SIDE TABLE, WAGON for Panasonic Industry by kvalito

Osaka-based architectural design office Kvalito, led by Kazuya Mizukami, has designed a side table and trolley based on the upcycling concept. These furniture pieces are original products created for the laboratory of ‘Panasonic Industry Co., Ltd., where Kvalito conducted interior renovations under Loftwork MTRL’s project management. For the table tops of the two products, Mizukami used offcuts of artificial marble manufactured by Panasonic Housing Equipment Co., Ltd.

Before he started designing, Mizukami heard about a project (https://loftwork.com/jp/project/panasonic-waste-material-circular-design) that Panasonic Holdings was working on with Loftwork to reuse offcuts of artificial marble, and he sympathised with the concept and decided to bring the same offcut material into his furniture design.

An interior design of Panasonic Industry’s laboratory

“The material we used here is offcuts from the kitchen countertops when opening the sink. The material has holes around the corners, which are caused during processing. Still, we felt that the irregular shape, including the holes, is beautiful and gives the furniture an identity, so we tried to utilise it as it is. Each artificial marble board had slight dimensional differences because they were leftover pieces, making it difficult to use them as furniture. However, we regarded the shape of the material as a kind of site condition in architectural design and worked out a design and structure that communicates the positive aspects of the context,” Mizukami explained.

For the trolley, a single piece of offcuts was used as it was, and for the side table, one of the quartered pieces was used for the top panel. In their design, even the irregular holes are used as material features, which conveys the upcycling concept to the user. It is significant that ethical initiatives have been implemented in spaces of creation, such as corporate laboratories. Designer Mizukami told us that he hopes these products will be used not only in the laboratory but also in other places.

In the interior design of the laboratory, Mizukami created a variable system combining two different diameter pipes without modifying the existing walls and ceilings. The interior colour scheme was based on the green used for the existing shelving, and the same colour was applied to the side tables and trolleys.