HON "Thinks Green"

One of the reasons Absolute Office of Oregon www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com is the newest HON Direct Dealer in Oregon:

In 1947 the corporation began making card files from pieces of scrap metal generated from its contract business. More than fifty years later, The HON Company practices one of the industry's strongest and most comprehensive programs to conserve raw materials and reduce waste. Today, environmental management is firmly embedded in all HON Company manufacturing processes. We define waste as anything that does not bring value to the customer, and life cycle considerations are a significant part of all product development efforts. We believe in the integration of safety into environmental philosophy and policies. To us, safety and environment go hand in hand — our overriding goal is to increase safety at the same time we reduce our impact on the environment. Individual responsibility is a fundamental here, based on the knowledge that we each can impact the environment and workplace safety every day. We strive always to move beyond what we are required to do — to focus on what we are capable of doing. At The HON Company, lean is green. The cellular manufacturing techniques we use across the company bring human scale to process requirements. To work in cells, processes have to be human-friendly. This serves to eliminate harmful solvents and reduce waste, enabling improvement of environmental performance and business performance at the same time — less waste equals less cost. Green is not trendy; it's a part of our culture. It has always been a part of The HON Company's way of doing business.

BALTIX-Sustainable Office Furniture

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Baltix Makes It Easy Being Green. Baltix offers four varieties of panels made from environmentally-friendly materials.
EcoSunflower panels are made from a unique bio-based material created from an abundant agricultural fiber, sunflower seed hulls. The material exhibits the natural elegance of traditional burled woods, making it an environmental and economic alternative to hard wood.
EcoWheat industrial panels make use of the abundant supply of agricultural fiber found on Midwest farms. Biofiber compares favorably to wood in weight, smoothness, and moisture resistence.
Newspaper boards respect the environment by using recycled paper products, a soy-based resin system, and color additives. The material has a unique and elegant appearance combined with the warmth and feel of an exotic hardwood. Finished with a special UV cured process, the panels are totally free of harmful V-O-Cs.
Perma-Poly plastics are made from 98% post-consumer and post-industrial recycled plastic. They are tough and durable, and require NO finish coats, so they will never affect your indoor air quality.
What Makes Our Biocomposites Good For The Environment?
Currently, once the processing for oil is complete, waste Sunflower Hulls are BURNED which creates excessive CO2 and other particulate matter in the atmosphere. Baltix salvages this resource from incineration.
Our raw materials are fully renewable in 6-12 months. Compared to 10 years for "certified forest products".
Not a single tree is cut down in the process of making these panels.
NO Formaldehyde - Most wood composites use a form of formaldehyde in its glues, resins, and laminations. Baltix uses NO FORMALDEHYDE in its products and processes.
The EPA has classified formaldehyde as a B1 probable HUMAN CARCINOGEN. MDF Formaldehyde content .75 ppm*
Our biocomposite panels can be ground down and reprocessed into brand new biocomposites.
Our aluminum can be re-used. In addition, all Baltix aluminum is readily recyclable and is valuable to recyclers.
The process of making our biocomposite panels is environmentally-friendly. The panels are made at a low energy facility, using a low water process. And there are no VOC's generated by the production.
Just a small percentage of waste hulls from one of sunflower farm produces enough raw material to run the EcoSunflower production at full annual capacity. (80,000 TONS ANNUALLY)

PR Store/ Melody comments

“One thing I especially like about John Dean is that he shares with me the same passion for providing great customer service. His vast inventory of office furniture choices is only one benefit that his customers gain against his competition. He provides a wealth of information and real SOLUTIONS for his clients. Whether you need to upgrade your personal home office or your entire company needs outfitting, he works hard to satisfy your needs. Take a look at his eco friendly and ergonomic office furniture solutions! I've proudly recommended John Dean in my own personal network and people have thanked me for it.” October 9, 2008
Melody Stromquist, Marketing Consultant, PRstorewas a consultant or contractor to John at Absolute Office of Oregon
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Customer experience! Chi Omega

Our sorority at University of Oregon recently purchased 23 workstations and chairs from Absolute Office of Oregon for our study room. We sought estimates from a local office furnishings supplier and several internet vendors. We even considered custom wood construction, but none could beat Absolute’s combination of price, quality and service.
John Dean was a total professional in analyzing our requirements in light of our budget. He offered cost-effective alternatives and provided guidance for our decision-making. His recommendations helped us configure our workstations to better fit the space available which allowed us to increase the number of units installed, all within our original budget! Merry Dean made excellent suggestions for work surface and fabric choices which are easy to maintain and attractive.
Throughout the process, John and Merry were always available to answer my questions and make helpful suggestions. Our entire order was installed on time, on budget, to our complete satisfaction. http://www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com/

Judy Messner
President Psi Alpha of Chi Omega Holding Society

Alternative Materials: Wheat Board

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I found this great article today about Sustainable Furniture:

Wheat or straw board is making an important impact in the construction and interior design world. It is made out out of wheat straw, which is an annually renewable resource. It can be painted and stained like wood and can be used for interior applications such as cabinetry, furniture and decorative wall applications.
In addition to the advantages for homeowners, farmers reap big benefits--the new products give them a market for a once-wasted by-product. Today, nearly 60 million acres of wheat are grown, and most of the straw is plowed under or incinerated after the usable portions are removed. It is now being sold to make a fiberboard that is comparable to plywood and can be used in millwork, flooring and furniture. This cuts down on air pollution from burning. The resulting product is inexpensive and readily available wherever there is grain production.
To make the boards, wheat-straw fibers are bound with resin that creates both physical and chemical bonds. The resin uses no formaldehyde, so the finished boards emit no unpleasant fumes. Weighing about 20 percent less than standard particleboard, a board made from wheat straw has a superior ability to hold screws and nails and is more resistant to moisture penetration. The lighter weight also makes it easy to transport.

I'm excited to offer Baltix http://www.baltix.com/ on board to offer not only Wheat Board but Corn, Sunflower, Bamboo and other sustainable materials. www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com

OFFICE FURNITURE BLOG/HON

HON'S NEWEST DIRECT DEALER IN OREGON www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com

Absolute Office of Oregon www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com has just become the HON Company's newest authorized office furniture dealer in Oregon. HON, the market leader in providing small & medium sized businesses professional office furnishings has been designing and manufacturing high quality, durable office chairs, desks, file cabinets & more products for the office for over 60 years. When HON releases new models, we'll be able to bring them to you much sooner than in the past. Learn more about HON office furniture on their web site: http://www.hon.com/ or visit the largest selection of Office Furniture available online @ http://www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com/

Absolute Office of Oregon has added HON !!!

Absolute Office of Oregon www.absoluteofficeofregon.com is excited to become a "Gold" dealer for the HON Company. We have added Hon has our front runner of our product lines. We not only love their quality product, superior customer care, but support the "enviromenatl journey" that HON Company has embraced.

CLEARING THE AIR.In 2006, The HON Company became the world's first office furniture manufacturer to have products certified by the Indoor AdvantageTM program. Virtually all manufactured products emit chemical compounds into the air. Indoor Advantage evaluates these compounds to help improve the air quality within enclosed indoor environments.

Please email or call me with any of your questions. www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com

How does sustainability effect you?

First of all, sustainability is for everyone - not just environmental leaders, but you, your family and friends, your business, your school, your church, even your dog. It doesn't mean you can't buy or use anything ever again. It means considering the impacts of your purchases and choices, and finding lower impact alternatives.
Sustainability combines common sense practices - such as simply turning off lights - with intangible concepts, such as values, business models, and quality of life. It's about long term stewardship in a large scale context, so that our children and great grandchildren can enjoy the same quality of life we have today. It is the essence of "think globally, act locally".
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Sustainable furniture/ Baltix & ecowork*

I have just joined up with Baltix http://www.baltix.com/ and ecowork* http://www.ecowork.com/ to offer some GREAT!!! offiice furniture options that both offer a wide range of Sustainable Furniture options. Check it out.
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Sustainable Office Furniture

Whether It’s Recyclable & What New Products It Makes
Consider buying office furniture that is not only made from recycled materials but is also recyclable in itself. (There is a difference.) An important aspect in determining an office furniture product’s recyclability after its use is the degree to which it was designed for assembly and disassembly, so that the recyclable parts can easily be separated. Sometimes you can also see on the parts themselves whether they are recyclable. If not, you can always check with the manufacturer. Keep in mind that just because your office chair’s parts may be recyclable, it doesn’t always mean that the parts are remade into the same, new office chair. It’s likely that they will be recycled into components of several other products, some of which may be recycled again, others that may not. Finding out whether these end products are recyclable can help you determine the longevity of your sustainable office product. Absolute Office of Oregon www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com has many options when it comes to Sustainable Office Furniture.

Introduction to Absolute Office of Oregon

Absolute Office of Oregon www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com is a small, women-owned office furniture company designed to meet all your office furniture needs, no matter the size of your space. We'll take the time to listen to your needs and ideas. We specialize in finding creative, functional ways to make the most of limited space. And we pride ourselves in providing a personal touch to every client we serve.Our Extensive Product Line. We have developed relationships with vendors that offer the best combination of value, variety and quality products. These include a wide range of products that cater to all styles and budgets as well as ergonomic and recycled/refurbished options. See our complete product line. Check out our website @ http://www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com/
The owner Merry Mabbett Dean and her husband John Dean have over 45 combine years in the residential and commercial furniture industry. John is the VP of Sales and has 15 years experience in the service side of the industry, with 3 years in sales. He has a passion for Customer Service. He listens to the wants and needs of his clients and finds combination of ways to find the right fit and price point to furnish their space. Merry has been not only a Interior Designer for over 30 years but taught Business Practices for Interior Design and Color Theory classes at a major college. Merry and John enjoy the challenge of getting a project from the beginning stages and following throughout and beyond completion of the project.

I'm excited about my blog space and look forward helping and researching any questions that you might have...Bring the questions on!!!!

Hey We're Up and Blogging!

This is my first blog. Stay tuned. www.absoluteofficeoforegon.com