Design For The Evironment Policy
Overview:Our design directive required that each of the furniture components could be easily serviced onsite. This insures that clean, hygienic seating is always possible during the seating’s lifecycle; and that the furniture components could be easily replaced, reused or recycled. Functionality:
With minimal effort and without upholstering skills, all of the upholstery covers, including the arm, seat, back, outside back, and the entirety of the frame components can be replaced and serviced. An antimicrobial moisture barrier encapsulates the seat, back and arm urethane foam cushioning. Traditional cleaning services can perform all the maintenance necessary. All of the upholstery covers can be replaced without disassembling the frame components during remodeling or refurbishing. Wood, urethane or urethane arm caps are standard options which can be removed and replaced when desired. Custom seat modules in 1” increments up to widths of 48” are possible. Custom arm heights are also possible.
Quality / Durability:
The frame construction utilizes panel-to-panel construction, with components fastened around a steel inner frame. This process is a more typical method used in the manufacturing of casegoods and open plan office systems. It capitalizes on increased adaptability from using standardized modular components. This method of construction greatly reduces the problems associated with “built-up” frames that are difficult to modify, and allows for easy customization when needed. A simple allen-head screwdriver is the only tool necessary for disassembly. Facelift is covered by a lifetime warranty.
Renewable Materials
Each component can be replaced, recycled or reused which insures that clean, hygienic seating is always possible and available regardless of the circumstances.
All of the polyurethane foam seat and back cushioning is protected from contamination by being totally encapsulated in an antimicrobial moisture barrier before being slipped into the outer fabric covering. It is attached to the furniture with Velcro fasteners and can be removed / replaced easily. The metal seat suspension system is composed of two parts; the tubular metal seat structural frame and the strap webbing. The structural frame is fashioned from 1” sq. 16ga. tubing and 1” angle iron and is attached to the plywood frame members with machine screws and T-nuts, which allows for removal / replacement.
The strap webbing is designed to be attached to the structural frame with metal clips that fit into holes located along the perimeter of the frame. The straps can be individually removed / replaced easily. The arm and back components are manufactured from ¾” hardwood plywood or solid hardwood, relative to the style offered. These components are attached to the structural frame and to each other with machine screws and T-nuts to facilitate removal / replacement. When arm and back
components require polyurethane cushioning, they are encapsulated in an antimicrobial barrier to guard against irrevocable soiling. These components can then be reused.
The upholstery is designed to be attached to the seating units through a Velcro fastening system so that when covers are soiled or damaged, they can be removed / replaced easily. Certain textiles are offered for upholstery that can be washed and dried when soiled and then replaced onto the seating unit.
Recycled Materials
The design of the product is centered on the desire for these components to be fabricated from recycled materials. We have documented elsewhere in this submittal a spreadsheet that verifies the very high percentage of recycled materials used. Another major factor in the design process was incorporating the ability to supplant any existing component with a newer one that was deemed to be more environmentally friendly. This feature allows for the retrofit of greener materials within a seating product at any time during its lifecycle.
The design of the product is centered on the ability for each manufactured component to be recycled. We also design...
• By evaluating the human health and environmental impacts of its processes and products.
• By reducing the use and release of toxic chemicals through the innovation of cleaner technologies that use safer chemicals.
• By implementing pollution prevention, energy efficiency and other resource conversation measures
• By making products that can be reused, refurbished, remanufactured or recycled.
• By monitoring the environmental impacts and costs associated with each product or process.
End of Life Management
As seating products reach the end of their lifecycle, Trinity Furniture offers a service to reclaim them for recycling and salvage. Furniture can be disassembled into individual components and shipped back to our facility for processing. This is possible because of the methods used during the manufacturing process whereby components are attached together with machine screws and T-nuts. These salvaged components are then either recycled for their respective raw materials, or refurbished for reuse in new products.
Water Management and Energy Efficiency
Water is not used at all in the manufacturing process. The company has set a goal of reducing energy use by 5% by 2014. Products are designed in such a way to require a minimum amount of energy or fuel in the production process.