Sustainable Office Furniture: Navigating Furniture Remanufacturing and Resale
In our ongoing series of posts discussing sustainable methods for office furniture management, we have tackled topics, including planning ahead for your office furniture decommission to choosing the right partner during your office furniture decommission. In this post we will look at the other side of decommissioning: What to think about when you are moving to your new office space and your new build out requires acquisition of new and sometimes different furniture configurations.
As more and more companies are adapting to hybrid workplace policies and employees are returning to offices, at least part time, two things are impacting the management of furniture:
Your newly leased workspaces often entail smaller footprints and innovative work arrangements, such as standing desks, "hoteling" instead of dedicated offices, or more open layouts. Consequently, your furniture must adhere to these revised specifications.
Furniture in the new space should exude freshness, operate seamlessly, and align with your corporate design guidelines, fostering a welcoming atmosphere for employees. Even if repurposing existing inventory in the new space is feasible, it often needs to be refurbished.
The “circular economy” has forced us to think differently about “new” when it comes to office furniture. Ideally, extending the useful life of office furniture and integrating remanufactured pieces that meet your needs presents a sustainable win-win situation. With a robust furniture inventory management system, such as Rheaply, as introduced in our previous post, you can effectively identify your existing assets, aggregate inventory, and reallocate them to new leased spaces, regardless of their location.
But let’s say your old furniture assets are a bit tired, or they need to be reconfigured to fit new workplace floor plans. You do have choices, other than “white box” new purchases.
Here are three options and key considerations when evaluating remanufactured furniture assets or acquiring new items for a build out.
Balancing Design Standards with Sustainable Remanufacturing
With the right remanufacturing partner, your “as new” purchases can be refurbished to be indistinguishable from existing or new items “direct from manufacturer”.
What characterizes the right partner? Ideally, your partner should excel in delivering the highest quality craftsmanship, capable of refurbishing everything from functional mechanics to surface restoration of paint and stain on wood, and spray coating metal, as well as replacing hardware and upholstery.
At TFX, our remanufacturing process is entirely conducted in-house, utilizing our own expertly trained staff with extensive experience working with renowned brands such as Steelcase, Herman Miller, Knoll, and Haworth. This ensures that we can meet your furniture requirements precisely aligned with your corporate design standards, and at pennies on the dollar of acquiring new items.
Partner with Remanufacturing and Resale Capabilities
Having a decommissioning partner with comprehensive in-house capabilities is a significant advantage. Not only can they assist in vacating a leased space and transition to new ones, but they can also ensure sustainable outcomes for liquidation. It's even better if this partner can refurbish your inventory to "as new" condition, meeting the outlined criteria.
Without giving away any spoilers, TFX offers expertise in sustainable decommissioning and liquidation practices. Additionally, TFX stands out as the nation’s largest reseller of previously owned office furniture, equipped with complete in-house capabilities for remanufacture and refurbishment. Whether it's restoring your existing furniture or adapting desks and cubicles to new specifications, TFX can remanufacture items you already own. Require additional or different items? With our extensive inventory of remanufactured items available for resale, we can fulfill your specific needs, providing a warranty for extended use, ensuring your new leased spaces are fully furnished in a sustainable manner. This is the circular economy in action!
Planning Makes Perfect
As your business circumstances and workplace policies evolve, your furniture asset management needs are likely to change dynamically. Whether you're facing imminent consolidation of leased spaces or not, it's advisable to collaborate with a partner who can assist in planning for the most sustainable solutions. This includes the option of storing remanufactured furniture you intend to purchase, especially if there's a gap between vacating one premise and occupying another.
Having an end-to-end full-service supplier as your partner can enhance the capabilities of your facilities management and in-house design teams, planning creative and comprehensive design solutions that can save you time, headache, and ensure the result is both sustainable and cost-effective.
Being the nation’s largest full-service decommissioning and liquidation supplier, TFX offers unparalleled visibility into projects across the country, ensuring access to the exact items you require, all remanufactured to suit your timelines and budget. Additionally, our projects include design services and project planning consultations, which are crucial elements that can significantly impact the success of any project.
If you have questions about TFX’s approach to remanufacturing or wish to explore the remanufactured items currently available for resale, we would love to hear from you. Contact us at inquiry@tfxfurniture.com