3M Keyboard Trays

You've heard about keyboard trays, but how to choose the right one? Here's some helpful information from 3M

Easily adjust your keyboard and mouse to your correct ergonomic position and work in comfort with the help of a 3M™ keyboard tray.

There are many Adjustable Keyboard Tray (AKT) options to choose from today, making it difficult to determine which is the best solution for your situation. This quick guide will help explain the features that end users and specialists in the field find most important.

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Stability

Stability, or rather instability - the degree of "bounciness" or "slop" in an AKT - impacts typing and mousing comfort. Minimizing this instability is essential for workplace productivity and is driven by the quality of the keyboard tray's construction.

All Adjustable Keyboard Trays from 3M™ meet the ANSI/BIFMA x 5.5 - 1998 standard for stability and safety.

Ease of Adjustability

AKT height and tilt adjustability is essential for workstation ergonomics. Generally it is more advantageous for the height and tilt control mechanisms to be independent of each other. This way, the height of the keyboard can be adjusted without losing the tilt angle, and vice versa.

There are typically three types of height adjustment systems:

Mousepad Adjustability

Mousepads on AKTs are generally available in two forms:

• Not adjustable - integrated as part of the keyboard platform
• Adjustable - mouse platform is separate from the keyboard platform and has varying degrees of adjustability

Range of Adjustability

Adjustable Keyboard Trays feature many degrees of adjustability, including height, tilt, lateral sliding and swivel.

Height -

While seated at a standard 29" high desktop, AKT height will rarely need to go above the desktop. Many ergonomists recommend sit/stand capable workstations in which the worker can alternate throughout the day between sitting and standing at the workstation. This is beneficial because it varies the muscle groups used, increases blood flow and reduces the risk of repetitive stress injuries. AKTs with sit/stand capability enable this behavior and will typically rise several inches above the desktop.

Tilt -

Keyboard platforms should offer tilt adjustment in order to keep one's wrists in a neutral position. The greater the degree of negative tilt, or forward tilt, the more ergonomic the AKT is.

Lateral Sliding -

This feature enables users to adjust the left/right position of the keyboard to fit exact workstation configurations. Swivel. A common feature that enables users to adjust the position of their keyboard relative to the workstation.

Track & Arm Length

AKTs generally feature either a short (less than 17") or long (more than 21") track and arm length, each with unique benefits.

• Long tracks and arms are compatible with corner workstations where the keyboard must extend beyond the edges of the desk. They will also work on regular straight-on workstations providing there is ample depth underneath the work surface.
• Short tracks and arms are generally less expensive and perfect for regular straight-on and especially shallow workstations. They are not suitable, however, for corner workstations where a longer length is required.

Wrist Rest Construction

Wrist Rests for both keyboard and mouse are essential to encouraging a neutral, ergonomic wrist position. Wrist Rests are made out of many materials including gel, foam and hard plastic. Gel-filled wrist rests provide the maximum comfort level, and all 3M™ AKTs feature gel-filled wrist rests for both keyboard and mouse.

For more information visit 3M Workspace Solutions or BuyOnlineNow's 3M Keyboard Trays page.

There are many reasons why using a remanufactured printer cartridge can make sense for your particular situation.  I’m going to go over some of these reasons and also try to dispel the myth that remanufactured ink cartridges are of low quality.

First of all, using remanufactured ink cartridges is good for the environment.  This is becoming an increasingly important factor for companies and customers.  Our landfills are filling up very rapidly, and every little thing we can do helps to prolong the lifespan of us and our planet.  Using remanufactured toner cartridges keeps them out of the landfills and puts them back into circulation.

Another great reason for using remanufactured toner cartridges is cost.  This can be very important especially as our economy seems to keep taking turns for the worse.  Ink cartridges are the second most purchased office supply in workplaces across America behind paper.  If companies knew they could be saving as much as 50% a year on ink cartridges by switching to a remanufactured model, they would probably be used quite a bit more.

A big reason why many people and companies aren’t using remanufactured ink cartridges is that they are concerned about the quality.  Up until a few years ago, there were many companies, large and small, remanufacturing ink cartridges with little or no guidelines to follow.  However, now there are strict regulations to follow and a much higher standard of product are being produced.  Companies like Nukote, for example, even offer 100% lifetime guarantees on their remanufactured ink cartridges.  On top of that, they are so confident with their products that they will repair or replace your printer should their cartridge ever fail, and cause any damage.

So, at a time when we are looking for the best way to spend less, remanufactured ink cartridges might just be a great way to start saving you and your company money. Plus it will help you feel good that you are doing something to help save our fragile environment.

“I smell vodka.”  My boss says this every time anyone in the office uses some hand sanitizer.  The reason that he thinks he’s smelling vodka, is because there is in fact alcohol in hand sanitizer, up to 62 percent in the Purell brand.  Ingesting hand sanitizer would equate to drinking 120 proof liquor.  However, this doesn’t mean that you should drink hand sanitizer to get drunk.  Actually, it can be very dangerous for you and can lead to alcohol poisoning which can be fatal.

It seems like in every office across America, on just about every desk there is a bottle of hand sanitizer.  People carry hand sanitizer in their pockets and purses everywhere they go.  Sometimes it can even be seen on key chains, dangling from a clip, waiting to be used.  Hand sanitizer has become as necessary to some people as their eye-glasses, wallets or even clothing.  It is important to make sure that children only use hand sanitizer under strict supervision, as it would not take very much for a child to become very sick.  There have been reported cases of children ingesting hand sanitizer and becoming very ill, and having to go to the hospital. 

So, no matter how bad of a day you're having, or how much you feel like you need something to help you unwind at work, you should never, ever try to drown your sorrows in a bottle of Purell hand sanitizer.

As the emphasis towards ergonomics in the workplace grows, many people are looking for new ways to attain comfort at their desk.  While using a nice ergonomic office chair is very important, it can also be a good idea to use a footrest.  Not only are many footrests available that adjust to match your body’s specific characteristics, but they also can be made from material designed to provide a high level of comfort to the soles of your feet.  This can mean a soft carpet material, or even therapeutic bumps which massage your feet as you work.

Most ergonomic footrests at the very least are tilt adjustable, while some even offer height adjustability and can be locked in at the perfect position.  There are even heated footrests available that keep your feet toasty warm even on the coldest winter days.

Footrests provide support for your legs and feet and also lend themselves to a new concept, active sitting.  Active sitting is the idea that you can get a lot more out of yourself while sitting at a desk.  By making small movements and repeating motions throughout the day, you can improve balance and posture, stay more alert and focused and possibly even burn calories and lose weight.  Some people also swear that by using inflatable exercise balls as alternatives to their office chairs, they have increased core strength and relieved some chronic back pains.

Footrests are available from many popular manufacturers including Rubbermaid, Safco, Fellowes, 3M and more.