The safe and durable range that’s still evolving

Isabel Ferreira, Global head of Products at Pineapple Contracts, a designer and manufacturer of furniture for challenging environments, explains how a request from a Trust experiencing damage to its dining room furniture led the company to develop its rotationally moulded Ryno furniture, and some of the key in-use benefits of an evolving range. These include a robust and hard-wearing one-piece construction, ‘100% recyclability’, the ability to create complex shapes, a water-resistant design, and ‘no weak points’

In 2013, Pineapple became the first UK manufacturer to develop rotationally moulded furniture designed specifically for high-risk environments. Development of our Ryno range began with the requirement to solve a specific need for a client working in the NHS. A healthcare provider they were working with had been struggling to accommodate a service-user who had a low tolerance to the furniture in a dining area, and had damaged some of the items by throwing them around. The healthcare provider had been unable to find dining room furniture able to withstand such severe treatment, and with its existing furniture being frequently damaged, not only faced regular replacement costs, but also service disruption until the furniture could be replaced

Eager to address and help resolve this difficult issue for the organisation, Pineapple’s in-house design team considered a number of options and different materials. Its research identified that wood was too easily damaged in such a high-risk environment, while metal felt cold and less welcoming. The Pineapple team thus shortlisted a low-density polyethylene as the most durable and easy-to-clean to option; it was also a 100% recyclable material.