Businesses across the world have a boardroom table and chairs in the most important room in the office. Sometimes called a conference table, a boardroom table serves many practical purposes for a company and is a sign of success and drive. But what makes a boardroom table and chairs so important? What are some tips for looking after this furniture? And, if needed, what’s the best way to go about furniture repair?
At Kilmister Furniture Restoration, we’ve been working with boardroom tables and chairs for over 30 years. During this time, we’ve seen it all. And, we’ve learnt a few things about how to look after your business’s pride and joy. In this guide, we’ll share practical advice to avoid damage.
To start with, what actually is a boardroom table? Boardroom tables come in many different shapes and sizes. But, no matter what it looks like, all boardroom or conference tables serve primarily as a meeting place for the business.
Whether for training, interviews for new employees or a big conference or team building session, a boardroom table is at the focal point. Boardroom tables are made from many different materials. Generally, they’re made with hard-wearing wood or plastic to withstand heavy use. Common boardroom table materials include:
Boardroom tables can be modular, a u-shape, rectangular or even round. Some even incorporate leather, like the example below. We were proud to be a part of the furniture repair in Wellington for Tommy’s Real Estate.
Given how a boardroom table or conference table serves as such a focal point for a business, it makes sense to ensure it looks respectable. A smart-looking boardroom table is often the first thing a potential customer will see when entering a room.
First impressions are so important for any business. Forbes has even said that a customer makes a first impression of a business within just the first seven seconds. As mentioned, a boardroom tables often draw the eye as soon as someone enters the room. Because of this, it’s essential that it looks its best.
In some ways, your furniture could be seen as a reflection of your business. Suppose you start on the right foot and show you mean business. In that case, you’re developing a positive relationship with customers and potentially heading in the right direction to make that first sale. Looking after your furniture so that it looks excellent conveys professionalism.
Money makes the world go round. Especially when you’re a business trying to get ahead, the last thing you want is to fork out money that you don’t need on new office furniture. Given its share size and the hard-wearing material that a boardroom table and chairs is often made of, buying new can sometimes be very expensive. Not to mention, it can also be an added cost to transport new furniture to your office.
Looking after your furniture is the best place to start to keep costs down. However, if your furniture is looking worse for wear, it’s also often more cost-effective to look at furniture repair options instead of heading to a store.
Believe it or not, experts estimate that Kiwis create about 17.49 million tonnes of waste every year. That’s a lot! They also believe that about 12.59 million tonnes of this waste ends up at local tips. Especially given the size of a boardroom table and chairs, the last thing you want to do is drop these items off to the tip as well.
Every little bit helps. Look after your furniture, so that it lasts the distance and stays out of landfills. Choosing furniture repair over buying new is another way to do your bit.
So, what are some practical bits of advice to maintain your wooden furniture? Generally, there are some simple ways to better look after your boardroom table and chairs. Some of these tips you may already know. Often, it’s just a case of reminding yourself.
It may seem like using a strong chemical cleaner makes sense to eliminate grime that may accumulate on your boardroom table. However, using an all-purpose cleaner or cleaning spray can do more damage than good, especially if the furniture is made of wood.
Many of these detergents contain bleach or even alcohol. These chemicals may be suitable for cleaning porcelain or in the bathroom. However, they can easily stain or strip wood. Instead, we recommend using a damp cloth that’s not too abrasive. If you really need to, you could use mild dish soap.
If you’ve ever had a nasty sunburn, you’d know how much it can hurt. And also how the sun’s rays can leave a visible red burn on your skin. Not too dissimilar to our skin, UV rays from the sun can damage your wooden boardroom table and chairs over time. Long-term exposure can cause colour to fade over time.
If you can, keep your prized boardroom table and chairs out of direct sunlight from windows. If your table is already showing signs of fading, contact us at Kilmister Furniture Restoration. We’ve years of experience in antique furniture restoration and wood furniture repair. We can re-polish furniture that’s faded from the sun using expert techniques.
You’ll want to use a desk pad on your boardroom table if you can. Of course, a coaster is used for hot drinks. However, the purpose of a desk pad is to prevent scratches and damage to the tabletop. Especially in the work environment, many things could scratch furniture, including:
Because of this, it can be smart to use desk pads at work. And items like desk pads and placemats are cost-effective compared to buying a new table. We can also help to repair scratches and chips at Kilmister Furniture Restoration.
On the topic of needing a coaster for hot drinks on wooden furniture, we think it’s best to avoid eating hot food on your wooden boardroom table altogether if you can. Hot food and drinks can cause heat marks on wooden furniture. If you do need to eat hot food, try to use a placemat of some sort. When temperatures are too cold, wood tends to contract. Whereas when temperatures are too hot, wood is known to expand.
If the temperature in your boardroom regularly fluctuates too dramatically, you could cause lasting warping damage. In actual fact, it’s best to use a wooden chopping board instead of something plastic, as this is better to stop the heat coming through.
At the end of the day, boardroom tables are there to be used. Because of this, no matter how careful you are, wooden furniture can be damaged over time. Like your car, getting an expert to give your wooden furniture a once over from time to time is a good idea.
At Kilmister Furniture Restoration, we can repair any scratches or damage that appear. As part of this process, we can apply a strong 2-pot finish to your tabletop that is durable and fit for purpose. For examples of some of our French polishing, furniture repair and general furniture restoration, head over to our Facebook page. We post pictures of our work every week. For a bit of background on what French polishing is, read our guide that answers, what is French polishing?
Top tip: Once a 2-pot finish is applied, just use a damp cloth for cleaning.
One of the ways we make it easy for businesses to have their boardroom table and chairs restored is with our pick-up and delivery service. In most cases, office furniture is bulky and hard to transport. Thankfully, we have a delivery van that can transport furniture. We can also come to your office or workplace to disassemble furniture to make it even easier to get around.
We pick up and deliver items for furniture repair and furniture restoration every week. The regions we cover include Wairarapa, the greater Wellington area, Kapiti and Manawatu. The cost of delivery may vary depending on your location. But we can provide an idea of the cost ahead of time.
Big decisions are made in the boardroom, so your pride and joy must look its best. Buying a new boardroom table is expensive. So, put these tricks into practice to keep your tabletop and chairs looking great. That way, you’ll make a good first impression to potential customers and clients.
If your table and chairs or any wooden furniture look broken or tired, contact us at Kilmister Furniture Restoration. We’re happy to offer a free virtual quote to give you an idea of how much repairing or restoring will cost. To see some of our work, visit our Facebook page, where we post fantastic before and after shots. For further information on what we do, check out our guides that explore the difference between furniture restoration and furniture refinishing or how to know whether to replace or repair furniture.
