Design story

Don Chadwick and Bill Stumpf began their work of thinking about what a chair ought to do for a person with a clean slate. They questioned assumptions about function, form, and materials. Chadwick and Stumpf came to some solid conclusions.

Ergonomically, they decided a chair ought to do more than just sit there. It should actively intercede for your health when you sit in it longer than you should.
Functionally, it ought to move and adjust as simply and naturally as possible. It should support you in any position you assume, at any task your office job serves up.
Anthropometrically, a chair ought to be inclusive. It should do more than accommodate people who are larger or smaller than average size—it should really fit them.
Environmentally, it ought to be benign. Its manufacture should be sparing of natural resources, and the chair itself should be durable and easy to repair, recyclable and easy to disassemble.
The design that met these criteria redefined the very meaning of "work chair." It wasn't upholstered. It wasn't padded. It was dimensioned in three models that looked exactly alike and that had nothing to do with their people's job titles. It didn't look like any other office chair. And its revolutionary concept incorporated more patentable ideas than any previous Herman Miller research program.

Human body doesn’t have straight lines, that’s why Aeron is designed to be “curvilinear”. Lack of cushions is explained by using transparent Pellicle material. Transparency symbolizes the free flow of air to the body.
The Aeron design was refined and validated through research and experts' opinions: An early focus group of retired people highlighted the need for aeration and long-term comfort. It was tested for comfort with scores of users. Leading ergonomists, orthopedic specialists, and physical therapists evaluated the chair's fit and motion, the benefit and ease of its adjustments. The design team conducted anthropometric studies across the country, using a specially developed instrument to calculate everything from popliteal (back of the knee) height to forearm length.

The research team did pressure mapping and thermal testing to determine the weight distribution and heat- and moisture-dissipating qualities of the Pellicle material on the chair's seat and back. Field studies using a specially designed measuring device examined the relationship between sizes of people and their preference for chair size. Measurements of 224 people found that of all the anthropometric dimensions measured, height and weight had the strongest relationship to chair size preference.