Modern Furniture

“We believe that sustainability and commercial success should co-exist in a mutually beneficial relationship.” -- From Herman Miller’s 2007
A Better World Report

Environmental Visionary

In the early 1950s, Herman Miller founder D.J. DePree included in a statement of corporate values that Herman Miller “will be a good corporate neighbor by being a good steward of the environment.” Considering that this was well before the “green” concept, DePree’s visionary beliefs such as placing windows in all company buildings, to let in natural light and specifying that 50 percent of any Herman Miller corporate site be set aside as “green space,” were truly advanced. Over the years, Herman Miller has further cultivated these ideas. Today, Herman Miller believes that living with integrity and respecting the environment still remain part of their core values. Throughout the years, Herman Miller’s business decisions have been constantly guided by a sense of responsibility to the environment, to those who will live in it and those who will follow.

Environmental Perspective

The Herman Miller Board of Directors takes its commitment to environmental and social initiatives seriously, and they review their performance on these initiatives every year. In 2004, Herman Miller established a new environmental mandate in accord with their PerfectVision program. The initiative set a target date for 2020 to meet various sustainability goals. For 2007, Herman Miller saw significant progress towards these goals in regards to process water use, cutting the volume of solid waste, renewable energy, reductions in energy use, and have earned LEED certification for their Atlanta National Design Center (Gold CI) and Zeeland Main Site IT North Building. While there is still plenty of work to be done in reaching their 2020 sustainability goals, Herman Miller met their overall footprint reduction goal – 10 percent improvement over fiscal 2006 by reducing water use, increasing the percentage of renewable energy they purchase, and reducing waste they sent to the landfill.

Design for the Environment

Today, Herman Miller is focused on incorporating more environmentally sustainable materials, features, and manufacturing processes into their new product designs. Their Design for the Environment (DfE) Team, a committee of EQAT, develops environmentally sensitive design standards for new and existing products. Joining Caper®, Mirra® and Celle®, Foray Seating has achieved Cradle to Cradle protocol certification. Along with this certification, Herman Miller’s major lines of systems furniture, office seating products, and filing and storage have earned Green Guard Indoor Air Quality Certification for low emitting products.

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