstery. The look is compact, but see-through with open shelving, clear glass tabletops and the like. The idea is to create functional furniture without sacrificing modern appeal.

In Alaska, light woods are very popular.

"We tend to sell a lot of cherry and maple," said Wade Ray, owner of Business Furniture of Alaska in Anchorage. "Only occasionally do people ask for darker wood."

In fact, his customers' preference drives what the company produces.

"We stick to our three colors (cherry, maple and oak) because they like lighter woods," Ray said. "The stuff we do is basically one design: contemporary office."

Ernie Hall, owner of Alaska Furniture Manufacturers Inc., has observed the same trend.

"We're doing a lot of light maple and other light-colored wood," he said.

Office decor...