Yihang Launches Full-Scene Tech Products to Lead a New Paradigm of Healthy Work

On March 29, Yihang held a full-scene technology new product launch event in Guangzhou under the theme "A Galaxy of Brilliance". Based on the pain points and quality demands of modern office scenarios, Yihang unveiled four major new products: the Anguri Series height-adjustable desks, the UP7 digital workstation, the Hafu H5 air-cushion seating ergonomic chair, and the Jingling smart office system. Through these launches, showcasing sustainable design and materials and the creation of intelligent office spaces, Yihang aims to guide the industry toward green, low-carbon development and encourage healthy ways of working.

1. Ocean-Recycled Plastic Eco Materials Open a New Path to Green Office

For a long time, fishing operations have generated large amounts of discarded nets, buoys, and ropes, and how to deal with this non-degradable plastic waste has become a difficult problem.

Could these nets and ropes be recycled into materials and then used to make office furniture? A few years ago, Zhang Xujun, General Manager of the Yihang Research Institute, came up with exactly this idea. In his view, the key step in turning ocean waste into office furniture lies in the application of new materials. In fact, after years of technological iteration and upgrading, the technology for recycling marine waste into new materials has matured, and the number of companies producing ocean-recycled plastic eco materials has grown year by year.

Switzerland's B4K studio shared the same vision as Zhang Xujun. So in 2022, the two parties hit it off and decided to jointly develop applications of ocean-recycled plastic eco materials in the office furniture field. After a year of R&D, Yihang's Hafu air-cushion seating ergonomic chair, made from ocean-recycled plastic eco substrates, was born and officially released at this show.

The chair has a stylish look, and its weight-activated recline design means users never need to adjust it manually when changing postures — the chair actively adapts to the person sitting in it. The entire Hafu chair weighs only 12 kg, is built entirely from recycled plastic eco substrate, and uses a chassis-free, one-piece molded design. Beyond its comfortable seating, if production reaches 5,000 chairs per year, nearly 15 tons of ocean waste can be kept out of the sea annually. At a time when protecting the ocean is urgent, Yihang has delivered its own answer on sustainability.

2. One-Touch Height Adjustment Solves the Pains of Prolonged Sitting and Leads the "Sit-Stand" Working Trend

According to research published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, people who sit for more than 6 hours a day face a higher risk of illness: the probability of developing diabetes, heart disease, and obesity increases by 18%, and the risk of cancer rises by 66%. These figures are a warning that we need to think about how to make sitting healthier and more scientific.

In fact, as early as the beginning of this century, solutions for "sedentary office work" already existed abroad, with the introduction of "sit-stand" working: installing a lifting system on desks so employees can raise the desktop when tired of sitting and lower it when tired of standing, easing the strain of prolonged sitting to a certain extent. Early lifting systems were hand-cranked and later became electric. In China, Yihang was one of the first companies to promote "sit-stand" working. In 2013, Yihang launched the I-work Series at the Guangzhou furniture show, making executive desks height-adjustable.

This time, Yihang brings a brand-new product — the Anguri executive desk. Beneath the Anguri desk sits a millimeter-wave radar sensor that works like a scout, with a wide 120° field of view and a 160 cm detection range, sensing human movement, temperature, and even the slight rise and fall of the chest while sitting still, thereby judging the sit-stand behavior of a company's leader. A light swipe of a finger is all it takes to alternate between sitting and standing. Meanwhile, the smart interaction hub integrated into the Anguri desktop comes with a sit-stand signal reminder system that works like traffic lights — red, yellow, and green lights make sit-stand durations clear at a glance.

Another new Yihang product is the UP7 digital workstation. It carries the same level of desk system as the Anguri and likewise offers intelligent sensing and multi-dimensional reminders, helping employees build healthy habits of their own accord. "1.2 meters, 1.3 meters, 1.4 meters..." In Yihang's exhibition hall, a visitor gently pressed a button and the UP7 desk rose slowly, with the ascending number clearly visible on a display to the side.

Ge Hailin, Director of the Strategic R&D Center at the Yihang Research Institute, said the UP7 represents a major transformation of traditional lifting systems. It took the Yihang R&D team more than two years, an investment of over a million yuan, and dozens of experiments to succeed. Compared with previous traditional lifting systems, it is far more intelligent: the UP7 automatically sets desk height according to the user's habits and body size, and proactively reminds users to stand and work at regular intervals.

The UP7 also uses IoT technology to connect workstation equipment to the network. Companies simply log into the management interface to see at a glance how workstations are being used, and adjust workstation distribution and space layout based on the data to maximize the value of their space.

3. Focusing on the Internet of Everything to Explore a New Office Ecosystem

According to a Technavio report, from 2022 to 2027 the global smart office furniture market is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 9.07%, with the market size expected to expand by 20% — a growth space of 95.69 million USD. There is no doubt that smart office furniture has brought new opportunities for the transformation of the office furniture industry.

In recent years, amid the wave of intelligent technology progress and the national push for traditional industries to upgrade, Yihang and its peers have begun exploring smarter, connected products and building an Internet of Everything across the entire office scene.

Yihang's new product, the Jingling Companion, uses digital technology to open up more possibilities for the intelligent office scenes of the future. It works like a health management master, adding a layer of protection for employee health. Users who open the Jingling Companion health management app receive timely pop-up reminders and a daily health rating, motivating employees to get moving on their own initiative. They can also bind their smart desk on mobile, adjust personal preferences at will, and DIY a fully personalized workstation.

At the same time, as a master of data analysis, the Jingling Companion makes management easier and more efficient. In the era of manual administration, facility managers could only stick labels on fixed assets, and for space planning they generally sent out survey questionnaires to gauge people's subjective satisfaction. But such data is cobbled together on the fly and lacks timeliness and scientific rigor.

With the Jingling Companion, integrated sensing and data analysis technologies generate visualized floor maps and various reports, forming a real-time data dashboard that brings assets to life. These assets cover not only ordinary workstations but also smart lockers in public spaces, further extending management across the whole scene.

Over the 30-plus years since its founding, Yihang has pursued the mission of "everything for healthy work", actively building healthy, eco-friendly, comfortable, and intelligent ecological office spaces. From smart, healthy products to the Jingling Companion smart management system, what Yihang delivers has never been simple product interconnection, but scenario solutions with autonomous decision-making capabilities — an ecological space that can upgrade and iterate sustainably.

Looking ahead, Yihang will continue to focus on the philosophy of "bringing nature into the office", harness the power of technology, and uphold a business philosophy in which high-quality development and environmental friendliness reinforce each other, constantly delivering solutions that are healthier, more eco-friendly, more comfortable, and more intelligent, and going all out to shape a better office ecosystem.