Q&A Introduction

Congratulations! The fact that you are reading this booklet indicates that you have a real interest in the natural therapy field and that you are probably considering purchasing a treatment table. You are joining one of the fastest-growing industries in this country, and the reason it is growing so fast is simply because it works. Massage and other natural therapies offer both logical and practical answers to many of today's ailments.
The normal health-care system is becoming very expensive, and more and more people are finding that they are simply unable to afford it. Prevention is always better than cure, which is another reason why the natural therapy industry will continue to grow, and hopefully your career will also flourish with it!

Athlegen (including subsidiary brands) is the oldest and largest manufacturer of massage tables in Australia, and we are proud to be a part of the natural therapies' industry. We are committed to the growth of natural therapy in Australia, and have contributed towards this growth over many years. Athlegen was the sole supplier of all 1200 portable and electric tables for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and has been sole supplier for the Australian Olympic team for the last four Olympic games and the last two Commonwealth Games including supply of all the tables to the recent Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, not just the Australian team. Athlegen was chosen from a long list of Australian and international table manufacturers on the basis that Athlegen tables represented the best value for money in the world.

In recent years thousands of “cheap” portable tables have been imported in to Australia by importers with little if any knowledge of the natural therapies industries and little if any knowledge of the critical design features needed to produce a table that will give years of trouble free use. Many of these tables are sold over the internet and through eBay, by little known importers. Be wary of these tables supplied by people whose sole motivation is to make a quick and easy dollar, without any thought to providing the long term support and assurances that they will be around to deal with any problems that may arise. There should be a law prohibiting the inferior products that are brought in to the country by some of these fly by night importers. A good table will give you many years of trouble free use and your customers will judge you as a practitioner by the experience of comfort and safety that they have on your table as well as the overall quality of your treatments. I hope this short book helps you to make a more informed decision. Your table is your tool of trade and you don’t want to compromise on its quality, features and benefits. Every good tradesperson knows this simple truth.

This booklet has been prepared as a service to the industry and is an expression of our on-going commitment to it. It combines our practical experience in manufacturing tens of thousands of tables, together with feedback from our customers from around the world.
The simple way to use this booklet is to read it through from cover to cover. Along the way you will pick up a good practical understanding of portable treatment tables. This knowledge is not meant to supplant anything you have been taught in your course. Some teachers of specific modalities and techniques may recommend different tables to our suggestions. Nevertheless, this booklet will be extremely useful to the vast majority of students and practitioners.

As a shortcut, you may care to simply scan through the questions, and review the answers to the questions that are of personal interest. Regardless of your approach, we would strongly recommend that at the very least, you review the answers to the questions concerning table height, width, weight, and adjustable versus fixed height.
Keep up the good work!

Stephen Falkiner