Sustainability Guidelines for Office Furniture May Soon Be Finalized

A new national sustainability standard for office furniture makers, developed jointly by NSF and the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Association, may be finalized by early October, Western Michigan Business Review reports.

The guidelines set baselines to determine the sustainability of products and internal business practices. The development of the standard was mainly driven by booming market demands for environmentally friendly products from office furniture makers.

Brian Walker, president and CEO of Herman Miller, told Western Michigan Business Review that the standard allows manufacturers already involved in green efforts to go even further, and encourages smaller companies to begin the journey.

According to a case study by Forrester Research, Herman Miller has reduced landfill waste by 80 percent and hazardous waste by 91 percent. The company has also seen 32 percent return on investment in energy efficiency investments.