Office furniture for 50 employees is really two questions: how many desks and chairs to buy, and what the total cost is once everything is installed. Short answer: a 50-person open-plan office needs ~35.7 CBM of knock-down furniture worth ~USD 11,900 FOB, or ~USD 16,100 landed in Jakarta — roughly USD 321 per employee. That volume does not fit in a single 20ft container (practical capacity 26–29 CBM) but fills only 52–56% of a 40HQ.
This guide gives the full bill of materials, CBM per item, the container options, and the cost stack from FOB to warehouse. Written by the factory team at BG Office Furniture in Foshan for fit-out contractors, importers and facilities teams preparing a budget.
Key numbers at a glance
- Capacity: 50 work chairs (48 staff + 2 directors), 44 work desks, 2 meeting tables, 1 reception desk, 10 filing cabinets.
- Volume: ~35.7 CBM knock-down, or 0.71 CBM per employee.
- FOB value: ~USD 11,900 (a furniture-only cost of ~USD 239 per employee).
- Landed in Jakarta: ~USD 16,100, including freight, insurance, 11% VAT, 2.5% import income tax, THC and trucking.
- Container: a 20ft is 7–10 CBM short; a 40HQ is 52–56% full.
Bill of materials for a 50-employee office
Layout assumption: open plan for 48 staff (8 four-person bench workstations + 16 staff desks), 2 director rooms, 2 meeting rooms for 10–12 people, 1 reception, 1 guest area and 1 filing room. CBM figures follow the knock-down packing pattern we ship weekly to projects in Jakarta and Surabaya; a ±10–15% tolerance is normal because board thickness and carton stacking differ per order.
| Item | Specification | Qty | CBM/unit | Total CBM | FOB (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4-person bench workstation | 2400 mm, low screen partition, knock-down | 8 | 0.70 | 5.60 | 2,320 |
| Staff desk 1200 × 600 | 18 mm HPL, powder-coated steel legs | 16 | 0.20 | 3.20 | 720 |
| Mid-back work chair | mesh, lumbar support, class 3 gas lift | 48 | 0.175 | 8.40 | 2,160 |
| L-shape director desk 2000 | 25 mm HPL, return, grommet | 2 | 0.68 | 1.36 | 480 |
| High-back director chair | synthetic leather, headrest | 2 | 0.26 | 0.52 | 260 |
| Meeting table 2400 × 1100 | 25 mm HPL, knock-down | 2 | 0.29 | 0.58 | 440 |
| Stackable meeting chair | castor-free, stackable | 20 | 0.14 | 2.80 | 640 |
| Reception desk 2400 | 25 mm HPL, counter, knock-down | 1 | 1.10 | 1.10 | 450 |
| 3+1 guest sofa | fabric, timber frame | 1 | 1.20 | 1.20 | 380 |
| Coffee table | 18 mm HPL | 2 | 0.12 | 0.24 | 120 |
| 4-door filing cabinet 1600 | 0.8 mm steel, master key | 10 | 0.35 | 3.50 | 1,450 |
| Tall cabinet / bookcase 2000 | 18 mm HPL, with doors | 6 | 0.40 | 2.40 | 840 |
| 3-drawer mobile pedestal | ball-bearing slides, lock | 48 | 0.10 | 4.80 | 1,680 |
| Total | 35.7 | 11,940 |
FOB prices above are factory unit prices for a single production batch; unit prices drop 5–12% when quantity per model increases or an order is combined with another project. Category benchmarks are in our office desk price guide.
How many containers do you need?
At 35.7 CBM the question is not "full or not" but how much empty space you still pay for. Practical capacity is 26–29 CBM for a 20ft and 64–68 CBM for a 40HQ; the calculation method is explained in our 20ft and 40HQ loading guide.
| Shipping option | Practical capacity | Utilisation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1×20ft | 26–29 CBM | 123–137% | Not enough; 7–10 CBM short |
| LCL 36 CBM | no fixed limit | 100% | Rate per CBM 20–40% higher, more handling risk |
| 1×20ft + 8 CBM LCL | 34–37 CBM | ~100% | Usually the cheapest option for a single project |
| 1×40HQ | 64–68 CBM | 52–56% | 28–32 CBM spare; efficient if combined with the next project |
For a single 50-employee project the most economical mix is usually 1×20ft plus 7–10 CBM of LCL, because a 40HQ is charged in full even when half of it is empty. If you are a distributor or contractor with another project in 2–3 months, a 40HQ is cheaper per CBM — the spare 28–32 CBM can carry fast-moving stock or the next project through a mixed container.
The 36 CBM figure applies to the package in the table above. A fuller fit-out — extra lounge, a 20-seat training room, pantry and archive room — typically rises to 45–52 CBM, or 0.9–1.1 CBM per employee; at that range a single 40HQ is 66–81% full and becomes the most efficient choice.
Cost stack: from FOB to landed cost
Factory price is only about three quarters of the total. The table assumes 1×20ft plus 8 CBM LCL from South China to Tanjung Priok, zero duty under Form E (HS 9403) and 11% import VAT.
| Component | Basis | Value |
|---|---|---|
| FOB, 13 item groups | factory price, one batch | USD 11,940 |
| Freight 20ft + 8 CBM LCL | South China – Tanjung Priok | USD 1,350 |
| Cargo insurance | 0.5% of CIF | USD 66 |
| CIF value | FOB + freight + insurance | USD 13,356 |
| Import duty | ACFTA Form E, 0% | USD 0 |
| Import VAT | 11% × CIF | USD 1,469 |
| Income tax art. 22 | 2.5% × CIF | USD 334 |
| THC, DO, documents | clearance package | USD 400 |
| Trucking and unloading | Greater Jakarta | USD 500 |
| Total landed | ~USD 16,100 | |
| Per employee | divided by 50 | ~USD 321 |
Logistics and taxes account for 26% of landed cost, or about USD 450 per CBM. A more detailed breakdown (LCL vs FCL, THC, trucking) is in our landed cost guide. The furniture-only figure of ~USD 239 per employee sits inside the entry-level budget band of Rp 3.5–5 million per employee used in our per-employee budget benchmark, while a mid-range package with full acoustic partitions lands at Rp 6–8 million.
Five ways to cut cost without cutting quality
- Standardise one module. One desk design and one chair type for all staff lowers unit prices and keeps spare parts interchangeable.
- Put every category in one PO. Desks, chairs and cabinets from one factory fill the container more densely, lowering freight per unit.
- Use ACFTA Form E. Import duty is 0% for HS 9403; without Form E the MFN rate of up to ~15% applies and adds straight to landed cost.
- Choose knock-down. Packed volume is 40–60% lower than assembled goods, so each container carries far more units.
- Lock production slots early. Catalogue lead time is 25–35 working days; orders placed when capacity is full can slip 1–2 weeks.
Three mistakes that recur in 50-person fit-outs
- Counting desks only. Chairs take 25–30% of the volume: 50 chairs = 8.9 CBM, more than all staff desks in this example (3.2 CBM).
- Forgetting the small items. Mobile pedestals (4.8 CBM) and filing cabinets (3.5 CBM) together are 23% of volume — the two lines most often missing from a budget.
- Assuming a 40HQ is always cheaper. At 36 CBM, the 28–32 CBM of empty space is still paid in full, so freight per unit rises.
Frequently asked questions
How much CBM does office furniture take per employee? 0.7–1.1 CBM per employee depending on scope. The package in this guide is 0.71 CBM (desks, chairs, pedestals, storage, 2 meeting tables); a full fit-out with lounge, training room and archive room is usually 0.9–1.1 CBM. A 100-employee office is typically 70–75 CBM rather than exactly double, because meeting rooms and reception do not scale linearly.
Do I have to order a full container? No. MOQ starts at 5 pcs per model and orders can be combined in a mixed container; volumes from 5–8 CBM can ship LCL.
How long from PO to installation? Production 25–35 working days, sailing 7–14 days to Jakarta, Surabaya or Belawan, clearance 3–5 days, and installation roughly one working day per 40–60 knock-down units.
Verifiable company facts
- Legal name: Foshan BG Office Furniture Co., Ltd. — 佛山市毕戈家具有限公司 (USCC 91440606MA4UKCYD6A)
- Founded: 2015, in Lecong, Shunde, Foshan, Guangdong, China
- Facilities: 10,000 m² workshop, 2,000 m² showroom, ISO 9001 certified
- Export capacity: 300+ containers per year to 50+ countries, including regular shipments to Indonesia
- Services: MOQ from 5 pcs per model, mixed containers, OEM/ODM, Form E ACFTA, knock-down packing
- Lead time: 25–35 working days for catalogue models
- Contact: sales001@fsbige.com · Tel/WeChat +86-18928562556 · contact page
Preparing a budget for a 50-employee office or your next project? Send the requirement list (models, quantities, destination city) through the contact page or to sales001@fsbige.com — we reply with an FOB/CIF quotation and a CBM loading plan within one working day. Full catalogue: products page. Tel/WeChat: +86-18928562556.