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- Exploration 1
- Exploration 2
- Unframed Thinking: Yves Béhar talks about the idea of life unframed.
- Exploration 4
- Exploration 5
- Meeting of the Minds: Jack Schreur, Herman Miller’s “Chief of Chairs” and Yves discuss “How big is the challenge?”
- Exploration 6
- Inspiration: A simple question at the fuseproject SF studio.
- Exploration 7
- Stop Motion Fun: A trail of sketches leads through the studio.
- Exploration 8
- Material Studies: From woven textiles to die-cut expanded EVA to molded and stretched polymers, a broad range of materials and production techniques were tried.
- Exploration 9
- Preliminary Ergo Study: The team maps key support zones for people of different height and size.
- Exploration 10
- Exploration 11
- Smart Support: How can we provide support and flexibility with a minimum of material?
- Exploration 12
- String Theory: Yves and Bret Recor, of fuseproject, work with an early suspension back prototype.
- Exploration 13
- 3D Support: Scanned data points from the string prototype are matched with ideal ergonomics.
- Exploration 14
- D.I. PLY: Making proto chair parts and stretching elastic strands to test feel and comfort.
- Exploration 15
- Finding the Right Fit: Yves works with the team to evaluate an early prototype.
- Exploration 16
- Fail Faster: Many suspension back prototypes, used to quickly evaluate forms, material approach, comfort, and ergonomics.
- Exploration 17
- Sitting Is Believing: Trying out the early prototypes.
- Exploration 18
- Drawing It Old School: Suspension back pattern concepts were meticulously drawn with pencil and trace.
- Exploration 19
- 1:1: One of a hundred full-scale sketches of proposed flexible polymer suspension back pinned up.
- Exploration 20
- Pattern Exploration: Hand-drawn explorations of geometric, organic, woven and linear suspension patterns.
- Exploration 21
- Drawings in Stop Motion: Sketches refine the initial concept and fill up the studio walls.
- Exploration 22
- Marigold Lodge in Winter: Yves and the designers split their time between the fuseproject studio in SF and Herman Miller HQ in Michigan.
- Exploration 23
- Finding the Ideal Tension: Herman Miller engineers experiment with various attachment methods for the suspension back.
- Exploration 24
- Long Hours: Need we say more?
- Exploration 25
- Design Review: Sharing the initial concept prototypes with the Herman Miller executive team.
- Exploration 26
- Exploration 27
- Function over Form: fuseproject designers and HM engineers evaluate stretched sail protos using a simple steel and wood version of the Y–Tower.
- Exploration 28
- First Suspension Materials: Patterns are die-cut from flat elastomer sheets for testing before moving to 3-dimensional molded parts.
- Exploration 30
- Quest for Comfort: A wide range of materials and textures are evaluated to combine support and flexibility.
- Exploration 31
- Calipers and Coffee: On-the-fly sketches to refine attachment points to the seat arm and boom.
- Exploration 32
- Ergonomic Studies Bear Fruit: By varying the thickness and grid spacing of the suspension back, targeted support and flexibility to the lumbar and spine is achieved.
- Exploration 33
- Triangulation: Combining the arm supports and boom into a singular triangulated structural piece reduces material use, increases overall strength, and visually lightens the chair aesthetics.
- Exploration 34
- Do Over: Sometimes even the best design intentions don’t yield results… only option: start again.
- Exploration 35
- Eco-Dematerialization: Through design iteration, we reduced material use (and environmental footprint), without sacrificing durability or comfort.
- Exploration 36
- Y-Tower Optimization: The structural mast supporting the suspension back was strategically carved away to maximize strength and minimize material use.
- Exploration 37
- Smart Structure: Even the base of the chair was dematerialized, optimizing the design for strength, weight and sustainability.
- Exploration 38
- Evolution of an Idea: Sketches trace the evolution of the SAYL chair family from concept to completion.
- Exploration 39
- Exploration 40
- Inspecting the Goods: First suspension backs come out of the mold.
- Exploration 41
- Inspecting the Machine: The correct pressure and material flow can only be achieved through perfect tool alignment.
- Exploration 42
- Supergrid: Closer look at the injection tool.
- Exploration 43
- Production Test: The first elastomer suspension back parts are run on the line.
- Exploration 44
- Shop Talk: Bob, Brian and Bret’s production logistics discussion in the Greenhouse assembly line in Michigan.
- Exploration 45
- Rough Treatment: A 200-pound seat drop and repetitive seat recline test to ensure decades of use and the full 12-year warranty.
- Exploration 46
- Stop-Motion Refinements: Finalized details in sketches, CAD and prototypes.
- Exploration 47
- Creating a Family: Adapting the task chair design and patents to side chairs, in wire sketches.
- Exploration 48
- Side Chair Skeleton: Prototype of the side chair in the fuseproject studio.
- Exploration 49
- Side Chair Evolution: Full-size working models of the SAYL family side chairs.
- Exploration 50
- Weight Testing: A 300-pound weight is drop tested on the cantiliver chair…big smiles when the test is a success.
- Exploration 51
- Anticipation: A veiled prototype of the SAYL chair sits in the Herman Miller studio.
- Exploration 52
- Color Wall: Yves in the Herman Miller material library, finalizing fabrics for the SAYL family.
- Exploration 53
- First Assembly: Initial prototype run in the factory.
- Exploration 54
- Shadow Play: Light shining through the suspension back pattern….
- Exploration 55
- Ready for SAYL’s Close-Up: An early photoshoot in the fuseproject studio.
- Exploration 56
- The Beauty is in the Details: Sculptural armrests line up.
- Exploration 57
- Family Portrait
- Exploration 58