Green Office Furniture To The Rescue
These days many businesses want to 'go green', either to get that official designation or just to do their bit to protect the planet. Fortunately, there are many manufacturers or recyclers eager to help them find everything form paper supplies and appliances to green office furniture.
Today, when the acoustical tile over your head may be made of ground plastic soda bottles, it should be no surprise to find that the desk you are sitting at is made of one hundred percent post consumer materials. Even the chair you like because of its ergonomic design, although made of all-new material, is over ninety-five percent recyclable.
There are different ways to qualify as environmentally friendly. Making things to last longer is one way to keep landfills to a minimum. In an industry that traditionally used total re-decorating every ten years, getting furnishings that are used and refurbished or that carry a lifetime guarantee is a big step forward. Fiberboard used as a base and laminated in your choice of wood finish is manufactured with no new materials at all.
Go online to see how many sites offer used furnishings that look like new, recycled materials in newly manufactured desks and chairs, and even carpeting and walls that do not require a major use of natural resources to produce. There are certifications used to gauge how environmentally-friendly an item or a brand is. This is often signaled by the green leaf logo in the product code you will see on the site.
Another important feature of modern office life is air quality. Research has shown that building materials, carpeting, and furnishings can give off toxic fumes or microscopic particles long after they have been made. People working inside can suffer from the constant bombardment of unhealthy vapors or airborne particles. Allergies and fatigue rob the whole company of productivity and can lead to long-term disabilities.
Many of the products you will see that come from companies concerned about the environment and the health of workers in both government and private offices advertise the compliance with emission levels set by the United States Green Building Council, or can show the LEED certification that is an international standard. If a company is trying to project an environmentally aware image, it will do well to look for these seals of approval before buying.
All areas of construction, operation, and maintenance can be changed to reduce pollution, the 'carbon footprint', and wastes that end up in landfills or the world's oceans. Things like buying locally to reduce transportation costs and CO2 emissions, or choosing a supplier who ships direct to streamline the delivery can really matter over time. Longer life, cleaner manufacturing, and easy recycling all play a part in compliance.
Using green office furniture is a practical and measurable way to protect the health of workers and the health of the world. It can be an asset in hiring and in advertising your product, as well, since many now are aware of the dangers of indoor pollution and like to support companies that care about the planet.