Patent ID: 7143552

Claim:
A support apparatus for an office furniture system, comprising: an elongate, hollow lower beam section having top and bottom panels and vertically extending, side panels extending between and rigidly connecting said top and bottom panels, at least some of said panels having access openings formed therein, an elongate, upper beam rail having a top forming a horizontally extending top surface and extending parallel to and spaced-apart from said lower beam section, said beam rail having a plurality of spaced-apart post-receiving holes formed in said top surface and extending through said top of the beam rail for mounting other components of said office furniture system on said upper beam rail, the height of said beam rail being less than the height of said beam section, said beam rail including an elongate channel member having two downwardly and vertically extending edge flanges and forming said top of the upper beam rail, said post-receiving holes being distributed evenly along the length of said channel member, said beam rail further including two elongate, angle frame members each having a downwardly extending leg section and an outwardly extending leg section which is attached to said channel member; and vertically extending, spaced-apart elongate posts rigidly connecting said upper beam rail to said lower beam section, said downwardly extending leg section of each angle frame member being attached to said elongate posts, wherein said beam rail includes at least one rail connecting device provided and located at at least one end of said beam rail for rigidly connecting said at least one end of said beam rail to an adjacent end of another beam rail or to other compatible support structure.