> Oddly, there were already provisions for these additional beams, leading me to believe the design was "simplified" on the way to manufacturing.
More likely is that an earlier version of the product did have those supporting beams. Not on the way to manufacturing, during manufacturing.
The typical IKEA experience is that the first 1-2 years of a product are built sturdier than later versions. They figure out ways to cut the cost of existing products. This hurts the consumer, because even if you hear "oh the Flybnort is very sturdy", that might no longer be true.
I had to bolster my chest of drawers with additional wooden center beams to prevent it from bowing from evenly distributed weight.
Oddly, there were already provisions for these additional beams, leading me to believe the design was "simplified" on the way to manufacturing.