Design Challenge and Design Ideas

We set out to design a modular shelving system that would fit into any interior and be easily adaptable to the changing needs of our customers throughout their life and beyond.

The key elements of the brief we had set ourselves were:

• Components should be interchangeable within the system
• It should be possible to extend or reduce the system to allow it to adapt to different spaces and locations.
• The materials, finishes, parts and ethos of the product should be in keeping to the principals of the Circular Economy.
• The system should be easy to install, change and remove and have a minimum of points of contact with walls and floors.

How the brief was fulfilled

This is a collaboration between Brian Tyrrell of Bear Creation and Knut Klimmek of Klimmek Furniture.
With nearly 50 years experience designing and manufacturing bespoke furniture solutions, Brian and Knut had previously discussed the lack of Irish designed and manufactured furniture products that had gained international representation. By collaborating they felt they could address these factors by designing a freestanding product requiring minimal assembly and fixing and a strong sales and marketing strategy after the product was created.
The main features of the system are the open rounded vertical and the rounding of the ends and edges of the horizontal components. The flowing and soft tactile nature of the components and finish make it ideal for integrating into a biophilic or wellness design project.
The open space in the vertical components allows the creation of continuous horizontal planes and the insertion of mini components and accessories.
The final design can be categorised as Universal because it is easy to use, maintain and interact with.

The BÄR storage system consists of vertical, horizontal and storage components. It works on an 800mm horizontal x 125mm vertical grid with shelves and storage elements available in 250mm and 340mm depths. These dimensions are based on research into potential spaces available to locate a shelving or storage system in the home and a survey of the types of what would be stored there.
Shelves are offered in various lengths that allow extension beyond the vertical grid line, or to bridge across a double vertical grid line, permitting many different system widths and functional configurations to be achieved.
Storage elements slot into the grid and can easily be moved to different locations within the system. Proprietary connection fittings between vertical and horizontal elements allow components to be moved or removed from the system without tools.
Components are made from solid timber or veneered poplar plywood sourced from environmentally conscious European suppliers. Finishes have 0% VOC content. We stand over the product by offering a lifetime guarantee, helping with refurbishment and buying system components back when they are no longer required.