subject: Tips For Identifying Sustainable Furniture When Shopping [print this page] Many people today are concerned about trying to do right thing as relating to our environment. People are living cleaner, greener lives. They're recycling plastics, installing solar panels in their homes, purchasing cars powered by electrically supplemented power and bio fuels. People are engaging in all of these exercises in an effort to simply do their part. Acting with global passion can be rewarding but often it is expensive. However, purchasing truly sustainable products can produce real and significant return on investment as well as far reaching ecological benefit.
How does one know what furniture products are truly sustainable before they purchase them? There is no universal symbol affixed to furniture products to tell you the product you're about to purchase is truly sustainable. In fact, do you know what being sustainable really means? In simplest terms, sustainability is the capacity to endure.
In ecology the word describes how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time. For humans it is the potential for long-term maintenance of wellbeing, which in turn depends on the wellbeing of the natural world and the responsible use of natural resources.
Sustainability has become a wide-ranging term that can be applied to almost every facet of life on earth.
According to the Earth Policy Institute, there is abundant scientific evidence that humanity is living unsustainably, and returning human use of natural resources to within sustainable limits will require a major collective effort.
Ways of living more sustainably can take many forms from reorganising living conditions and work practices, using science to develop new technologies, to adjustments in individual lifestyles that conserve natural resources.
Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
The purpose of this article is to endeavor to tell you more about sustainability as it relates to purchasing furniture, seating, and related office products. I hope that by providing this information I believe I can keep you from falling for "green washing" or the making of false environmental claims.
This is one of the primary obstacles when marketing and selling any environmental product, and as such, environmental education as it pertains to office furniture, is one of my goals. A more educated consumer will make better decisions, and be more receptive to what is offered when given a viable option.
There are environmental certifications that furniture manufacturers are required to meet to achieve true environmental compliance such as Environmental Management Systems ISO certification, GreenGuard certification, and LEED certification.
Products bearing these certifications provide a buyer with certain environmental assurances. It is important to search out and locate manufacturers who hold there particular certifications.
The certifications I'm speaking about insure that a manufacturer has reduced their energy consumption, in both our manufacturing and in their office environments. They need to have reduced waste to landfill ratios, improved health and safety for their employees, and prove they are monitoring Noise output and Emissions levels in order to comply with and exceed all Federal and Municipal Guidelines.
Most reliable manufacturers, who are concerned about sustainability, are constantly striving for continuous improvement at all levels. Good manufacturers do not settle for the status quo. It is this attitude that sets these particular manufacturers apart.
A good manufacturer's philosophy should be to reduce their environmental footprint, by decreasing energy consumption, utilizing more bio-based products, increasing the recycled content of components, reducing or eliminating the toxicity of products, and minimizing the production of Hazardous Air Pollutants, or HAPS. In addition, some manufacturers even offer Take Back programs in an effort to further recycle. When a particular chair or desk has reached the end of its useful life cycle, in order for products to be recycled to the maximum extent, the manufacturer makes arrangements at their expense to collect these used products for recycling purposes. Now that's commitment!
In these tough economic times saving money has never been a bigger concern. This is true for households and businesses alike. So, whether you run a large corporation or work out of your home office, it is wise to search for office solutions that will adequately meet your needs without taking a huge chunk of your budget. One of the best ways to save money is to purchase green or recycled office systems and furniture. Hopefully the information you glean from this article will better prepare you to make an educated decision as it relates to purchasing truly sustainable office furniture and seating.
