Powering Purpose: How Jones + partners are Redesigning the Role of Technology in Furniture
In an in-depth and energetic conversation, Design Insider’s Alys Bryan sat down with Craig Jones, founder of Jones + Partners, to mark the 25th anniversary of his design studio and to explore the pivotal role technology is playing in reshaping how we interact with furniture. Known for his hands-on approach and deep understanding of user needs, Craig has quietly driven some of the most forward-thinking integrations of power, lighting, and connectivity into the workplace.
Whether he’s embedding wireless charging into parasols or developing battery-powered tables for the most transient of spaces, Craig’s thinking is consistent: start with real behaviour, and design for purpose. It’s a philosophy that has earned Jones + Partners a unique voice in industrial design—one grounded in pragmatism, innovation, and a genuine desire to improve how people experience everyday objects.
Battery Pack for Aircharge
“We design with purpose,” Craig says, simply. “Every product we make is driven by a user need. The tech doesn’t come at the end—it comes at the beginning.”
Battery Pack for Aircharge
A Café Table, a Battery, and the Birth of a New Design Direction
The origin story of Jones + Partners’ technology journey is, fittingly, rooted in a real-world frustration. In 2008, Craig had just become a father. One morning, while having breakfast at Carluccio’s, he noticed something curious. People sitting around the edges of the café were crowded near plug sockets, charging laptops and phones. Those in the middle sat unplugged, disconnected, and, increasingly, left out.
“That’s when I thought: what if the tables themselves had batteries in them? Why are we tethering everything to the wall?” he remembers.
Internal electronic test – Wireless chargers
That seemingly simple observation led to the development of portable battery solutions, initially self-funded and experimental, with Craig soldering lithium batteries and circuit boards together in his studio workshop. It wasn’t long before the team partnered with Aircharge, helping the brand develop its first battery pack. What followed was a string of pioneering projects: wireless charging pads in cafés, modular power units in airport lounges, and custom battery solutions embedded in furniture for outdoor hospitality spaces.
One notable project involved designing a weatherproof battery pack for Tuuci, the world’s largest parasol manufacturer. The battery powered the parasol’s automatic lift system and illumination, all while withstanding the rigours of salt, wind, and rain. The product remains in commercial use across the U.S. today.
“From that point, we started to see technology not as something separate from the furniture, but as something it could deliver,” Craig explains. “And when you treat tech as an integral material, not an add-on, everything changes.”
Closing the Gap Between Specification and Experience
Despite their technical prowess, many of Jones + Partners’ innovations stem not from engineering ambition, but from observing the often-misaligned priorities in commercial furniture procurement. Craig notes a recurring issue: power and connectivity are frequently left out of early-stage specifications, only to be tacked on later.
“You’ll see it all the time,” he says. “A beautiful desking system, maybe even an expensive chair—and then, at the very end, someone bolts on a black plastic plug socket. It’s a terrible user experience and visually, it completely jars.”
This disconnect inspired a shift in the studio’s approach. Power integration would no longer be a reactive decision, it would be a design starting point. That thinking led to products like the folding services table for Howe, a four-legged table that folds in half, includes integrated battery power, and can be wheeled into any environment, from an office to the street.
Integrated battery Tech for Howe Folding Surfaces
For Craig, the key lies in understanding today’s workplace dynamics. People no longer work in static spaces; they move between zones—lounges, cafés, collaborative tables, meeting pods, each with its own unique power needs.
“Design has to reflect that fluidity,” Craig says. “We’re no longer designing desks, we’re designing systems that support behaviour. And the integration of power, data, and light isn’t a feature. It’s a necessity.”
This perspective also reshapes how Jones + Partners interact with clients. Increasingly, they work directly with corporate end-users, not just the furniture manufacturers, to map out technology needs and ensure the final product enhances, rather than interrupts, the user experience.
Designing the Invisible: When Tech and Furniture Truly Integrate
Some of the studio’s most compelling work comes from projects that hide their complexity beneath a surface of elegant simplicity. Take the Current Light for Bachmann, a table-centred ambient light that houses a fully integrated power hub. Its design enables users to charge phones, tablets, and laptops without reaching under surfaces or disrupting the visual language of the space. The light itself rotates, allowing users to toggle between task and ambient modes.
Current Lamp for Bachmann. Touch Switch
“That was driven by real user needs,” Craig notes. “Shared spaces require flexibility, some people want focus, others want a soft glow. And all of them need power, without crawling around on the floor.”
Interchangeable Sockets in the Base
Another standout is Laines, developed with Workstories. The project emerged in response to calls for more inclusive workplaces, where individuals could control aspects of their environment. Laines features integrated lighting, video conferencing tools, privacy panels, and retractable plug sockets. It creates a central divider across large shared tables while providing seamless access to tech for all users.
LED reflector
What’s remarkable is that none of these projects began as client commissions. Each was developed internally by the Jones + Partners studio, then pitched to the market. That proactive approach speaks to their belief that technology integration in furniture is often underexplored, and that the industry has been too cautious for too long.
Laines Set up with Screens, Lamp, Socket and Pen Tray
“We saw a gap. Tech was always the last consideration,” Craig says. “So we started asking: what if it was the first?”
Product Testing – Pre Tooling
The Future Is Modular, Mobile, and Multi-Functional
As the design industry grapples with hybrid work, adaptive environments, and the blurring lines between office and hospitality, Craig sees an urgent need to rethink infrastructure. Traditional wiring and hardwired fixtures are increasingly at odds with the way people move through space.
“We’re seeing an uptick in retrofit projects,” he notes. “Companies are bringing people back into buildings that weren’t designed for this level of flexibility. Battery-powered furniture becomes a game-changer in that context.”
This has prompted the studio to focus not just on products, but on what Craig calls “future flexibility.” Their integrated systems are designed with modular components that can be updated over time, USB-A ports can be swapped for USB-C, entire plug units can be replaced without discarding the whole product. Instructional videos and animated guides are provided to clients, ensuring that the value of future-proofing is retained even as teams change.
Standardisation remains a challenge, especially when designing for global markets with varying voltages, certifications, and plug types. But Craig sees movement, particularly with USB-C, towards a universal standard that will simplify integration and reduce waste.
“We’re not just thinking about today’s devices,” he explains. “We’re designing furniture that might be in use for fifteen years. The tech inside it needs to be able to evolve.”
This principle also extends to sustainability. The studio works with UK-based battery suppliers offering take-back schemes, and Craig keeps a close eye on innovations in solid-state and carbon-neutral batteries, attending trade expos in Germany, Silverstone, and Barcelona to stay ahead.
“If we don’t understand where battery tech is heading, how can we responsibly design for it?” he asks. “We need to know what’s coming five years from now—because that’s the lifecycle we’re building for.”
Designing for the ‘Me’ and the ‘We’
One of the most compelling frameworks underpinning Craig’s approach is what he calls the “Me and We” model. Rather than designing from an abstract brief, the studio maps out how users interact with spaces, whether they’re spending an hour alone with emails or collaborating with a team for a half-day sprint.
Arc a special development with PWC
“We start by asking: how long is someone in this space, and what are they trying to do?” Craig explains. “That determines what kind of power, lighting, and tech access they’ll need. It’s a behaviour-first approach.”
This user-led methodology has been applied to every project they’ve developed in recent years. From pods with embedded video conferencing and power banks, to fully portable lighting systems that clamp to any tabletop, the studio’s designs are a response to real patterns of use.
It also reflects Craig’s deep background in client-side design. Before founding Jones + Partners, he spent a decade working directly with corporate brands to adapt furniture portfolios to their evolving needs.
Powererd Arc for 60” screens specialized battery system
“We’ve kept that same mindset,” he says. “We sit with our clients’ clients. We listen. And then we prototype solutions that fit their world—not just ours.”
That collaborative DNA is evident in their willingness to revisit old ideas with new technology. The studio’s early work on mobile battery walls, used in PwC offices more than a decade ago, now informs more sophisticated solutions built on the same principles of mobility and modularity.
Looking Ahead: From Innovation to Adoption
As our conversation winds down, Craig returns to the tension between what’s technically possible and what’s currently adopted.
“The tech is ready,” he says. “Battery systems, integrated lighting, smart airflow zones, they’re all viable. The challenge now is getting people to stop seeing them as fringe or risky.”
That includes helping clients understand that flexible infrastructure can reduce build costs, enable mobility, and support sustainability. Whether it’s mobile meeting pods powered by battery banks or outdoor hospitality furniture with embedded charging, the vision is clear: make power and connectivity feel as natural as tabletops and chairs.
“In the end,” Craig says, “it’s about user experience. What do people need to do? Where are they going to be? And how can furniture help them do that better?”
As Jones + Partners enters its next chapter, the studio remains grounded in its founding principle—designing with purpose. And with technology evolving rapidly, Craig is determined to stay not just ahead of the curve, but deeply embedded in the conversation.
“We’ve always believed in designing for real life,” he adds. “And real life moves fast. So should our furniture.”