Office workers perform better in tasks related to attention-span, decision-making, language skills, positivity and creativity after their static workstations are enhanced with portable sit-stand platforms.
Now, businesses can benefit from an innovative product to support healthy agile working that has been scientifically proven to enhance productivity levels.
 
New Opløft from Posturite – the largest ergonomics company in the UK – is the first ever sit-stand platform that is truly portable enough to provide flexibility of movement in the workplace.  Its launch is supported by new independent research* which proves how Opløft can improve performance levels.

Users simply place Opløft onto an existing flat surface and easily adjust its height - with the computer or work items in situ - to secure the required sit or stand height.  It’s robust enough to lean on and extends beyond the edge of the table surface, providing comfortable standing leg room. Holding a weight of up to 12kg, Opløft is ideal for all types of technology, desktop computers, laptops and other work devices. It boasts a unique gas elevation system for precision functionality, as well as a sleek and minimalistic Scandinavian design to provide the ultimate dynamic and healthy working environment.

Dubbed ‘the new frontier of the flexible working movement’, Opløft provides sit-stand flexibility as well as maximum ease and convenience.  Unlike its clunky counterparts, it is compact, easy to store away and portable to enable you to move around your home or between working spaces, giving you the freedom to stand up and move around your working environments.
 
*Boosting Britain’s Brainpower
It has long been recognised that a free-range hen is a happy hen. Now a new study conducted by The Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University College of London reveals that the right to roam at work also creates a happier, more productive workforce.

The study was carried out last month by the Human Brain Research department at UCL, on behalf of Posturite, the UK’s largest ergonomics company. It involved a group of office-based workers in London - who typically spend all day at a traditional static workstation. They were given access to the Opløft platform, which provides total flexibility of movement within the workplace.

Lead researcher, Professor of Human Brain Research, Vincent Walsh said: “Our research revealed that workers using Opløft were twice as competent in their decision-making skills and their language-based problem skills also improved by 64%. They completed tasks measuring concentration and vigilance 10% faster and made 45% fewer mistakes. Their creativity also improved by 28%.”

Whilst the physical benefits of being less sedentary have been widely recognised - such as decreasing your risk of musculoskeletal disorders, obesity and life expectancy, this is the first ever piece of research that proves how the flexibility of movement at work enhances overall productivity levels and boosts Britain’s brain power and emotional wellbeing.

The results revealed that using portable sit-stand desks enhance productivity on a number of levels. Professor Walsh selected a group of tests that capture the psychological elements of a working day. By comparing base line results on day one to those at the end of the five-day trial, Opløft users improved their performance levels for each of the following:

Improved concentration levels and attention span
Opløft users performed faster and more accurately. They showcased a better ability to deal with clutter and distractions whilst also performing at a greater speed. It is uncommon for both to happen simultaneously. They completed tasks 10% faster after trialling Opløft and made 45% fewer mistakes.

Better decision making
Using Opløft resulted in improved efficiency and risk-taking judgements. People’s judgement was twice as reliable, making them half as likely to make a critical mistake. Participants were able to assess information more rationally and behaved less impulsively.

Improved verbal fluency
Trial participants showcased better problem-solving and judgement skills at the end of the one-week trial. Their language-based problem solving skills improved by 64%.

Positive frame of mind
Opløft users benefited from a more positive emotional frame of mind, making them happier in the workplace.

Open to creativity
Opløft users scored 28% higher in a creative thinking test.

Professor Walsh said: “The research was fairly conclusive in proving that having access to Opløft made people more productive. However, the greatest excitement was the results of the test for attention and concentration levels. Not only did our triallists perform much faster after using Opløft, but there was also a strong increase in their accuracy. People usually trade off accuracy when speed is increased, but Opløft users were able to improve both, which is impressive, and something I have never witnessed before”.

“Equally impressive was the results of the decision-making test. Not only did Opløft users perform better than average but they continued to improve throughout the week, which is very uncommon in this specific test.”

The benefits of sit-stand desks have been known for some time. Indeed 90% of Scandinavians already use sit-stand desks versus just 1% of the UK. However, with mounting evidence of their physical, psychological and increased productivity advantages the traditional, static workstation might soon become obsolete.

One of the trial participants commented: “Opløft provided an extremely positive contrast to my usual working environment, where I spend most of the day seated in a very confined space. I loved having the option to stand up to work whenever and wherever I choose and to stretch my arms and legs and create a much more dynamic workspace. It certainly made me feel more alert and energised.”

Having the right to roam at work is in growing demand in the UK. 
 
According to a new poll of recent graduates, over three quarters (76%) would choose to use a sit-stand desk at work given the choice and nearly 80% (79%) believe employers should be required to offer employees a flexible sit stand desk. 

In fact two thirds of all recent graduates (66%) would seriously consider turning down a new job if the option of a sit-stand desk wasn’t available to them. 64% of graduates agree a sit stand desks like Opløft is as important a staff benefit as health insurance with 40% believing the right to roam at work via a sit stand desk is as important a staff benefit as a company pension scheme.

Posturite’s CEO Ian Fletcher-Price views Opløft as a revelation in sit-stand desk design. Not only does it give users the ability to stand to work, but it is also slim and light enough to be easily transported between environments.

He said: “For centuries we have gone to work. Now, thanks to portable technology, work goes with us. The days of sitting at one desk all day are long gone. With Opløft we no longer need to be slaves to our desks because it goes where we go. Agile working gives us the freedom to choose how and where we do our work, Opløft gives us the practical means to achieve that.”

Adding clinical expertise to Opløft’s development is Chartered physiotherapist, ergonomist and Lead Consultant Katharine Metters. She said: “This new research shows that enabling your workforce to work where, when and how they choose – with maximum flexibility and minimum constraints, produces a significantly happier, healthier and ultimately more productive workforce.”
 
About Opløft
Opløft is a collaboration between Posturite’s founder and a young designer from Denmark. It began as a concept on Kickstarter and now, two years on, it’s a reality. The secret of Opløft’s strength lies in the unique cross-structure frame, which not only gives the platform a minimalist, classically Scandinavian aesthetic when extended to standing height, but also enables it to fold neatly into its own footprint for convenience. When flat, Opløft is only 30 mm thick and weighs just 12 kg - making it possible to carry between workstations or neatly store away.

Watch the video here.

www.posturite.co.uk/oploft