Sustainable Furniture Design - With The Future In Mind
Here at Think Furniture we offer a wide range of products, from simple what-you-see-is-what-you-get solutions to more unique and extravagant offerings. We work with a large selection of manufacturers from around the world, all specialists within their own fields.
Something that we've noticed is that furniture manufacturers are facing an ever-increasing level of demand for environmentally friendly products and services, and some are thinking outside the box in order to both satisfy this demand and remain innovative.
Below are some examples of manufacturers and designers that are consciously trying to innovate and lead the way when it comes to eco-friendly practices & products;
A manufacturer we work with closely; Humanscale, have teamed up with 'Bureo' to design & develop a task chair which features recycled fishing net sourced from Bureo's 'Net Positiva' program, in a bid to reduce the ever-growing amount of plastics that can sadly be found within our oceans today.
"Fishing nets comprise approximately 10% of the plastic pollution in the ocean today,” says Humanscale Founder and CEO Robert King. “Our partnership with Bureo helps further our goal to achieve a net positive impact on our natural environment. The Smart Ocean task chair not only supports the health and comfort of our customers, but actually removes plastic from the ocean, supporting the overall health and well-being of a greater ecosystem.”
Another interesting take on environmentally friendly design is a project called 'Salts' by Vegan designer Erez Nevi Pana. 'Salts' sees the designer place wooden stools at the seabed of the dead sea, left to remain for around 6 months the stools accumulate a vast amount of salt which crystallises and creates a very unique looking end result.
Of course this is a completely natural process and like Erez Nevi Pana's other projects, is "cruelty-free". Could this be the start of a new trend/theme within the design world?
Next up we have a Spanish furniture manufacturer that we work with named 'Actiu'.
Actiu are certainly one of the leading furniture manufacturers in terms of environmental awareness and sustainable working practices - their technological park has become the first Industrial building in the European sector with the 'LEED Platinum' certification, a recognition for sustainable construction
The Actiu Technology Park, designed by Jose Maria Tomas LLavador, has been based on sustainability and self- sufficient use of natural resources right from the design stage. Rain water is collected from the roofs and stored in cisterns for irrigation and industrial use. Europe's largest rooftop photovoltaic plant was installed with state-of- the-art technology and output, which generates 7 million kwh of solar energy, 6 times Actiu's requirements. There has been large-scale planting of trees, where low-water- consumption native species abound, as well as thousands of small aromatic plants. The buildings are designed to make the most of the natural light, through skylights in the roof and glazed facades.
Another manufacturer that we work with named 'Extremis' provides a unique way of reducing their environmental impact - they offer customers the 'Licence To Copy' which is where clients can purchase the licences for Extremis' designs and build the items themselves at home (or wherever they want). This therefore cuts down hugely on transportation emissions & also enables the DIY-er to use their own local materials.
We think this is an excellent touch, and although it may require more manual work - the feeling of accomplishment plus knowing that you've helped avoid extra pollution to our planet are two great reasons to take on the challenge!
If you would like more ideas on eco-friendly furniture solutions or are interested in how Think Furniture can help you acquire sustainable design furniture items, please contact us at information@think-furniture.com.
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