Took me about 4 hours to asssemble. Well organized and laid out with only a few minor glitches. Just a lot of pieces. Says its a credenza but works fine as a desk, plenty of room. Basic laminated pressboard but sturdy.Noticed one part was slightly damaged but went ahead and started the process of putting together because unsure of which part this was. Once almost put together noticed 2nd part badly damaged.The box came pretty damaged.These desks are great, solid, very well built and quite attractive. Shopped around a lot and couldn't find anything close to this price for what we wanted.We wanted to create a U shaped desk/office, his and hers desks. Unfortunately, the U isn't quite uniform, as the desks are not reversible, as you can see in the photo. Still, the final solution is quite adequate. She has her spot and I have mine and we can both face out the window for the view!The instructions well, are really just illustrations, there are no verbal instructions and that's the reason I didn't give 5 stars. This is not a simple assembly, but it's not terribly difficult either. There are steps that will require 2 people.I do recommend having a cordless drill/screwdriver, it helps a lot, just don't over-tighten and be careful.All the parts were present, everything fits perfectly, the drawer slides are solid and well made and come pregreased, expect to get your fingers messy.You will need a decent sized area to work on this, the 2 boxes are both quite large and heavy.Fingerprints do show up a lot on the desk surface, so I am probably ordering a clear mat to protect and avoid the fingerprints.Again, very happy with the purchase. Love the slide out keyboard tray on matching work surface.I love the classic look and quality of the Bennington 2 drawer Lateral file. It was complicated to install. Some wooden parts are heavy, need 2 people to securely put them together. Structure is sturdy but the inside lining of the drawers were a bit flimsy. Overall, I am pleased with the product and would highly recommend.Love the desk, very sturdy and it looks beautiful! Let talk about putting it together, dear God, so many pieces. Be prepared, take your time. It took me two days to put together but the end result was good.I never realized that required assembly meant every single screw, bolt, nuts etc. I do not have a wood shop or an assistant to help, some of the diagrams are so small that I took a guess as to what it meant. Had I not taken it out of the box and not ableto put it back, it would have been returned. In addition there is missing hardware which means that the assembly will have to wait until the required hardware is sent to me before going to the next step. Hope nothing else is missing. Finally I finished the assembly two additional things to note: 1. The entire cabinet is made of particle board or high density cardboard with a laminate finish. 2. These materials make it very heavy but that does not mean it is sturdy. The finished product looks great but will it last?The desk is really sturdy, well made, and beautiful. As others have mentioned, putting it together wasn't hard, exactly, but it's complicated. There are a lot of steps, and two people are needed for a number of them. It's really heavy - which can be a pain in assembly, but makes for a heavy, solid desk. We had one issue with quality - on one of the pieces the holes were in the wrong place. I called the # on the packaging, they apologized, and had a replacement in the mail the next day. I also got the file cabinet, and love it as well.Top quality and attractive. Very heavy and requires careful attention in assembly, though the plans are detailed. It was not difficult to assemble but there are many parts and go together only as instructed.It was the size we were looking for (rare, 30 in. wide). Good looking piece of furniture. I would have liked a bit bigger shelf capacity (currently 25 lbs)