According to recent figures posted by the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), 32 percent of a commercial office building’s life cycle emissions comes from fitouts. Also, the average commercial fitout generates 368.6 tonnes of waste.
One South Australian company that has been manufacturing commercial furniture for well over a century has decided to evolve its business model from a manufacturer to a re-manufacturer.
Workspace Commercial Furniture, which has been designing and manufacturing furniture for workplace, education and healthcare facilities, among others, since 1911, has now launched its Workspace Circular Solutions program.
The latest national take-back initiative enables businesses, builders, project managers and government agencies to have their commercial furniture pieces recovered at the end of their first life.
Workspace says that rather than treating unwanted desks, chairs and workstations as waste, the program assesses whether products can be refurbished, repurposed or recycled, helping retain valuable materials in circulation for longer.
The program accepts commercial furniture irrespective of its original manufacturer. Following an on-site assessment, the Workspace team will recommend the most appropriate recovery pathway based on factors such as the condition of the furniture, the materials involved and the client’s objectives.
Furniture identified as suitable for refurbishment may be repaired, reupholstered or modified for continued use.
Other products are then dismantled so that components and raw materials can be recovered through certified recycling partners.
“We’re having different conversations with clients than we were five or 10 years ago,” Workspace chief executive officer Tom Clark says.
“It’s no longer just about buying furniture. Organisations want to know what happens when that furniture reaches the end of its useful life, particularly as they’re reporting against ESG (environmental, social and governance) commitments and looking for practical ways to reduce waste.”
Workspace Circular Solutions notes that its latest initiative doesn’t diminish its longstanding manufacturing business, but instead complements it.
“We’ve always been manufacturers, but we see the next evolution as becoming re-manufacturers. Because we understand how these products are designed and built, we’re in a unique position to recover them, refurbish them and return valuable materials back into the manufacturing cycle.
“The way we see it, manufacturing doesn’t finish when a product leaves the factory. If we can recover materials, refurbish furniture and give products another life, we’re still manufacturing – just differently.”
The program will utilise Workspace’s existing national logistics network and delivery fleet to collect furniture before transporting it to the company’s South Australian facility or an approved recycling partner.
Where applicable, documentation from certified recycling partners, including recycling certificates, offered by way of this program allows client organisations to provide documentary evidence of their commitment to circular economy standards.
Image: Musemind UX Agency, Unsplash
Read more: Dexus and Woods Bagot collaborate on certified green workspace
