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The benefts to a business of installing sustainable furniture are minimal. The environmental impact of offce furniture occurs during manufacture and at end of life, but not while it is in use. In this respect it is very different from IT, which consumes energy throughout its lifecycle.

Businesses have good reason to buy green IT, but no fnancial incentive to purchase sustainable furniture. The only reason to seek out furniture with a low environmental impact is to comply with a broader sustainable procurement policy or for reasons of individual conscience. Today, this may be enough. A growing number of organisations are demanding that suppliers declare their environmental accreditations, forcing manufacturers to brush up their credentials.

Many furniture companies will already have ISO 14001 accreditation, demonstrating that they have a documented environmental policy, operate in compliance with relevant environmental legislation and monitor and control the environmental impact of their activities.

A growing number, so far more than 40, will also have FISP accreditation. Introduced in 2006, the Furniture Industry Sustainability Programme (FISP) enables manufacturers to take environmental responsibility to the next level.

The programme is managed by FIRA International and supported by the British Contract Furniture Association (BCFA), the British Furniture Manufacturers Association (BFM) and TheWorshipful Company of Furniture Makers.

It is open to any manufacturer that can demonstrate that they have an

environmental policy and comply with existing environmental and health & safety legislation. Then all they have to do is commit to a process of continual improvement in at least fve of nine environmental criteria and two of six economic and social ones.

One of the drawbacks of FISP from a purchaser’s perspective is that it is an industry scheme, designed to raise standards within the furniture industry as a whole and in so doing ‘pre-empt or reduce future regulatory action’. This, as BCFA technical director Peter Smith explains, means that it is far from onerous.

“We as an association have never subscribed to the elitist view that the eco-label board has, which is broadly that they want the eco-label to be achieved by only a very small number of companies.We would say that the accreditation should be achievable by any company that puts effort into it.We would expect o to achieve this FISP gives an company is awa responsibilities something to im but it is too bro for those requir environmental s as manufacture which standard

FSC

According to a r report, Illegal W Market , almost imported into t 2006 came from illegal sources. T the second wor after Finland, im 3.5 million cubi illegal furniture products, sawnw Amid increa the effects of ill deforestation, p for assurances t timber used in o furniture comes responsibly man forests should lo

accreditation or at the very least PEFC accreditation.

Carbon footprints

In addition, to ISO14001, FISP and FSC or PEFC accreditation, a number of furniture manufacturers provide carbon footprints of their products (FIRA has just launched the Furniture Footprinter service for just this purpose). One of the frst to do so was Bisley. Sales and marketing director Richard Blackwell said that it did so for two main reasons: to meet the requirements of businesses that are going carbon neutral; and as an exercise to help Bisley monitor and control its own carbon emissions.

“If you are buying 500 units of a product just knowing what that does to your carbon impact is important. It’s a measurement for people who want to reduce their own impact on the environment,” he said.

He thought it unlikely that people would compare the carbon footprint of individual products, but said that Bisley had used carbon footprinting to demonstrate the benefts of buying

www.binfo.co.uk

On your marks…

Sustainable Times looks at what furniture companies are doing to improve the environmental performance of their furniture

KI’s Daylight chair is made out of old car batteries.