Upscaling Operations, also known as UPSOP, is a multidisciplinary design practice founded by two young architects from Hong Kong. With a team of architects and product designers, UPSOP centres its design process around the exploration of materiality and production to redefine common urban objects, materials and spaces. Exemplifying this belief, UPSOP’s latest self-initiated project, ButterPly, is a ‘simple yet unorthodox’ plywood table series that offers the public an affordably-priced, versatile and aesthetically pleasing alternative to standard offerings in the market.

Thanks to a clever and playful joinery system inspired by Japanese wood joinery, the table can be conveniently assembled. There is no need for screws or tools, saving resources. The manual locking mechanism also imparts a playful look to the piece without compromising on stability.

Functionally, the new joinery system enables the user to freely adjust the height of the table, be it for sitting or standing.

According to UPSOP, the ButterPly furniture series offers four different sizes ranging from an upstanding desk to a personal desk and a dining table.

The durable tabletop has various functions embedded. For instance, functional organisers were integrated within the tabletop to hold keys, coins, stationery, cables and other items to keep the working desk free of clutter. When not in used, they can be hidden away on the flipside.

Made with high-quality furniture-grade plywood, the desks are environmentally-friendly and reliable. With a cross-grain texture, it will be warp-resistant, despite being used in moisture and temperature-fluctuating spaces.

From the onset, the team took on an unconventional manufacture-driven design approach to ensure that ButterPly remains attractive and affordable to the general public.

Find out how the ButterPly table works below:

Support the ButterPly campaign, which will be launched on Kickstarter on Friday, 12 August 2016.

UPSOP
upsop.com