Page 111 - Demo

109The departure of the tea ladies left a mostly male workforce who lacked the skills to make themselves a decent cup of International Roast. Well before the Nespresso machine, an Aussiedesigned and -made hot-drink dispenser ruled the bench space in o%u00a0ice kitchens across the country. Released in the mid-1960s, the original Caf%u00e9-Bar was made of pressed tin. Its secret weapon was a patented valve that could release the perfect amount of instant co%u00a0ee, sugar, Milo, soup powder and %u2013 believe it or not %u2013 powdered milk. The unit also boasted a large urn unit, which supplied the hot water for the beverages. The Caf%u00e9-Bar quickly found a market as businesses slowly did away with the traditional %u2018tea lady%u2019, a much-loved member of the workforce who pushed a trolley around the o%u00a0ice doling out cups of tea and biscuits to hard-working employees bound to their desks. Even back in the 1960s, cost cutting was%u00a0a%u00a0thing, and the departure of the tea ladies left a%u00a0 mostly male workforce who lacked the skills to%u00a0 make themselves a decent cup of International Roast. Enter the Caf%u00e9-Bar. The perfect solution, this invention really hit its straps when the plastic moulded version was released in 1974. Designed in Sydney by David Wood of Nielsen Design Associates and%u00a0 presented in a selection of classic 1970s colours (anyone for an avocadocoloured number?) it quickly became a fixture both here and abroad. They were undeniably fashionable and suited the funky workplaces of the 1970s, where indoor plants and smoking at your desk reigned supreme. YEAR 1974DESIGNER David Wood (Nielsen Design Associates) MANUFACTURER Caf%u00e9-Bar InternationalWith overseas sales coming in thick and fast,%u00a0Caf%u00e9-Bar International collected a series of Australian Design awards, including the prestigious Prince Philip Prize for Australian Design, although nobody is actually sure whether Phil was down with instant soup. But one thing is for certain: this time-saving device was a hit. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, it wasn%u2019t at the water cooler but at the Caf%u00e9-Bar where idle workers in polyester outfits munched on Monte Carlo biscuits, drank questionable instant co%u00a0ee and discussed the latest issues, like who shot JR, and did the Leyland Brothers really want to visit Mackay?Towards the end of the 1980s, sales began to decline and the Quintet, this time designed by Adam Laws, was launched. Gone were the bright colours of the 1970s %u2013 the new model was styled to look more like the new fandangled fax machines and word processors of the time. Sadly, the rise of takeaway co%u00a0ee and the%u00a0 Caf%u00e9-Bar%u2019s reputation for being %u2018cockroach co%u00a0ins%u2019 saw their popularity dwindle, but the odd outlier can still be found in o%u00a0ices, and they tend to remain quite popular in the waiting areas of tyre shops, for reasons that aren%u2019t easily explained. For all its detractors, the Caf%u00e9-Bar remains a delightful reminder of a visit to mum or dad%u2019s work, or simply the disappointment of flicking the knob marked %u2018chocolate%u2019 and seeing nothing come out.