Rubberized School Desks
The schools in Mdantsane, South Africa are poorly equipped and lack basic facilities such as chairs and desks which are required to run the schools. With over 7000 students and only 3 schools, the volume of desks to the space available is another key factor to consider. For this reason the design is a combination of both a desk and chair. Each desk is formed from recycled rubber.
Rubber is very durable which will withstand the day to day usage of the desks in the classroom environment. This makes it an ideal material for the design. Due to the material durability it will help to withstand damage from potential thief’s and the weight of the material will also help to prevent thief’s from removing the desk. The rubber surface can be easily maintained, preserving the desks for future generations.
The desks are a combination of 3 separate rubber layers which are glued together. The base layer is a hard compound, which protects the underside of the desk/chair and also offers a durable surface for the user to work on. The core layer is again a hard rubber compound, which enhances the rigidity of the desk and supports the weight of the user. The final layer is a soft rubber compound, which acts as a cushion.
The designs each have individual color along the contour of the design. The idea is to brighten the currently dull classrooms and make the surrounding environment more appealing to the users creating a much more positive atmosphere within the classroom.
Designer: Thomas Brown



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공간 활용이 좋은 책걸상이네여
학원가에서 사용하면 아주 좋을 꺼 같네여
디자인도 심플하고 No1 입니다.
뚱뚱한 사람은…ㅜㅜ
Please send us information on where we can purchase Rubberized desk by Thomas Brown.
We would like to use this in a psychiatric hospital classroom setting.
Please send us contact information as soon as possible.
Thank you in advance for your time and attention.
Hi guyz,
first, excellent backbone regarding the idea and the execution. As you may have noticed on several other design work, I share some technical concerns, solutions, ideas in order to make the concept fit both the main frame of the idea and the technical feasibility.
My technical concerns:
1) cost approach: recycled rubber more expensive than all the common VIRGIN plastics used. In general, recycling process is costly unlike what we may think
Solution: virgin plastics inside, or recycled wood, but for sure no recycled rubber.
2) shape and space saving: in order to reduce cost from product supply and to efficiently save space this design isn’t appropriated at all: in a truck full of chairs, you would actually transport AIR.
Solution: think about a STACKABLE design.
3) mechanical properties: a rubber is a rubber. Ever a hard one will remain a rubber…. TOTALLY WEAK FOR FLEXURAL STRESS: especially at the junction between the base panel and the vertical panel of the table…
… so attractive, but MORE EXPENSIVE, LESS COLORFUL, MORE SPACE TAKING than current polypropylene or pvc furniture
NaKkA… is it really TeCh-NaKka-Ly feasible?
ti is good at the first look ,but there is too little room for legs when we ger up to say GOOD MORNING teacher /
this looks cool, but as a high school student, i refuse using it.
it will be hard to turn my chair to talk with my friend sitting behind me and have lunch together