Fabrics and textiles for office furniture: choosing the right material
Textile, a technical finish as much as a colour
Textile dresses seating, curtains and acoustic panels: it is what softens a floor plate and what undergoes the most daily wear. In every Kytom office, the material library brings together textiles qualified for the tertiary sector, presented alongside flooring, wood and paints, so you can choose material and colour together.
Three uses, three requirements
A single word, textile, covers very different uses. The material library presents them separately, because what suits a curtain will not hold up on a seat.
Seating
Work chairs, meeting armchairs, lounge sofas: here the textile undergoes friction, soiling and light. Abrasion resistance, pilling and ease of cleaning make the selection before colour.
Curtains and sheers
They filter light, soften a glazed room and contribute to acoustics. Fire resistance and colour stability under light are the decisive criteria.
Acoustic panels and partitions
Here the textile is the skin of an absorbing system. It is chosen along with the panel it covers, for sound permeability as much as for appearance.
What we look at before colour
- Abrasion resistance suited to the zone, neither underspecified for an intensive workstation nor overspecified for a lounge.
- Fire resistance compliant with the requirements of your establishment.
- Pilling and lightfastness, so the material ages well when facing bay windows.
- Maintenance: on-site cleaning possible, resistance to common stains.
- Acoustic absorption for panels and partitions, measured on the whole and not on the fabric alone.
- Harmony with the other finishes: the textile is placed on the board next to the flooring, wood and paints.
How the choice happens in the office
- Uses and zones. We list the seating, curtains and panels of the project and the level of requirement for each.
- Preselection. A few textiles qualified by use, available from the manufacturer, presented in large samples.
- Overall board. Textiles, flooring, wood and paints composed together, under the project’s lighting.
- Specification. Reference, colour and orientation of installation go into the furniture description: the material touched in the office is the one that will be delivered.
Frequently asked questions
What level of resistance should I aim for with office chairs?
It is set according to the zone: a workstation chair occupied all day does not have the same requirement as a lounge armchair. We read the abrasion resistance on the technical sheet and match it to actual use, without over-specifying everywhere.
What fire requirements apply to upholstered furniture?
They depend on the nature of your establishment and the regulations that apply to it. Each selected textile is verified on this point before specification; we do not propose a reference that is not qualified for your use.
Can a textile improve the acoustics of an open space?
Yes, if it covers panels or partitions designed to absorb sound. The textile alone is not enough; it is the panel-and-fabric assembly that is qualified, and we choose it at the same time as the flooring and ceiling.
