Sit-stand desks: what to consider

Sit-stand desks are now standard in office fit-outs and increasingly common in school administration areas. They are also easy to over-buy, so it is worth being clear about where they earn their cost.

Electric or crank

Electric models change height at the touch of a button. That matters when a desk is shared across shifts or year levels, because a desk that takes effort to adjust does not get adjusted.

Crank models cost less and hold their setting well. Where a desk stays with one person who sets it once and rarely changes it, a crank model does the same job for less.

The question is not which is better. It is how often the height will actually change.

Where they are worth it

Staff who spend most of the day at a screen benefit most. In schools, that usually means administration and front office rather than teaching spaces.

For students, sit-stand tables suit spaces where the room is shared across year levels, because the adjustment covers a range of heights from one purchase. That is often the stronger argument for a school than the health case.

What people get wrong

Buying the desk and stopping. A sit-stand desk without an anti-fatigue mat, and with a monitor left at sitting height, tends to be used standing once and then left down. Screen height needs to move with the desk, which usually means a monitor arm.

Cable management is not optional

A desk that moves needs its cables to move with it. Without a basket or an umbilical pole, leads catch, unplug and eventually fail.

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