Furnishing your laboratory with the right furniture is essential to streamlining workflows and ensuring safety. But when designing or renovating laboratories, which furniture should you choose—custom or standard? Selecting the right furniture for your space significantly impacts functionality, efficiency, and even safety.
Let’s compare the benefits and drawbacks of custom and standard lab furniture.
What is Standard Lab Furniture?
Standard lab furniture refers to ready-made solutions manufactured to meet the general needs of laboratories across industries and research disciplines. It is readily available and provides surfaces for experiments, equipment handling, and day-to-day tasks. Standard furniture typically comes in a variety of styles, sizes, and configurations to accommodate different environments.
Benefits of Standard Lab Furniture
- More affordable due to economies of scale in production.
- Easy to purchase and install quickly, minimizing lab downtime.
- Wide range of options that can meet most basic laboratory needs.
Drawbacks of Standard Lab Furniture
- Not tailored to your lab’s specific requirements, which may cause inefficiencies.
- May not fully address the safety needs of certain research activities.
- Lacks specialized features to optimize processes.
What is Custom Lab Furniture?
Custom lab furniture is designed and built to meet the unique requirements of your laboratory space. Every piece is crafted with specific dimensions and features that enhance workflow, safety, and overall efficiency.
Benefits of Custom Lab Furniture
- Designed to perfectly fit your lab’s layout and workflow.
- Incorporates specialized features, such as ergonomic workstations or built-in spill containment.
- Can be integrated with fume hoods, biosafety cabinets, and safety equipment for maximum protection.
Drawbacks of Custom Lab Furniture
- Longer lead times due to design and manufacturing.
- Requires a higher upfront investment.
Custom-Designed vs. Off-the-Shelf Options
The best choice between custom and standard lab furniture depends on your specific needs, budget, and priorities.
- Design: Custom options offer highly personalized solutions, while standard pieces are made for general use.
- Tailored Solutions: Custom fits your exact requirements; standard may not fully align.
- Cost: Custom is more expensive; standard is cost-effective.
- Lead Time: Custom requires longer production and delivery; standard is available quickly.
- Features: Custom integrates specialized safety and workflow features; standard lacks customization.
- Adaptability: Custom supports long-term flexibility; standard has limited scalability.
Custom furniture provides unmatched design flexibility and tailored features but comes with higher costs and longer wait times. Off-the-shelf furniture is quick and affordable but sacrifices customization and optimization.
Key Aspects to Consider When Choosing Lab Furniture
Equipping your laboratory with the right furniture fosters safety, efficiency, and productivity. Here are key factors to keep in mind:
Lab Goals
Consider the types of activities and experiments that will take place. Your furniture should support both current needs and long-term objectives for productivity and efficiency.
Storage Solutions
Think about equipment, chemicals, samples, and supplies. Choose shelving, cabinets, drawers, and mobile storage that accommodate diverse storage requirements.
Office Furniture Integration
Labs often require office setups for data analysis, meetings, and brainstorming. Ensure space for computers, monitors, and whiteboards, along with ergonomic desks and chairs for comfort during long work hours.
Secure Laboratory Environment
Prioritize safety by selecting furniture with chemical-resistant materials, fire-resistant coatings, and ergonomic designs. Consider specialized safety furniture like fume hoods, biosafety cabinets, and eye wash stations for specific hazards.
Wrapping Up
The right laboratory furniture is crucial for safe and efficient workflows. Whether you choose custom or standard solutions depends on your lab’s needs, budget, and long-term goals. Custom designs offer flexibility and optimization, while standard furniture provides quick, affordable setups.
