The Influence of Sustainability on Interior Design & the Furniture Industry
Sustainability is defined by meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the need of future generations to meet their own. More precisely, in the furniture industry, we see executives trying to set environmental goals to align with the global shift to sustainability.
In an effort of pursuing a sustainability agenda, not only will this be beneficial to the environment but also to your financial performance.
The worlds’ nations are more determined than ever to fight climate change. This is evident by The Paris Agreement that was signed by the EU and 190 states. An example is China who is committed to reducing its carbon dioxide intensity so that it can achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. Other nations are following suit, which ultimately translates into more environmental laws that businesses should abide by, like carbon taxes. So to stay competitive and ahead of the curve, responsible business leaders are implementing sustainability best practices.
In this article, we will discuss three key players that must adopt sustainable management practices in their respective domains, and how they can achieve that.
1 - Manufacturers
As one of the early players in the supply chain, manufacturers have a high impact on the environment because they deal with raw materials collected from the environment.
What do manufacturers need to do?
During furniture production, the use of flame retardants, formaldehyde, adhesives and treatments that emit harmful gases must be avoided. Instead, water-based foams and glues can be used, greatly reducing health risks and CFC emissions that damage the ozone layer.
To keep dust levels down, manufacturers must regularly sweep or atleast have supervisors use an industrial vacuum cleaner to keep dust levels down. Boxes, bags, or containers should always be sealed well.
Composite materials have chemicals that increase environmental impact, they are also not often recycled into useful products. Wood on the other hand is eco-friendly since it can easily be assembled and disassembled in furniture spaces. However, if working with chemicals is absolutely necessary then manufacturers should dispose of volatile chemical waste by evaporation and do not allow chemicals to soak into the ground.
Manufacturers should also give their staff proper training to prevent spills of hazardous substances. This means that all adhesives, paints and solvents are covered to prevent accidental spills reaching stormwater drains or soil.
Manufacturers can save energy by:
Checking compressed air systems for leaks and fixing them. Compressors should never run unnecessarily cause this will result in higher electricity.
Air compressors and lights should be turned off on non-working days and during breaks.
Fuel bills can be reduced by improving transport routes and loading vehicles efficiently.
Benefits:
Manufacturing waste can be reduced by monitoring consumption, hence simplifying resource management. As a result, production cycles can be shortened, increasing the supply at a lower cost. This ultimately means more profits over the same time period.
2 - Suppliers
For years single-use plastics such as airbags and Styrofoam were used for packaging furniture. With the sustainability framework improving over the years, this is changing. Biodegradable materials, recyclable and recycled packaging are becoming popular to reduce energy waste in transportation.
What do suppliers need to do?
Suppliers should consider using water-based paints, as they contain less chemicals.
Keep lids on chemical containers and fit taps to reduce evaporation and avoid loss of raw materials.
Using surface treatments, structural arrangements and keeping an eye out on your furniture during bad weather will protect your products from dirt and corrosion.
Warehousing your products would be an acceptable approach.
Wood off- cuts need to be re-used in smaller component manufacture.
Cutting patterns used for fabric and wood should be optimized to minimize off-cuts.
Where possible raw materials purchased in reusable packaging.
Using organic raw materials that are readily available and can be recycled or upcycled are crucial in reducing waste.
Using wood is one of the best natural choices for yielding a low environmental impact. The benefit is that there is less waste when making wooden products and they are almost always readily available, but most importantly they're 100% biodegradable.
Benefits:
From the supply of raw materials to operations and distribution, a business needs to reduce environmental impacts. By providing a safe, clean and pleasant work environment, staff productivity will also be increased.
3 - Interior designers
Ultimately, it is up to the interior designers to start and continue favoring furniture and décor that are environmentally friendly and sustainable. They are the ones responsible for marketing this trend to end consumers.
What do interior designers need to do?
Design your products so that they are easier to use, refurbish and recycle and let your customers know about this.
Educate your customers about the benefits of environmentally sustainable manufacturing.
Using surface treatments, structural arrangements and keeping an eye out on your furniture during bad weather will protect your products from dirt and corrosion.
Should favor eco-friendly furniture designs. For example using natural elements in décor and simple styles like Scandinavian style.
Benefits:
Overall, the interior designer will have a better image once he or she operates a sustainable enterprise attracting more customers and clients interested in sustainability.
Conclusion
Sustainability and sustainable practices allows businesses to remain competitive yet collaborate with trusted stakeholders, this in turn builds a strong brand image. The actions needed to be taken in order to achieve a sustainability agenda depends on the size and complexity of the business as outlined above.
Sometimes big businesses operating on a large scale can benefit from hiring Environmental Officers whose sole job would be to evaluate the company’s progress through monitoring things like waste disposal records, process authorisations, consents to discharge to sewer or to controlled waters, complaints and incident records, details of any breaches and prosecutions.
Finally, by basing strategic decisions around the environment we can ensure the future viability of the planet as well.
Managers that want to become a supplier of choice need to improve environmental performance at all levels. Suppliers, manufacturers, and interior designers need to secure continual improvement of the environment wherever possible.
