Yes, sometimes we humans just want to go shopping! Even guys find the urge to hit a store for something other than a fuel filter or new saw blade once in a while. And, speaking of buying something, in1998 we began searching for a new product line to fit within the display biz and nourish our fondness for making things. Even though most of the product lines here at Consort are creations by us, where we look for a niche in the display biz that hasn't been addressed, we sometimes look for existing products that might make a synergistic fit to our capabilities and markets.
Through a several-months-long chain of events, we decided upon the Abstracta Modular Display System, originally a Danish system of tubes and connectors that was well known in the design industry. We saw our purchase of this proven product as an opportunity to add new blood to Abstracta and create line extensions and new concepts using the current elements and potentially new components. An exceptional company in California, Abex Display Systems*, owned it at the time and had imported the manufacturing machinery from Denmark about ten years earlier. We made the deal and by October of 1998 we had everything up and running. In the beginning, we were chasing ourselves around the building trying to get out Christmas-oriented retail fixture orders that Abex handed to us from folks like Macy's. It was quite the experience, adding a major product line all at once, and we had many hiccups but no major catastrophes.
So, why do I love Abstracta? Because you can (very quickly) make neat stuff with it!
I had known about Abstracta while in architecture school where it was known for the very reason I just stated - you can make neat stuff with it. We design students found its many possible forms intriguing. If you're familiar with it, you know that it can be shelving, tables, desks, space frames, room dividers and much, much more. I started with making furniture for my dorm room at the University of Colorado and now, many years later, have Abstracta cube tables, end tables and shelving at home.
Of course, if you visit our website you will probably find the stock retail store fixture designs and cube tables in the Abstracta Furniture section, which are all wonderful and can be easily customized, but please look at the "Mya Personal Tables” for something different. This will show you how easy** it is to create and make cool stuff. The Mya series was a result of my finding my home coffee table just about 18" too far away while I stretch out on the couch. I envisioned a sort of "personal, one cup table" that I could move around depending on where, exactly, I wanted to rest my coffee cup. So, I went to the plant and in about 30 minutes designed it, assembled it and plopped it into my car. The next morning my coffee cup was where I wanted it to be. Simple stuff.
A noteworthy thing happened immediately after I made that first little table. Visitors began requesting that I make them one or two of the little tables, at varying heights and bingo!- a product was born. We gave it a simple, sort of European name (Mya of English origin, actually) and dubbed it "The Personal Table". One of the features that make this product a bit more unusual is that the Mya table tops are interchangeable. That is, if you want a fine hardwood top for indoor use and a tile or teak top for outdoor use, you simply unfasten the top and make the change. A few options of cigar ash tray tops are available as well.
So, that's why I love Abstracta - it's simple in concept but can easily be configured into both simple and complex forms for many uses, anywhere you have in mind.
Roger
*For those of you who know about the former New York office, known as Abstracta Structures, we also moved that office to Kalamazoo. Today, the Kalamazoo office is the North American headquarters and we own the worldwide trademarks for Abstracta.
**Note that the "J" Series of Mya table is fabricated with a custom welded part and is not in the "easy to make category" !
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