TORONTO – Office workers call it the dreaded three-cornered prison, while others describe it as a home away from home. (Although the latter may be a bit of a stretch.)
Either way the modern cubicle as we know it is 50 years old this month.
Originally designed in 1964 by American Robert Propst, the first cubicle was engineered to empower people, improve work-flow and productivity.
Called the “Action Office,” it had the potential to revolutionize the office space but its official release four years later proved too expensive and “futuristic” for the business community.
But not long after, Propst reworked his creation with the introduction of an enclosed desk system which single-handedly reshaped the corporate environment.
In the United States, the cubicle now represents a $3 billion industry, claiming a significant chunk of office furniture sales.
But to the Dilberts out there, the much maligned creation remains a love-hate relationship.
Writer Nikil Saval examined these odd spaces with his book Cubed: A Secret History of the Workplace.
In an interview with The Atlantic magazine, he described the invention as a creation”to free office workers from uninspired, even domineering workplace settings” but today “few words so quickly express contemporary workplace frustration and anomie.”
These days, some furniture companies are coming out with open concept designs to minimize the secluded impact of its predecessor.
It remains to be seen if this concept will be widely adopted just yet.
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