Cosmos designer desk by Tecno with slender four-ellipse aluminium spine

Cosmos by Tecno: the desk that grew out of a racing bicycle frame

Tecno

Norman Foster

Executive desk only
Cosmos An icon of Italian design Executive desk only
£ 4,465

What did you have in mind?

Trade terms for professionals and design studios

Anyone who has lifted a proper racing bicycle knows the shock: how can something this slender be this strong? That question is the starting point of Cosmos. The Norman Foster Foundation and Centro Progetti Tecno took the structural logic of racing frames and high-performance sailplanes and asked it to carry a workplace — designer desks, meeting tables, shared workstations and equipped bookshelves.

The answer is a spine of four aluminium ellipses that branch, like a tree, into legs and top supports. Every component was refined through 3D modelling, structural software and 5-axis CNC machining in recyclable aluminium, then reduced to its most slender profile. Norman Foster calls the result an elegant and flexible skeleton system for the workplace and the home — and the word skeleton is doing real work: nothing here is cladding.

For a specifier, the range reads like a kit of parts: tables from a 120 cm square to a 540 cm double-beam run, bookshelves from 235 cm wall units to floor-to-ceiling installations, glass, oak or ten lacquer colours, with cable trays, under-shelf lighting and screen mounts designed in rather than bolted on. La Mercanti prices each Cosmos configuration against the current Tecno specification, so the drawing and the order never drift apart.

Technical information based on data declared by the manufacturer.

Collection: Cosmos — modular furniture system
Manufacturer: Tecno
Design: Norman Foster Foundation and Centro Progetti Tecno, 2024
Structure: load-bearing spine with a cluster of four ellipses in recyclable aluminium, branching into legs and top supports; 5-axis CNC machining
Tables (H 74 cm (29.1 in)): rectangular 160/180/200x100 — square 120/140 — round 140/160 — oval 250x120
Beam tables: single beam 280/320/360x100 — double beam 280/320/360 and 420/480/540x140/160
Bookshelves: modules L 120/160/200, depth 37/47 cm (14.6/18.5 in); wall-mounted H 235/285; floor-to-ceiling H 260-290 / 291-310; shelves W 37, cabinets W 47, flap and drawer elements
Accessories: cable management box and cable tray clips, under-shelf lighting on one or two sides, modesty panel, provision for screens and extensions
Tops and shelves: clear or low-iron glass; lacquer in 10 colours (Clay, Black, Burgundy, Forest, Powder, Sea, Terracotta, Swamp, Chalk, White); oak in 6 tones
Metal structures: painted Malachite, Black, Cobalt, Bronze, White, Titanium

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Documents and Catalogues

Cosmos Catalogue Tecno Finishes & Materials

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FAQ

What do racing bicycles have to do with the Cosmos desk?
They set the structural brief. The design team took the slender profiles of road racing frames and high-performance sailplanes as the benchmark for strength-to-material ratio, then refined the furniture spine in recyclable aluminium through 3D modelling, structural software and 5-axis CNC machining.
Is Cosmos a desk or a system?
Both, by design. A single table is complete in itself, but the spine is built from interchangeable components that grow and double up: single desks, meeting tables, shared workstations and equipped bookshelves all come from the same family of parts.
How long can a Cosmos meeting table run?
The single-beam version reaches 360 cm; the double-beam version runs from 280 up to 540 cm in one composition, at 140 or 160 cm depth. All tables sit at 74 cm height.
Which finishes can be specified?
Tops in clear or low-iron glass, six oak tones from white to black, or ten lacquers including Clay, Burgundy, Forest, Powder, Sea and Terracotta. The aluminium structures are painted in six finishes, Malachite, Cobalt and Bronze among them.
Can services be integrated without visible clutter?
Yes: the system provides a cable management box with tray clips, under-shelf lighting on one or two sides, modesty panels and provision for screens and extensions. Servicing is part of the skeleton, not an afterthought.

Specifying Cosmos for a workplace fit-out: five decisions that keep the drawing honest

A short sequence for architects and facility teams writing Cosmos into a project — from structural module to finishes schedule — so the installed system matches the intent.

Fix the grid first
Set the composition on the beam logic before choosing tops: single beam to 360 cm, double beam to 540. The grid decides where power rises and where people sit.
Decide what the wall does
Choose between wall-mounted bookshelf units at 235 or 285 cm and floor-to-ceiling runs up to 310 cm. Flap fronts and drawers turn display into working storage.
Write the finishes as a schedule
Pair one oak tone for work surfaces with one lacquer accent for meeting tops, and name the structure colour explicitly, Malachite reads very differently from Titanium under office lighting.
Route the services early
Locate the cable box, tray clips and under-shelf lighting on the plan while the layout is still fluid. Retrofitting tidiness is the expensive way to get it.
Check the kit against the codes
Before release, have the full parts list read against the current Tecno specification, La Mercanti runs that check on every Cosmos order, so the site receives one coherent system rather than a pile of components.

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