The mantra of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle for almost 30 years now has been taught in our schools.

The 3 R’s have become the goal of new generations. It really makes good sense and much of the reasons in the office furniture industry will be detailed here. So let’s look at each of the 3'Rs and how they apply.

REDUCTION: Is the apex of the hierarchy because there is NO environmental impact when something is not produced or consumed. Reducing your gas consumption by riding a bike to work is a good example of this. Also, installing used modular systems furniture to optimize the workspace for the most efficient use of space without redundant pieces is another.

REUSE: Is at the next level, because even though the original manufacturer of the product has impacted the environment, reuse prevents a second impact. There is increasing pressure on manufacturing to make reusability part of product design. Some existing products already lend themselves to reuse. Systems furniture with an incredibly durable basic structure is a prime example. Intentionally product manufactures have delivered products tailor made for reuse.

RECYCLING: Is next and while the recycling process itself creates an environmental impact, it is still very valuable. The reason for this is it reduces landfill waste. The process used to transform plastic soda bottles into "Terrtex" fabrics is a good example of this. One of our suppliers Guilford of Maine has conducted life cycle assessments that prove the environmental impact is less harmful than making this from new virgin polyester. Refurbishing used systems furniture with new “green” fabrics is one way to use recycled products.

Pay Less Now, Pay Less Later

Never heard of the term "Reused Office Furniture"? It could be you’re more familiar with "refurbishing" or "remanufacturing". The words have some what of a different meaning, but often are used interchangeably. Here we "Reuse" used office furniture and systems furniture and we “Recycle” by refurbishing the systems furniture, always emphasizing the 3 R’s.

What ever you call it, it is big business. More than 50% of all U.S. companies now include reused furniture in their annual budget. There is small wonder why. Everybody knows that reused furniture can cost substantially less than new.

Yet there is even greater long-term cost savings associated with reusing office furniture. This has to do with footprints.

How Big Is Your Footprint?

We are not talking shoe size here. It's your environmental footprint we are concerned with. An environmental footprint is the amount of land and water area required to support a defined human population. The footprint takes into consideration the energy and resources consumed by the population to maintain its standard of living. Americans leave the largest footprint on Earth. While the world population leaves an average footprint of 2.37 acres per person, the U.S.A. uses 23.47 acres to support his or her life style.

Just as people leave footprints, so do products. As you might expect reusing furniture leaves a much smaller footprint than manufacturing new furniture. Reuse consumes less energy and natural resources and releases fewer harmful substances into the air. EPA estimates that 3 million tons of furniture goes into landfills each year. Reusing office furniture could save U.S. businesses 93 million in just disposal costs each year. Reuse cuts the cost from 30-80% of buying new products.

The startling fact is that for every pound of natural resources consumed by reuse, 5 to 9 pounds of original materials are conserved. Reused furniture represents more than 1 billion of annual commercial furniture volume.

Reusing Furniture Saves Trees

A few facts about deforestation:

• 95 acres of rainforest are clear-cut every minute. Earth Care Paper Company
• In less than one hundred years over half of the forest has now been cut and burned, leaving whole areas of the earth bare and unprotected, rendering entire regions lifeless. Over fifty million acres of tropical rain forest are destroyed every year, enough trees to fill all of England and Scotland combined. The U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization estimates that if the rate of destruction continues, by the turn of the century (2000 A.D.) over one fifth of the rain forest will be eliminated.
• We have already destroyed half of the original rainforest. At the current rate of destruction, we will completely eradicate all rainforests by the year 2050. Earth Care Paper Company
• Today, tropical forests supply about 30% of the world's log exports, 12% of sawnwood exports, and 60% of plywood and veneer exports. Worldwatch Institute
• Tropical rainforests in the Amazon store 75 billion tons of carbon dioxide in their trees and plants. When the forests are burned, carbon dioxide is released into the air. It has been estimated that 25% of total global CO2 emissions are from the burning of tropical rainforests. Rainforest Action Group
• 80% of the world's large tracts of ancient forests have already been logged. New Leaf Paper, 2001
• 76 countries have lost all their original forest cover. New Leaf Paper, 2001