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Whether you are just setting up shop, renovating or just doing some early spring cleaning around the office, furniture is a great place to start going green in the workplace.
This week is about getting workspace ready for the year ahead and getting a little greener with some early eco-minded Spring cleaning. So, to kick it off here are some tips for greening your office furniture.
Consider Redux
GreenBiz recently reported on the booming industry of furniture recyclers and refurbishers stating that this sector represents more than $1.2 billion of the $13.6 billion US commercial furniture industry. The boom reflects that companies are catching on to the inherent benefits of buying used. Opting for gently used furniture saves money and helps keep perfectly good products out of landfills. Personally, I’ve always gone for the redux picks and have been happy with the quality, aesthetics and prices of second hand office furniture.
New & Green
If second hand isn’t your style there are plenty of green options in new office furniture. Here are some key factors to keep in mind when making the investment:
Sustainable materials: Consider the material source, manufacturing and finishes of the materials that go into that new chair. With wood furniture, choose products that are sourced from sustainably managed forests like FSC-certified from the Forest Stewardship Council. If you’re buying in the metal aesthetic, get to know the company’s manufacturing process and find out how they manage hazardous materials and waste. Also keep in mind that locally produced goods from locally sourced materials have less embodied energy because they don’t rack up energy miles in transportation. And even though you are buying new doesn’t mean you can’t still buy recycled, look for recycled content in structural materials, fabric and packaging.
Durability: If you are buying new, buy for the long term. Nothing says unsustainable like a new product that becomes trash in a few years. While buying higher quality furniture requires a larger initial investment, the longer it lasts the bigger the return and the less likely it will head to an early landfill grave.
Good Practice: The company you are buying from should at least have an eye on sustainability. The AD Interiors chairs pictured above come from a UK company that, although their products aren’t true green, they do offer choices that are carbon neutral through a partnership with Climate Care.
These are just a few ideas on greening office furniture, if you’ve got more share them with all of us in the comments! I’d love to hear them!
I just realized that the presenter for the ED&C webinar Making Sense of Furniture Emissions in the Workplace is from Steelcase. Good stuff for anyone who’s interested.
Thanks for the scoop on Steelcase, Anna. And your insight. I really would love to splurge on a new (to me) desk chair. I currently have a reclaimed chair which is OK but those Steelcase chairs sure look comfy. I’ll have to keep them in mind.
Well said, Carolyn. Thanks for the great link!
Check out Steelcase and Herman Miller chairs that fits your above requirements. They are pricey but the comfort level and sustainability factors can not be beat.
I actually bought a used Steelcase chair from an office recyclers and I have been very happy. You can’t beat the price!
If you do get rid of your office furniture, then either offer on freecycle, sell it on craig’s list, donate it to a charity, or give it to a used office furniture place. Just don’t throw it away! Anna http://www.green-talk.com
1550 days ago
[...] Want more ideas? Visit Greener Assets for a great article about greener office furniture. [...]
Nature knows no waste — everything has multiple generations of use. If we think that way: that there is not such thing as waste, we can turn what we no longer need into something someone else needs — or we can use in a new way. You can learn more about green solutions on my encyclopedia of green at californiagreensolutions.com
I think you are right, Kelly. The less consumers and businesses think “throwaway” the better for the environment. And, although more durable products can carry a higher initial price tag, there are savings down the road because they incur less replacement costs. Thanks for stopping by!
This is great advice. One of the really important pieces of advice is to consider durability. As a small business owner, we often went for “cheap” first. Our expandable folders, which only cost pennies a piece – seemed like a better choice than the $5/piece plastic ones. Until we had to replace almost every one each year, that is. It turned out to be NOT so economical. And while arguably plastic is not good for the environment, throwing out loads of old folders isn’t so great either.