If you’re employed in a workplace, you most likely pay most, if not all, of your workday, sitting. A survey conducted by the corrective lens company Acuvue found that office employees pay 6.5 hours on the average sitting. Over the course of a year, that’s approximately 1,700 hours sitting.

Whether you pay a lot of or less time sitting, though, you’ll shield yourself from joint pain and even increase your productivity by investing in a high-quality office chair. You’ll be ready to work a lot of expeditiously and without experiencing back pain and different musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) to which so many office employees are susceptible. 

Here are 7 necessary things to consider when choosing an office chair.

1. Material
2. Lumbar Support
3. Weight Capacity
4. Casters
5. Size
6. Adjustable Height
7. Style

Material

The material used in an office chair’s construction can have an effect on its performance. Over the years, makers have begun using a variety of materials to supply their office chairs, every of that has distinctive characteristics.

Some of the foremost common materials in which office chairs are created include:

• Genuine Leather: Consisting of tanned cowhide or sheepskin, real leather office chairs are soft, cool, stylish, and sturdy.
• Faux Leather: whereas faux leather office chairs look and desire real leather, they’re typically product of other materials, as well as either artificial or organic materials.
• Vinyl: Vinyl office chairs are soft and comfy, and since vinyl is a synthetic fabric, they’re naturally resistant to water and alternative liquids.
• Nylon: usually wont to produce mesh backrests, nylon is another material during which office chairs are created. Nylon office chairs are cool, breathable, and light-weight.
• Plastic: the smallest amount expensive option, plastic office chairs are generally used in waiting rooms wherever an oversized number of chairs are required.
• Wood: The oldest style of material wont to build office chairs is wood. Wood office chairs are durable, attractive, and on the market in uncounted designs.

Lumbar Support

When selecting an office chair, consider whether it offers lumbar support. Some people assume that back pain only happens in laborious jobs, like construction or producing, however, it’s usually office workers who are most vulnerable to this MSD. according to a study of nearly 700 office workers, 27th of office employees experience a new instance of low back pain every year.

To lower your risk of low back pain, choose an office chair with lumbar support. lumbar support refers to padding or cushioning around the bottom of the backrest that supports the lumbar region of your back (the area of your back between your thoracic and pelvic regions). It stabilizes your lower back, thereby reducing stress and tension on your spine and its supporting structures.

Weight Capacity

All office chairs have a weight capacity, that you should follow for each your safety and the safety of your chair. If you weigh quite the capacity for which your office chair is rated, it could break under the strain of everyday use.

You’ll realize most office chairs have a 200 to 250-pound weight capability. The good news is that some office chairs are designed specifically for heavier employees. Known as big and tall office chairs, they feature a sturdier construction to supply a better weight capacity. Big and tall office chairs are accessible in 300, 400 and 500-pound weight capacities. Additionally, to better weight capacity, some models additionally feature larger seats and backrests. Choose an office chair with a better weight capability than the burden of your body.

Casters

Not all office chairs feature a conventional four-legged design. Some are designed with mounted wheels, called casters, that enable you to pass off and rotate whereas sitting in them. If you’ve got an L-shaped desk, for example, you’ll roll or rotate between the various areas of your table. If you’ve got a laptop on one space of your table and a writing station on the opposite area, you’ll quickly move between these areas without standing up if you select an office chair with casters.

On its website, the activity Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recommends the employment of office chairs with 5 casters in computer workstations to promote productivity and reduce the risk of injury. You’ll still use traditional four-legged chairs in conference rooms, waiting rooms and breakrooms. For computer workstations, though, selecting a five-wheeled office chair can improve your productivity while creating a safer workplace within the process.

Size

Space is a useful good in offices, also like most other workplaces, that is why it’s necessary to consider size when choosing an office chair. If you work in a small cubicle, you’ll not have the luxurious of selecting an oversized executive office chair, in which case you’ll need to choose a smaller chair.

Before getting an office chair, get the measurements of the world in which you intend to use it. using these measurements, you’ll be able to choose an appropriately sized office chair. Remember, you’ll be able to always match a small office chair into an oversized workstation, however, you can’t fit a large office chair into a small workstation. When in doubt, choose an office chair that’s at least a few inches smaller than the area in which you intend to use it.

Adjustable Height

Proper office chair seat height fixed-height office chairs typically have a seat-to-floor height of seventeen to nineteen inches, allowing most office workers to comfortably to use them before of desks and workstations. However not all workplace workers are the same height, and if you’re too tall or short for a fixed-height office chair, it should stress your back or neck once sitting in it.

OSHA recommends choosing an office chair with an adjustable height of fifteen to twenty-two inches, which means you must be able to lower the seat to simply fifteen inches off the ground or raise the seat to twenty-two inches off the ground. Whether or not you’re short, tall or average height, this may permit you to well use your table or workstation. Most office chairs don’t go down to fifteen inches although so you’ll get to accept seventeen to twenty-one inches. simply an FYI, this measurement is usually measured from the ground to the highest of the seat cushion. And, whereas we are on the subject of adjustments, it would also benefit you tremendously to decide on an office chair with multiple ergonomic adjustments.

Style

The style of an office chair won’t have an effect on its functionality or performance, however, it’ll have an effect on the chair’s aesthetics and, therefore, your office’s decor. you can find office chairs in countless styles, starting from traditional all-black executive styles to colorful fashionable and up to date designs.

So, what style of office chair do you have to choose? If you’re selecting an office chair for a large office, stick with a well-known style to create a cohesive decoration. If your office presently uses traditional all-black executive office chairs, as an example, choose a similar all-black executive style. If your office uses brown leather office chairs, on the opposite hand, choose a brown leather style. using a consistent style with your office chairs will enhance your office’s decoration by making a cohesive interior.