As humans continue to manufacture more and more goods, they have become more aware of the consequences of using the non-renewable resources and accordingly, have taken many steps toward preserving their fragile ecosystem. Manufacturers of goods are striving to be more eco-friendly than ever before for numerous reasons; hence, we as consumers are set to reap the benefits which will mitigate our carbon footprint eventually.

What is eco-friendly furniture?

There was a time when eco-friendly furniture meant boring or simply utilitarian. However, times have changed and now, we can find all sorts of furniture that is manufactured with minimum negative effects on the environment. Eco friendly furniture can now be found in all sorts of environments serving a multitude of purposes. Everything from a leather office chair to adjustable height workstations and everything in between can now be manufactured without doing the least harm to the environment. Manufacturers have found ways to create stylish and durable furniture in the safest way possible. Eco friendly furniture can be created from recycled material and greener processes, which wasn’t possible otherwise with traditional furniture.

Why are furniture manufacturers  striving to be more eco-friendly?

While the benefits to the environment are obvious, there are other reasons manufacturers are working hard to be more eco friendly. These include:

• To meet demand of a new market
• To take advantage of government subsidies and incentives
• To look more environmentally friendly
• To be an active player in protecting the environment and preventing climate change

So while the benefits are indeed great for the environment, manufacturers do benefit from manufacturing eco-friendly products. Consumers have become much more conscientious of the negative effects our consuming lifestyle has on the environment and they’re voicing their concerns. Manufactures have identified this trend and are indeed capitalizing, which makes it a win-win situation for all involved.

Governments are also providing substantial benefits to manufacturers that are actively producing eco-friendly products. Their constituents have voiced their opinion that protecting the environment matters and governments are enticing manufacturers to manufacture products that people want in order to satisfy this demand.

Additionally, manufacturers want to look great in the eyes of the consumer. When offered two brands that are more or less identical, which would the consumer buy if the only difference was one product was eco-friendly and the other was not? By supporting manufacturers that offer eco-friendly products, consumers believe that the company will continue to produce these types of products and they’re right.

At the end of the day, the manufacturers themselves can feel good about working with their customers in helping to reduce our effect on the environment and work towards combating climate change because it affects all of us, including the manufacturer.

What are manufacturers doing to make their manufacturing processes more eco-friendly?

Manufacturers are working hard to refine and perfect their manufacturing processes to be more efficient and save money while also ensuring that they’re using sustainable or recyclable materials in the production of their eco-friendly products. Additionally, they reduce waste, use less energy and conserve natural resources.

Manufacturers can adopt an energy audit that will quantify the amount of energy being used to create their products while bringing to light areas where they can improve on energy consumption and the manufacturing process of eco-friendly furniture as a whole. They can replace parts of this process with products that are better at what they do (better filters, more energy efficient lighting in their plants, foliage surrounding the plant to reduce internal heat, sealing leaks) as well as adopting smarter technology to inform workers (programmable thermostats for example).

The result is an eco friendly product that looks stylish

At the end of the day, being environmentally aware and striving to make better products while also fighting climate change and reducing waste eventually benefit everyone. Consumers can pick up unique office furniture that they will be proud to own knowing that it was manufactured with the environment in mind. Executives can still pick up an excellent leather office chair knowing that they didn’t need to sacrifice style to be environmentally conscious.

While manufacturers do benefit in the form of greater sales, consumers are willing to speak with their hard earned money if it means getting a product that will last a long time, looks great, serves a purpose and also has little to no negative effect on the environment.

Article Submitted By Community Writer