Ideal Goes to College. Again.

The concept of “school furniture” has moved far beyond wooden desks with Formica tops and uncomfortable seating with the ergonomics of a park bench. Colleges and Universities have pivoted to meet ever-changing student bodies that learn in various settings and ways. Ideal’s recent installations at the University of Minnesota perfectly showcase how educational furniture has evolved.

 

Sophisticated Yet Affordable

Modern learning spaces must be reimagined to accommodate on-campus and off-campus students, including non-traditional students, who comprise most undergraduates. As you can see in the above image, the lobby of Church Hall on the Twin Cities campus of the University of Minnesota is sturdy and sophisticated. Ideal purposely used this modular lobby furniture to create an aura of stature and elegance that befits the college’s scientific thrust.

Because college installations are always sensitive to budgets, the above installation shows how the textile and fabric colors matched the existing lobby colors, blending in and not competing with the environment.

 

 

Flexible and Adaptable Space

Making educational space functional includes balancing the needs of teachers, student groups, and individuals. Innovative touches such as putting tables and stools on casters allow furniture to adapt to large group, individual, and casual learning situations. While the furniture needs to be flexible, it must also be sturdy. For this reason, many of the furniture selections by Ideal for the University utilize aluminum and steel construction to withstand the rigors of daily use while remaining comfortable and functional.

 

As you can see above in McNeal Hall on the Saint Paul campus, products also work with the existing décor and paint in the room. Long desking units are arranged in a vertical floor plan to take advantage of the natural lighting provided by the large windows. The carpeting and furniture colors also mimic the reddish-brown wood and steel-gray aesthetics of the open space.

In many ways, this student common area resembles a sleek corporate lounge more than a dingy student huddle space.  The lines are strong, and the space is open, which fits the college’s mission focused on design.

 

 

Multi Use Facilities

 Not all Halls on the University of Minnesota campus are discipline specific. Ford Hall is an example of a collaborative learning hub that accommodates a variety of classes and events, including the University of Minnesota’s popular Spotlight series. The Office of Classroom Management hired Ideal to update the furniture, furnishings and make improvements to the carpet, paint and lighting during Summer 2023.

As you can see in the photo below, a “pop-in” classroom showcases all of Ideal’s features, functionality, and design skills. All furniture is designed with casters that allow meeting tables and lounge furniture to be configured in ways conducive to the activity. The walls and the carpeting match seamlessly with the charts, wooden accents, and the table, creating a bright and energetic aesthetic for the space.

 

 

Built Ford Tough

To paraphrase a truck commercial, the furniture installed in Ford, Church, and McNeal Hall all feature edgy metal binding that will not chip and tough, stain-resistant fabrics designed for high-traffic areas. Because of the way they are built, they all come with a lifetime warranty that most car manufacturers, for that matter, might envy.

 

New Upgrades. Historic Accolades.

The recent furnishing and design upgrades at the University of Minnesota build on a long-standing tradition that Ideal maintains at the U. As a Certified Minority-Owned Business, Ideal has been voted Minority Supplier of the Year for a straight five-year period from 2015 to 2020. These recent installations, the first since COVID on the campus for Ideal, help both the University and Ideal continue to showcase what collaboration and commitment to minority business participation can accomplish. They are both in this to last.