Pre-Owned Office Furniture - Practical and Responsible

Managers looking for practical and economical ways to be environmentally responsible don’t have to look any further than their desktop. Buying pre-owned office furniture is energy efficient, cost-effective and improves employee morale. In some cases, it’s possible to upgrade to higher quality used furniture for the same price or less than the cost for lower-grade new furniture. The primary areas of environmental impact for any furniture purchase are the energy used to transport it, the effect on heavily burdened landfills and the materials used in construction. Buying pre-owned furniture wins in all the above categories, but it’s the substantial cost savings and effect on employees that seal the deal for most. New office furniture has to travel great distances to its final destination, but most used furniture sales are made regionally. There’s a substantial reduction of fuel used during regional transportation, and sales overhead from tolls and other travel expenses is also considerably lower. A less recognized benefit is the decreased impact on critical infrastructure such as bridges and interstate highways; a single sale may not produce significant degradation, but there are millions of sales made every year in the U.S. and it adds up. The EPA reports that three million tons (six billion pounds) of office furniture go to landfills every year. A pre-owned workstation purchase for forty employees will divert a tractor-trailer load of material from the garbage heap and can conserve both the natural resources and energy used during the new furniture manufacturing process. While it’s true that older manufacturing procedures sometimes used harmful environmental methods, the furniture is basically harmless to nature while in use. It’s best to encourage as long a life as possible for these pieces, because any damage has already been done, and there’s no environmental benefit to discarding them. The more pragmatic among us will enjoy the 30 – 60 percent cost savings that can improve the bottom line, expand the amount of furniture purchased or both. Smart shoppers knowledgeable of furniture manufacturers and designers often report being able to buy higher-end furniture than they would have otherwise been able to afford. The price savings of the pre-owned furniture purchase enabled them to enhance the ambiance of their office décor at the same price or less than the cost for new furniture. Employees like and respect companies that invest in green initiatives too. A survey conducted in April by Kenexa indicates employees feel a greater sense of pride working for a company that’s environmentally responsible. With the high cost of talent recruitment today, it just makes sense to demonstrate long-term vision when it comes to the pre-owned furniture option. Pre-owned office furniture is a pragmatic and fiscally intelligent option for almost everyone and every application. My own company, Cubicles Direct, delivers a large quantity of pre-owned furniture to clients across the Delaware Valley. When properly chosen, handled and installed, used furniture and office interiors can be virtually indistinguishable from new in many cases. Look into it for solutions that fit your company, your employees and your budget About the Author: Nadine Freedman is a Managing Partner at Cubicles Direct. Contact Cubicles Direct: Toll-free: 866-411-CUBE Direct: 610-688-4614 Email: cubiclegirl@comcast.net http://www.cubiclesdirect.com