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Climate and environmental protection

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Business activity in harmony with nature. We are committed to protecting our environment. That is why we are careful to avoid any harmful impact on nature or humans that could result from the manufacture, use or disposal of our products.

Environmentally responsible production.
During every design and production phase, we consider the possible repercussions for humans and the environment and minimize these as far as we possibly can.

  • For more than 20 years, we have been using environmentally friendly, water-based paints. 
  • All our materials made from wood or wood-based materials carry the "PEFC certified" label.
  • We manufacture long-lived products and always consider environmental aspects when choosing our materials. Most of our products can be recycled.

Saving resources.
We adopt a full lifecycle approach when considering our materials. In this way, we make sure that products can be reintegrated in the material cycle. When using our raw materials, we make sure that we reduce offcuts and waste to a minimum. Any offcuts are re-used.

  • We use state-of-the-art powder coating systems with high recovery levels. 
  • For our high-quality LIGNOdur table tops, we use only wood chips from regional forests. These chips are generated as waste in other businesses and then purchased by us. Lignodur table tops are therefore an environmentally friendly upcycling product. 
  • We use chipboard residue from our own production operations to generate the heat needed for our processes and to heat our factory and office spaces. 
  • Any steel tube offcuts and metal waste is recycled. What is more, we have developed a return concept for old furniture with tubular steel frames.
  • Plastic furniture parts – such as the seats and backrests of our LuPo seats or our Hokki stool – are manufactured from polypropylene. Polypropylene is not only extremely tough and long-lived but is also fully recyclable. 
  • We employ reusable packaging for the packaging and transportation of our furniture.
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Energy-efficient activity.
We take care not to use any more energy than we actually need, to use highly efficient power generators and to make use of renewable energies.

  • 90 percent of our wood waste is burned in emission-tested waste wood combustion systems. We use the resulting energy for process heat and to meet our heating requirements. 
  • Since 2001, we have generated electricity from the photovoltaic systems installed on our factory roofs. These have a total peak capacity of 950 kilowatts (kWp). Nevertheless, the annual contribution of these systems is dependent on the number of hours of sunlight. 
  • In 2012, we installed a district heating connection, which has allowed us to further reduce our gas requirements for generating process heat. This pipe runs for 650 meters from the generating plant (boiler room) to the consumer locations (space heating in plants 3, 4 and 6). 
  • In 2015, we commissioned a gas-fired cogeneration system with a capacity of 841 KW. The system covers 40 percent of VS's total electricity consumption. The heat energy is used in the washing plant of the powder coating system and also meets three quarters of the heating requirements of the southern plants and buildings, including the staff facilities.

Preserving a natural living space
We adopt an environmentally friendly approach to ensuring that our factory site is friendly and welcoming.

  • We replant free areas with indigenous tree species.
  • On our site, we run a market garden which is managed along organic lines and supplies the company canteen. Once a week, employees can purchase fruit and vegetables for their private consumption.
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