Sustainable Building Technical Manual - Etn-presco.net

– Tropical hardwoods are common in office furniture, both as solid components andveneers. Rare woods such as rosewood, teak, and ebony are becoming scarce, andextracting them can contribute to forest degradation. To find well-managed sourcesof tropical hardwoods, refer to the guides listed in the “Resources” section below.Some conscientious furniture manufacturers offer substitute woods that are moreenvironmentally and economically sustainable.– Manufactured hardwoods are another option. These are typically northern hardwoodsthat have been dyed and machined to create beautiful and unique wood finishes.– Upholstery foams used in chairs are generally high-density urethane products. These wereonce manufactured with ozone-depleting CFCs, but are now made with less-depletingHCFCs. HCFCs are also due to be phased out from upholstery-foam manufacture in 1996.❑ Health and pollution issues– The main air-pollution potential associated with furniture is from glue-bonded woodproducts, soft plastics, fabric treatments, and finishes. Some furniture manufacturers provideemissions data for their products.– Fabric coverings, foam fillings, and fabric-coated acoustic panels are dust collectors andadsorb odors; clean them regularly to minimize these problems (see Chapter 22,“Housekeeping and Custodial Practices”).– Metal-coating systems and wood finishes are important environmental issues associatedwith furniture. “Powder-coated” metal finishes are a substitute for painting and plating.The process involves applying dry powder polymers to metal and fusing them with heat.Powder-coated finishes are harder than many paints and can actually rival plating fordurability. For woods, factory-applied and -cured coatings such as urethanes have minimalemissions, and the factory can capture the resulting dust and recycle solvent.I➜ R E S O U R C E SIAmerican Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment. Environmental ResourceG u i d e. Washington, D.C.: American Institute of Architects, 1992. A large and thoroughreference work on design and conservation. The guide includes substantial backgroundinformation on generic materials but no specific materials listings and issupplemented periodically.American Recycling Market. The Official Recycled Products Guide. Ogdensburg, N.Y.:American Recycling Market. A substantial listing of industrial and construction productswith recycled content that is updated periodically.Center for Resourceful Building Technology. The Guide to Resource Efficient BuildingElements. Missoula, Mont.: Center for Resourceful Building Technology. The originallisting of resource-efficient construction products and those with recycled content.The guide is updated and revised periodically.Harris, B. J. The Harris Directory 1993–1995. Seattle, Wash.: Stafford-Harris, 1993. A comprehensivedatabase of construction materials with recycled content for Macintoshcomputers. It is updated yearly.Iris Communications. The REDI (Resources for Environmental Design Index) Guide. Eugene,Ore.: Iris Communications, 1994. A database (for Windows or Macintosh) of constructionmaterials with recycled content, resource-efficient products, and sustainablymanaged wood sources.Leclair, K., and D. Rousseau. Environmental by Design, Professional Edition. Vancouver:Leclair/Rousseau, 1994. A guide to specific products for interiors, including thermalinsulations. Product reviews are graphic and easy to understand. The book containsreadable background information and is updated twice annually.Tree Talk. Woods of the World Database. Burlington, Vt.: Tree Talk, 1995. A sophisticatedand comprehensive guide to woods available on CD ROM with graphics or in simplifiedformat on diskettes.