Standing at Work Without a Standing Desk?

As standing at work becomes more and more popular, it's no surprise that people are beginning to look for options that allow them to stand and work without having to replace their company-issued workstation with a new standing desk.

One result of this has been that one of the most common questions I get from folks is "what kind of monitor arm will let me stand while I work?" Unfortunately, it's not as simple as just adding a taller monitor arm, as creating a sit-stand workstation requires more than just a higher monitor. However, this doesn't mean it's impossible to set up a sit-stand workstation without replacing your old desk.

Something many people overlook is that even if you purchase a monitor arm tall enough to provide you with a comfortable viewing height while standing (most people request something that sits 25''-30'' above the desktop), your keyboard will still remain on your desk, being entirely too low to comfortably type on. Some of our keyboard trays such as the Humanscale keyboard trays with a 5GAD mechanism and the ergoCentric Chameleon Sit-Stand Keyboard Tray System will raise the keyboard 7"-8.25" above the track height. This can be combined with extended-reach arms like the Innovative 3 Link Long Reach Monitor Arm to help put both your monitor and keyboard at the correct working height. Other companies such as Health Postures produce items like the TaskMate Journey and TaskMate Go, which put both the keyboard and monitor on a single system that can be manually or electrically adjusted to the proper working height. These systems either clamp onto the front edge of the desk or are heavy enough to sit on the desktop and provide a sturdy workstation without permanent modification of the desk.

Even with these extra options, it should be noted that configuring your desktop to work in both sitting and standing positions can be fairly expensive, especially with the need for specialized monitor arms and keyboard trays. While we do recommend using both monitor arms and keyboard trays at both fixed height and height-adjustable desks, in some cases it's simply more cost-efficient, and more efficient in general, to purchase a standing desk, and then add more traditional versions of both as needed. Our UPLIFT 900 series offers a great option for users on a budget, and is comparable in price to some other, less traditional sit-stand solutions. Of course, everyone's situation is different -- if you need assistance in figuring out the best setup for your workstation, be sure to give us a call at (800) 531-3746.

Learn more about sit-stand desk solutions at TheHumanSolution.com.