5.5.11 | Holland, MI | Contract furniture just got a little greener. TrendWall, a cornerstone architectural product made by Trendway, breaks new ground by becoming the industry's first product to achieve CarbonNeutral status. This new certification elevates the impact that the inherently sustainable, moveable walls can have on green design: In becoming CarbonNeutral, TrendWall is that much more enticing for architects, designers and facility managers seeking workplace solutions that support the triple bottom line.

"We're pleased to strengthen our sustainable efforts with TrendWall's Certified CarbonNeutral status," commends Trendway Director of Architectural Products Nathan Lowery. "In addition to reducing waste and consumption of fossil fuels, our environmental commitment now extends to global air quality through our involvement with The CarbonNeutral Company. I'm excited for Trendway to take this next step." Mark LaCroix, Executive Vice President of Business Development at The CarbonNeutral Company, concurs, "In becoming CarbonNeutral, TrendWall sets the benchmark for office furniture products. Taking this leadership role will only spark the industry to strengthen sustainability initiatives. Trendway further positions CarbonNeutral in the forefront of minds and manufacturing practices."

CarbonNeutral products, CarbonNeutral company.

With TrendWall's new status comes Trendway's equally significant certification as a CarbonNeutral company from The CarbonNeutral Company, the world-leading provider of carbon reduction solutions.Trendway is certified in accordance with The CarbonNeutral Protocol, the global standard for carbon neutral certification, enabling a business to measure and reduce carbon emissions to net zero. For Trendway, this means investing in high quality, highly transparent carbon reduction projects across the globe that focus on CO2 (and its equivalent greenhouse gases) capture or reduction.

Carbon offsetting at home and globally.

To offset its unavoidable carbon emissions, Trendway has invested in four projects focusing on both methane capture and wind generation: McKinney Landfill Gas Project in Dallas, Texas; Fredericton Landfill Gas Project in New Brunswick, Canada; and the Tieling Coal Mine Methane Capture and the Hebei Province 34.5 MW Wind Power Project, both in China. Through these initiatives, Trendway will earn guaranteed, verified carbon offsets that will reduce the company's carbon footprint to net zero. To best describe Trendway's involvement in these projects, Lowery uses The CarbonNeutral Company's parallel of at-home recycling, "As consumers, we facilitate the recycling process by sorting recyclables into bins and rely on waste management companies to then actually recycle the materials. Likewise, Trendway is facilitating the reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions by investing in projects that offset our carbon footprint in other parts of the world. Only with such funding will these important, innovative technologies be developed and viable."

Lowery adds that, while projects will change over time, Trendway's goal will remain consistent: to lower its greenhouse balance sheet by managing emissions caused by its own factory manufacturing and fleet fuel consumption, while simultaneously reducing unavoidable emissions through offsetting projects like the four identified above. "As our carbon footprint decreases, so does the amount of credits we need to offset it - there's a real financial incentive to improve," emphasizes Trendway President and CEO Bill Bundy. "We're motivated to not only uphold our own high standards of sustainability but become a continual partner in net zero carbon emissions."

A Green Celebration - and CEU.

To commemorate its CarbonNeutral status, Trendway is declaring June 14 Green Tuesday in its Chicago showroom. The celebration begins with lunch on its lush deck from 12-2pm, followed by a BIFMA e3 Furniture Sustainability Standard CEU from 2-3pm and culminating in a Green Celebration from 3-5pm showcasing menu selections, beer and wine from sustainable suppliers.

A look at the BIFMA e3 Standard.

Led by Lowery, a BIFMA-certified level™ faculty member and LEED™AP, the learning session

presents the BIFMA e3 Furniture Sustainability Standard's scope, structure, elements and prerequisites. "Trendway's independent projects like CarbonNeutral, VOC reduction, SCS Indoor Advantage™ and internal energy savings are all reflected in, and captured by, this Sustainability Standard," notes Lowery. "It's the umbrella framework for environmental efforts at multiple levels of our organization."

Targeted at audiences ranging from architects and designers to facility managers and field sales to end users, the CEU addresses the issue of sustainability claims and how the Sustainability Standard charts the course of sustainability through measurable criteria for multiple levels of achievement and/or performance. Following the presentation, Lowery will be joined by LaCroix and Bundy, who will give personal showroom tours and product demonstrations.