The Tanker Desk

BUILT OF STEEL AND HEAVY AS SIN, THIS POSTWAR WORKHORSE WAS A UBIQUITOUS OFFICE FIXTURE IN THE PRE-CUBICLE HEYDAY OF THE MID-20TH CENTURY. TODAY, 70 YEARS AFTER ITS LAUNCH, THE MODERN DESIGN CLASSIC CARRIES MORE WEIGHT THAN EVER

1

After more than 30 years in business, Michigan-based Metal Office Furniture Co. (now Steelcase) got its big break in 1946 with the launch of the Multiple 15, a large double-pedestal desk made of high-gauge brushed steel (which, following wartime rationing, was once again in ready supply).

2

Four years in development, the Multiple 15 was made for mass appeal: It had the durability to handle heavy use, the clean lines to suit the postwar modern aesthetic and a price point low enough to be purchased in bulk.

3

The Multiple 15 was an immediate hit, creating a deluge of other “tanker” desks—so named for their 200-pound weight—from such companies as McDowell-Craig, Allsteel and Shaw Walker.

4

The Multiple 15’s rugged simplicity made it suitable for schools and factories as much as for downtown office towers. As a result, by the early 1970s, tankers were the most popular style of commercial desk in the world.

5

Tankers fell out of favour with the cubicle revolution of the 1980s, and most manufacturers have ceased production. Today, enterprising mid-century-design buffs do a tidy business restoring and reselling vintage models, and originals pop up regularly on eBay. Just watch those shipping costs.