Haworth, Inc.

Helmut Berkenkoetter

Manfred Kleinikel

Walter Mersmann

A chair base includes a rigid base member having a plurality of elongate tubular leg members disposed angularly around and radiating outwardly from a central hub. Each leg member adjacent an outer free end thereof has a hub structure defining a through vertical bore for retaining the pintle of a caster. The hub structure includes coaxially aligned upper and lower sleevelike hub parts which are monolithically and integrally joined to and extruded transversely into the interior of the leg member from the respective top and bottom walls thereof. The pintle-retaining hub structure is formed by a pierce-and-extrude process whereby small pilot openings are initially formed through the respective walls, and the annular wall portion surrounding the respective pilot opening is thereafter transversely extruded to effect forming of the respective hub part. The pierce-and-extrude process for each hub part is, in a preferred process, carried out by a single forming tool.

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Oelde, Germany

Helmut Berkenkoetter