100 Years of IBA – 100 Years of Innovation

Few associations can look back on 100 years of history. We do so with pride and a special thank you to our members! They have always risen to the changing challenges and have not only accompanied the constant changes in the world of work, but have also helped to shape it, despite all the adversities.

Today, the central themes of the Federation's work are the changes in knowledge work and digitalisation in general. This has only just begun. AI, collaboration tools and much more will change the way we work and the demands we place on the physical environment. This will create new opportunities and challenges that can only be tackled together in a medium-sized industry like ours. This is something we look forward to.

Of course, 100 years of association work is also a reason for us to celebrate. We will do this together with our members on 5 October 2023 in Wiesbaden.

The first written document of our association dates back to November 1923. The Association of Wooden Office Furniture Manufacturers was founded in the form of a "specialist department" of the German Timber Industry Association. In the early years, the association dealt with quality conditions for office furniture, freight rates, trade fair issues and the export of furniture, which was strictly regulated at the time. In 1978, the wooden office furniture manufacturers joined forces with the steel furniture manufacturers to form an association, which 15 years later became the Verband der Büromöbelindustrie e. V. (Association of the Office Furniture Industry). In March 2000, the seating furniture manufacturers, who had previously been organised separately, joined the association to form the bso Verband Büro-, Sitz- und Objektmöbel e.V. (Association of Office, Seating and Contract Furniture). In 2016, the IBA board set another milestone by renaming the association. Today's name "Industrieverband Büro und Arbeitswelt e. V." stands for the industry's broad view of future issues.

Based in Wiesbaden, the German Interior Industry Association is the industry association for the holistic design of office work. It pools the expertise and represents the interests of manufacturers of office and contract furniture as well as acoustic, lighting and other furnishing solutions. Employer attractiveness, holistic interior design and new work are also central topics of the online expert platform IBA Forum. IBA is also the conceptual sponsor of ORGATEC, the leading international trade fair for modern working environments.