Custom Bank Office Desks in Ely, Nevada

Where the design came from

A bank in Ely, Nevada was renovating its offices and needed new desks for its staff. The building had real mid-century character, and the bank wanted furniture that belonged there. They sent us a hand sketch, their floor plans, and photos of the original walnut woodwork and the center islands in their lobby.

Ryan took his cue from those islands. Part of the mid-century modern movement was the idea of connected modularity, so he designed each desk around two tapered walnut boxes that mirror each other from every side. Brass feet, brass pulls and frosted glass panels tie the desks back to the lobby.

The hard part: hiding the lift

Every desk had to raise and lower. Most sit-stand desks make that obvious: exposed steel columns, a motor housing, a frame you can see from across the room. That would have ruined the look. 

So we built each L-shaped desk around a 3-post lift system rated for 750 pounds and hid the lifting columns inside the drawer boxes. The boxes are narrower on the short side to keep them out of the way of a seated person's legs. The frame tying the posts together sits in the gap between the boxes and the desktop. You would have to get down on the floor and look up to see any of it.

That was the longest stretch of design work on the job. The same boxes that hide the lift also had to hold three working drawers on Blum full-extension soft-close slides, a lock on every drawer, and a door cabinet with adjustable shelves for the computer tower. Every inch inside those boxes had a job. The drawings went back and forth until all of it fit and the desk still traveled up and down clean.

Details worked out with the client

Brass hardware. Brass-tipped mid-century feet and brass finger pulls modeled on a desk original to the building. The drawer locks on each desk are keyed alike, so one key opens all of them.

Frosted glass privacy panels. We worked with our glass supplier to match the look of the lobby islands in frosted tempered glass. A connecting panel between the boxes adds a purse shelf, and the panels overlap when the desk is raised so nothing behind them shows.

Cord management. Built-in grommets and cable holes run cords from the tower to the monitors out of sight.

A finish they could touch. We sent walnut samples with two options: a poured epoxy top and our usual plant-based penetrating wax finish. The bank tested both by writing on them. They liked the feel of the natural finish, so each desk got a two-piece lay-on glass top, cut to match the cable holes. The wood stays natural and the work surface stays protected.

Matching credenzas. Four seven-foot walnut credenzas with three shelves above a base cabinet on a brass powder-coated frame, each built to its office's dimensions. Two have fold-down Murphy tables.

Built in Galena, installed in Ely

The bank was mid-renovation the whole time. Walls were going up while we were drawing, so every dimension was checked against the framing before anything was cut. From first conversation to final install took about nine months, and most of that was design.

Everything was built in our Galena, IL shop. Each desk breaks down into about 10 pieces, and there was too much precision in them to trust to a freight company. Our own crew drove the furniture to Ely and installed every piece.

The result

Eleven walnut desks that raise and lower with no visible lift hardware, four matching credenzas, and glass, brass and wood that tie back to the original building. Sitting down, they look like mid-century desks. Standing up, they still do.

The part we are proudest of is simple: it worked. The lift columns are completely hidden in the drawer boxes, and the drawers, locks and slides still fit around them.

If your office needs furniture that has to do more than it looks like it does, this is the kind of problem we like to solve.

Questions we hear from commercial clients

Do you build for businesses outside the Midwest?

Yes. This project was built in Galena, Illinois and installed in Ely, Nevada by our own crew. We deliver furniture to all 48 contiguous states and travel to install larger projects anywhere in the US.

Can you build a standing desk that does not look like one?

Yes. On this job we hid a 3-post lift system inside the drawer boxes, with full drawers, locks and a tower cabinet built around it. Every project starts with drawings, so you see exactly how it works before we build.

How long does a commercial furniture project take?

It depends on scope. This one ran about nine months from first conversation to install, with most of that time in design while the building was under renovation. We will give you a realistic timeline with your quote.