Feature 2. Bringing The Leftovers Home
As occupancy levels and the purpose of the office changes, many businesses will find themselves wondering what to do with the surplus of items such as desks and office chairs, which are either going into storage or gathering dust in an office.
This challenge has come at the same time as many office-based employees have moved to remote working, in turn requiring their own office furniture at home. While many individuals chose to solve this issue by simply taking their workplace furniture with them, this solution isn’t as simple as it may seem. Nine out of ten office chairs do not meet domestic fire safety requirements; however, reupholstering can ensure pieces are compliant, helping keep employees safe and limiting potential liability for businesses in the case of any fires.
Although this might add to the work, by fixing rather than replacing, not only can businesses help eliminate waste, they can also save money as remanufactured ‘home worker packs’, including a desk and a DSE compliant chairs, can often cost less than purchasing new high-quality furniture.
3. Spreading The Joy
Once it’s clear that the business has been able to reuse all the furniture it needs for its own purposes, it’s time to consider who might be interested in the remaining pieces. For instance, many firms use services, such as Waste Match, to help them find charities to which they can donate their surplus furniture, allowing companies to contribute to the local community. And, in cases where charities don’t need furniture, businesses can sell the pieces they have available and donate the funds to support good causes. Last year we worked closely with one of our customers to donate office equipment that was no longer
needed, helping to furnish the new office of a local charity. Our customer saved on disposal and storage costs and the charity was able to ensure its funds were focused on supporting its cause – a win-win for everyone involved.
4. Make Do And Mend
With sustainability at the top of many businesses’ agenda, companies must embrace the circular economy to keep the furniture or its materials in use for as long as possible. Having reupholstered chairs and fixed tables by using parts from other items, businesses might end up with spare pieces. Many of these parts are still functioning, so we advise our customers save them for those common cases where the drawer runner gets stuck or the locker’s hinge breaks.
But, as much as we try, we’ll eventually end up with those broken and damaged pieces, such as broken desk legs, that cannot be used anymore. Many of these pieces can be recycled or sent to specialised waste management plants where they can be converted into energy, producing zero landfill waste.
With the UK looking to implement a green recovery, it’s important that businesses planning for the hybrid model of working look beyond how to reorganise their office floor and consider the impact that these changes will have on the environment. Landfill waste and loss of materials can have negative effects on the planet, so as we begin to return to workplaces businesses must do their part and focus on the circular economy by ensuring that any spare furniture is reused or recycled. Not only will this play an important role in the fight against climate change, it can also save some cash which is an important consideration for many companies in the current climate.
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