Friday 21 March 2014

IKEA TEGEL

Hej!

I recently participated in the IKEA Young Designer's Award 2014 (http://www.singapore-ikea.com/yda/index.php) and got into the finals! Here is a glimpse into the concept and prototype of IKEA TEGEL:


IKEA TEGEL is a modular furniture concept. Users stack rectangular TEGEL Bocks, which come in various sizes, on top of each other to form anything from a bookshelf to a TV stand to a shoe rack in any size they want. Furniture designed with TEGEL can also curve around corners and funny edges, depending on how you orient the blocks. The smaller TEGEL blocks are also sturdy enough to be abused as stools and foot rests!


Each block is made out of 18mm melamine coated plywood and finished off with white PVC edge banding. The blocks all have a standardized depth of 25 cm (enough for most books), but vary in height and length.


Each TEGEL bock is simple to put together. A simple butt joint connects the top, bottom and sides of the block (2 screws per joint) and is reinforced with a flat L bracket that sits flush against the surface. The L bracket should ideally be made out of steel but I settled for laser cut 5mm acrylic for the prototype instead as flat L brackets are hard to find in the right size and expensive.


Altogether, I made 21 TEGEL blocks of varying sizes, cutting 366 grooves for the L brackets, drilling 1176 holes and screwing 504 screws. The entire manufacturing process from cutting the plywood (supplied in long planks) to edge banding and cleaning took 7 days and cost about $250.


To bring the idea of TEGEL further, I also conceptualize 'special' blocks that would include features such as lighting (for plants, a small fish tank or for display pieces) and a glass cabinet door so that people can really play around with the concept of modular furniture! What's even better about TEGEL is that it can be rearranged, making it highly reusable and environmentally friendly.


The TEGEL blocks are on exhibition at IKEA Tampines (2nd Level) from the 21st of March to the 3rd of April 2014. Please VOTE for the best design!

To Vote:


Video Link:



Courtesy of IKEA Singapore

Courtesy of IKEA Singapore

IKEA TEGEL. Design your own furniture.

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