Coming soon: Nap boxes for overworking employees in Japan

It's a country where employees work very long hours, and so two Japanese companies are partnering to design nap boxes so that they can get some rest in the office itself.

It will be a vertical box, so the user will have to sleep standing up. But the box will provide enough support to the head, knees and rear so that the person will not topple over while sleeping.

This may not sound all that luxurious, but it is definitely much better than locking oneself up in the bathroom and catching a quick nap - as many employees in Japan are known to do.


The companies partnering to make the nap box are furniture specialist Itoki Corp and plywood supplier Koyoju Gohan. The design process has started, the price and availability are yet to be worked out.

"We are hoping that companies can use this as a more flexible approach to resting,” Saeko Kawashima, communications director at Itoki, was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.

There is one reason it could be successful in Japan: There is a lot of research which show that restorative rest increases productivity. Something like a nap box could prompt companies to encourage their employees to take power naps.