Are you embarking on a new office fit out or refurb project and wondering what to do with your unwanted office furniture? It can sometimes feel like a bit of a stumbling block.
You might think organising a removals vans to the skip is the best way to dispose of an office chair (for example) but there are actually a whole host of other more eco-friendly and cost-effective options…
Donate office furniture to charity
One of the most rewarding methods of office furniture removal and disposal is to donate it.
Whether it’s to a charity, non-profit organisation or another business who might need it, handing your unwanted furniture down is beneficial for both you and the receptor.
Why re-home?
- Extend the life of the furniture
- Reduce waste going into landfill
- Provide opportunities for those who may otherwise not be able to access them
- Help support valuable charity work
Sell it on to somebody else
While the sentiment of donation is invaluable, if this just isn’t something you can afford to do then selling unwanted furniture is another great option.
The benefits:
- You will be able to recoup some of the money you initially invested
- Give start-ups or small businesses the chance to benefit from products at a more affordable price
- More eco-friendly as it helps reduce material waste
Recycle or repurpose old furniture
Another effective way to save costs and reduce negative impact on the environment is to find a way to reuse at least some of your existing furniture.
Doing this will enable you to get more out of the products you have already invested money into, while still bringing them up to date with modern requirements and/or aesthetics.
Tips for upcycling commercial furniture:
- Get soft seating or task chairs reupholstered with a new fabric
- Replace worn or outdated table tops where the frames are still in good condition
- Replace desk dividers to give the work setting a refreshed look
- Reconfigure modular furniture and/or storage to update visual impact or fulfill a new function
Steelcase Eco Services:
As an authorised Steelcase partner, we are able to offer our clients access to its forward-thinking Eco Services.
Steelcase Eco Services is a unique way to evacuate unwanted furniture and contributes towards the company’s ‘Zero Landfill‘ goals.
It is a turnkey solution which takes the hassle of furniture disposal away from the customer, while still providing them with full traceability whether the items are resold, recycled or donated.
Your furniture inventory will be expertly evaluated (with your input) and then dealt with accordingly on your behalf.
Assess & Reuse Audit:
Before you can think about selling, recycling, donating or repurposing office furniture though, you first need to work out if there is any that can be kept.
If a piece of furniture is functional, in good condition and transitions seamlessly into your new workspace design then there really isn’t any reason why you should dispose of it or adapt it in anyway.
As part of our value-added services, we can also run an Assess & Reuse Audit on a client’s existing furniture to identify which products fall in which category.
Why do this?
- Less unnecessary waste
- More environmentally responsible
- More cost-effective use of budget
- Extend the life of the furniture
Of course, if you’re looking to completely refresh your portfolio of products with brand new furniture, that’s absolutely fine – simply go about removing your unwanted items using any of the methods recommended above.