TCT NANOTEC CO., LTD. Builds Ergonomics Into Its Furniture

As living standards have improved, consumers everywhere have been demanding furniture with an ergonomic design. Taiwanese manufacturers have been adapting their operating strategies to this trend, and among the most aggressive of the lot is the TCT Furniture Industrial Corp, an affiliate of the TCT Group, which is focusing on furniture that is not only ergonomic but also safe and healthy.

"Designing a building that is beautiful on the outside is only half the task," TCT executives note. "The other half is inside the building, where good design can strike a balance between utility and esthetics. Furniture and home decoration play an important role in promoting the transition from cold, hard building materials to a soft and warm home environment, and our company was established to help with that transition."

Established in 1983, TCT was the first company to set up a large-scale furniture chain in Taiwan and one of the first to introduce melamine knock-down (K/D) furniture to the island. "Melamine is a chemically treated paper sheet that resists fire, scratching, and moisture when bonded to the surface of a chipboard," explained Joyce Chen, TCT's vice president. "It's an environmentally friendly material that is both durable and consistent in quality."

The company has created orderly and multi-dimensional designs by incorporating other materials with melamine panes.

Children's furniture occupies a key section in TCT's product pool. The company has devoted increasing efforts to this section in recent years, and has become a leading supplier in the field with its "Kid 2 Youth" brand.

"Younger consumers start paying attention to their health, the bigger chance they will have to stay healthy," Chen comments. "We've been involved in the production of children's furniture for more than a decade, and we've created a series of ergonomically designed furniture for children and youths aged one to 18."

Care for Children

"Whenever we create a new design for children's furniture, we're very careful about its functions and materials," stresses TCT chief engineer Chen-Hu Wu. " We have to take the convenience, comfort, and safety into consideration. With the increasing use of computer and internet, children and youths are spending more and more time in front of desks, so furniture makers have to consider this factor as well."

"Kid 2 Youth" furniture is designed to be movable, like the human body. "Children are inseparable from movement," Wu emphasizes, "so some of our children's furniture can be even moved while seated. Scientific reports confirm that the human body is adapted to movement, and any posture that results in static muscle/ligament work induces tissue fatigue. This can cause people to suffer from aches and pains. To avoid that, flexibility and adjustability are necessary for sitting, and our desk and chair just meet the need. Mobile sitting is enjoyable, which can also help learning at the same time."

The most natural posture for the spine is standing. But "People today who are busy working or studying always stay seated too long. Worse, they lean over their desks and hunch down to read, write, do paper work, operate a computer, or eat. This puts continuous pressure on the spine and causes the elasticity of spinal disks to deteriorate. That's where back problems come from," Wu says.

To help alleviate those problems, "TCT designs its furniture to be movable in line with the movement of the sitter's body," Wu adds. "When a user moves his or her body closer to the desk, the seat cushion moves and drops down at the edge. That widens the angle between the upper torso and the thighs, allowing the body to sit more straight with the spine in natural 'S' shape. A pulley device allows the sitter to move freely on the chair and avoid muscular fatigue by incorrect postures."

TCT's adjustable desk and movable chair have constituted a dynamic workstation and increasingly become popular among children, youths, and home office users. Besides, we also have the design extended to more professionals and elders. "We're committed to providing our customers with healthy, safe, eco-friendly, and happy furniture," notes Emma Huang, the company's general manager.

Everything for Health and Sustainability

The company has also developed system furniture to deal with the rising cost of home decoration and design. "Since most of our furniture parts are prefabricated in the factory, onsite construction waste is kept to a minimum and installation can be completed quickly," Huang comments. "And unlike traditional home decorations, system furniture can be relocated easily whenever necessary."

Homeowners or interior designers can choose furniture modules in different sizes, shapes, and materials to suit their tastes and needs, and create unique combinations that are limited only by the imagination.

The materials that TCT uses in its furniture have won certification approval from the governments of China, Germany, and the European Union. Besides Taiwan's domestic market, the furniture is also exported worldwide, mainly to the Germany, Singapore, Japan and some other European countries. The next marketing target is Southeast Asia and China.

To keep customers satisfied, in addition to manufacturing high-quality products TCT Furniture holds regular in-house training and related programs that are open to every member of its staff. These efforts have been recognized with the granting of Taiwan's "Golden Award for Customer Satisfaction." The efforts continue: "Our goal is to reach 100% customer satisfaction," Huang emphasizes.

Customer and employee suggestions for product improvement are taken to heart, and the key parts of TCT products are guaranteed for up to 10 years. The ISO 9002-certified company keeps quality top-notch through its own strict quality-control program and quality-assurance checks at every stage of the production process.

TCT NANOTEC CO., LTD.

326, Section 3, Chung Kong Road, Taichung, Taiwan

Tel:886-4-23591666

Fax:886-4-23591686

E-mail:tctnano.com@msa.hinet.net

http://www.etct.com.tw