Spec Book Pro Blog

Green Furniture & Furnishings

BuildingGreen.com has a list of Green Furniture & Furnishings products and considerations.

Link: BuildingGreen.com - Green Product Category: Furniture & Furnishings

The introduction of furnishings that off-gas hazardous chemicals can undo all the care given to using “clean” building materials. Furniture and furnishings incorporate many separate products and all of the issues that go with them. As a result, they can be a significant source of IAQ problems—coming from binders in wood composites such as particleboard, from finishes used on the products, from flame retardants used in foam cushions, and from adhesives used to assemble the products.

Those items incorporating fabric, such as upholstered furniture and workstations, can also collect dirt and airborne contaminants, releasing them later.

Green Interior Design Video

From The Lazy Environmentalist on the Sundance Channel

Josh Dorfman

Josh Dorfman, host of Sundance Channel's new original program THE LAZY ENVIRONMENTALIST and a commentator for BIG IDEAS FOR A SMALL PLANET on THE GREEN, is an environmental entrepreneur, media personality and author of The Lazy Environmentalist: Your Guide to Easy, Stylish, Green Living (April 2007) and the recently published The Lazy Environmentalist on a Budget (April 2009). He created THE LAZY ENVIRONMENTALIST as a talk radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio from 2006 to 2008, and is the founder and CEO of Vivavi, a retailer of modern, green furniture and home furnishings, which Inc. Magazine has called one of the top 50 companies driving today's green revolution.

As an advocate for positive environmental change, Josh also serves as spokesperson for Brita's FilterForGood campaign to help reduce bottled water waste and for Green Works, Clorox's line of natural cleaning products. He is a member of the Wolf Trap Foundation's National Advisory Council for the Arts and Environment and has served on Newsweek Magazine's Global Environment and Leadership Advisory Committee.

Herman Miller's Aeron Chair Earns MBDC Environmental Certification

Mairi Beautyman at Interior Design reports that the Aeron chair now has a PVC-free, polyurethane arm pad.

Link: Herman Miller's Aeron Chair Earns Environmental Certification - 2/17/2009 - Interior Design.

A Herman Miller classic has another green certification under its belt. McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC) has awarded the Aeron chair Cradle to Cradle Silver Certification for its sustainable design. The environmental certification ensures the furniture manufacturer is dedicated to material chemistry and safety, product disassembly and recyclability of materials, and maximizing use of materials with recycled content during production.

To meet the criteria, Herman Miller closely examined each material used in the chair, which already boasts Greenguard certification and incorporates several green design features: It's 94 percent recyclable, comprised of up to 64-percent recycled materials, and assembled with 100 percent renewable energy. More than 60 percent recycled content is used in the seat frame and the back is recycled two-liter plastic bottles.

By 2010, Herman Miller plans to achieve 50 percent of sales from products that meet the environmental criteria laid out in the DfE protocol. In 2020, the company is committed to raise that to 100 percent of product sales.

Sustainability Gaining Among Large Design Firms

Interior Design finds that the top 100 Giants are making sustainability an important component in their projects.

Link: Giants: Green - 6/1/2008 - Interior Design.

The design community is on an eco-minded roll, as evidenced by the 2008 top 100 Interior Design Giants. Half the firms on the list have 10 or more LEED-accredited professionals on staff. As for last year's projects, a handful of which are shown here, 77 Giants specified green products—most often, that product was carpet. How's that for low impact?

• 70% of the Top 100 Giants include sustainable design in their mission statement
• In total, the 2008 top 100 Giants specified more than $5 billion worth of green products last year
• 40 of these Giants specified at least $5 million worth of green products
• 35% of all interior products specified in 2007 by the top 100 giants were green
• On average, the top 100 giants have 13 LEED-accredited professionals on staff
• Close to 33% of all projects the top 100 giants work on followed LEED guidelines
• 30 of these giants say at least 40% of their projects last year followed LEED guidelines
• 77% of the top 100 giants report that they, not the client, usually take the initial step in making a project sustainable

Green Furniture & Furnishings

BuildingGreen.com has a list of Green Furniture & Furnishings products

Link: BuildingGreen.com - Green Product Category: Furniture & Furnishings

Bedroom Furnishings (4 products)
FSC-Certified Wood Furniture (13 products)
Furniture (1 product)
Institutional Furniture (1 product)
Natural Fiber Fabrics (3 Articles, 9 products)
Office Furniture (9 Articles, 11 products)
Portable Partitions, Screens, and Panels (6 products)
Reclaimed-Wood Furniture (1 Article, 15 products)
Recycled-Content Furniture (6 products)
Residential Cabinetry (2 Articles, 11 products)
Seating (3 Articles, 6 products)
Signage (2 Articles, 13 products)
Specialty Cabinetry (4 Articles, 8 products)
Storage Shelving (1 product)
Synthetic Fiber Fabrics (4 Articles, 8 products)
Systems Furniture (6 products)
Tackboards (2 products)
Toilet Accessories (4 Articles, 11 products)
Toilet Compartments (4 products)
Tub and Shower Doors (1 product)
Window Shades (2 Articles, 14 products)

Green Interior Finish & Trim Products

BuildingGreen.com had this list of Green Interior Finish & Trim Products

Link: BuildingGreen.com - Green Product Category: Interior Finish & Trim

Acoustical Ceilings (7 Articles, 7 products)
Acoustical Wall Finishes (1 product)
Agfiber Millwork (1 product)
Ceramic Tile (3 products)
Certified-Wood Stairs and Railings (2 products)
Concrete Pigments (2 Articles, 3 products)
Cork Wall Covering (1 Article, 2 products)
Countertops (3 Articles, 18 products)
Fiberboard and Particleboard Panels (22 Articles, 20 products)
Fiberboard Millwork (1 Article, 2 products)
Fiberboard Trim (1 product)
FSC-Certified Millwork (7 Articles, 12 products)
FSC-Certified Wood Paneling (9 Articles, 14 products)
Gypsum Board (14 Articles, 8 products)
Gypsum Board Accessories (2 Articles, 7 products)
Gypsum Board Taping and Finishing (1 Article, 1 product)
Ornamental Simulated Woodwork (1 product)
Plaster Forms (1 product)
Plastic Handrails (1 product)
Plastic Paneling (1 Article, 11 products)
Prefinished Paneling (33 Articles, 18 products)
Reclaimed-Wood Millwork (1 Article, 35 products)
Reclaimed-Wood Paneling (2 Articles, 29 products)
Reclaimed-Wood Stairs and Railings (16 products)
Recycled-Glass Tile (6 products)
Residential Cabinetry (2 Articles, 11 products)
Speciality Ceilings (1 Article, 3 products)
Specialty Cabinetry (4 Articles, 8 products)
Terrazzo (1 Article, 4 products)
Textile Wall Coverings (1 Article, 7 products)
Wall and Corner Guards (1 Article, 1 product)
Wall Covering (7 Articles, 13 products)
Wall Covering Adhesives (1 product)
Wood Mantels (10 products)
Wood Veneer (4 Articles, 10 products)
Wood-Alternative Trim (1 product)
Wood-Veneer Paneling (5 Articles, 4 products)

LEEDing Edge Residential High-Rise Unveiled in New York

Mairi Beautyman at Interior Design magazine describes Visionaire, a tower that includes solar panels, wind power, and an innovative water treatment system.

Link: "America's Greenest" Residential High-Rise Unveiled in New York - 12/17/2008 - Interior Design

Photo courtesy of Stedila Design

New York's skyline was recently graced by a new green residential tower, billed as "America’s Greenest High-Rise Condominium."

Expected to land LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, the 35-story Visionaire is designed by architect Rafael Pelli of Pelli Clark Pelli Architects and developed by the Albanese Organization, in partnership with Starwood Capital. Interiors of the 251 studio-to-three bedroom residences are designed by interior designer Tim Button of Stedila Design. Visionaire is located in Battery Park City.

Pelli's design focuses on green innovation. The tower will feature solar panels, wind power, a high-efficiency air filtration system, and programmable thermostats and kitchen exhaust systems. Combined, the green features are expected to slash energy consumption by 35 percent, compared to similar code-compliant buildings. A savvy water treatment system will recycle water throughout the building, using it for an HVAC system cooling tower, and rainwater will be collected to irrigate two rooftop gardens.

Green Buildings – Costs vs. Benefits

Penny Bonda at Interior Design summarizes a study of green buildings.

Link: The Costs and Paybacks of Green Buildings - Design Green - Blog on Interior Design.

Researchers released an impressive amount of information at Greenbuild last week including a study with the kind of news we all want to hear – the cost premium for green buildings is considerably less than most people think AND the benefits accrue in numerous and sometimes surprising ways.

The international study, Greening Buildings and Communities: Costs and Benefits, is based on extensive analysis of 150 green buildings and provides the most detailed findings to date on the costs and financial benefits of building green. Among the study’s key findings:  
 
- Green buildings cost roughly 2 percent more to build than conventional non-green buildings, and provide a wide range of financial, health, and social benefits. 
 
- Green buildings reduce energy use by an average of 33 percent, resulting in significant cost savings.
 
- Green buildings create roughly $1 per square foot of value in increased employment by shifting spending from fossil fuel-based energy to more labor intensive domestic jobs in energy efficiency, renewable construction, and new green industries.  

The list of conclusions includes some that are unexpected – delightfully so. Annual gas savings in walkable communities can be as much as $1,000 per household. Annual health savings (from increased physical activity) can be more than $200 per household. CO2 emissions can be reduced by 10-25 perecnt.

These findings refute the public’s perception that green buildings cost more than conventionally designed buildings. It’s also good news in these tough economic times. “The deep downturn in real estate has not reduced the rapid growth in demand for and construction of green buildings,” said Greg Kats, the study’s lead author. “This suggests a flight to quality as buyers express a market preference for buildings that are more energy efficient, more comfortable and healthier.”

Bahrain World Trade Center

8 important consumer trends for 2008.

The Bahrain World Trade Center is the first commercial building in the world to incorporate large-scale wind turbines within its design to harness wind power. It has three massive wind turbines that measure 29 meters in diameter that are supported on bridges between the BWTC’s two 240 meter high towers. The tower structures themselves help funnel the existing on-shore Gulf breeze that is used to generate greater power efficiency.

Dockside Green in Victoria, British Columbia

Evelyn Lee at Inhabitat describes Dockside Green, the World’s First LEED Platinum Community.

Link: Inhabitat » Dockside Green: The World’s First LEED Platinum Community.

Situated in Victoria, British Columbia, Dockside Green is a burgeoning community that has set its sights on becoming the first LEED Platinum community in the world. Its initial phase of development was recently completed, earning it an incredible 63 out of 70 points and qualifying it for LEED Platinum for New Construction. This is no small undertaking, especially considering the 95 new condo homes, townhomes, and commercial spaces that comprise the planned community. The usual sustainable suspects can be found throughout the property including Biomass gasification (the use of wood-waste to create all heat energy and hot water), improved insulation and high performance glazing, energy-efficient fixtures, on-site waste water treatment plant, green roofs and a naturalized creek.

Dockside Green is situated in the heart of downtown Victoria, British Columbia, on 15 sprawling acres of harbor-front industrial land. The community was made possible thanks to the vision of Windmill West, a development partnership focused on green urban environments, along with the financing of Vancity, Canada’s largest credit union.