The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) has announced the winners of the 2014 International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) competition-a recognition of design excellence in products, interactive design, service design, strategy, research, concepts and student designs in categories ranging from automobiles and commercial products to medical equipment and home furnishings. Herman Miller's Locale was recognized within "Office & Productivity," receiving one of only 27 Gold awards granted across all 23 competition categories.

Locale, designed by Sam Hecht and Kim Colin, enables the creation of dynamic, high-performance work neighborhoods within open-plan environments. In combination and proximity, a composition of Locale elements encourages the free and intuitive shift from individual work to collaborative and social activities and serendipitous interaction. The subtle curvature of Locale's surfaces signals openness, invites interaction, and is designed to generously accommodate multiple collaborators, work styles, and tools. People move and change positions naturally because of the centralized structure and cantilevered surfaces. With Locale's height adjustability, a push of a button allows an individual to sit down for focused work or stand up to collaborate with colleagues. Adjustability is not limited to surface height-mobile tables, screens, and easels can be utilized as the need arises. Locale enhances the total experience of work, for both the individual and the high performance team.