Keilhauer’s sustainability efforts continue to expand in its goal to be environmentally benign, socially progressive and economically successful.
Last week, working with Partners in Project Green and The Repair Café, Keilhauer was able to remove 34 old and broken sewing machines from its production facility, all of which were dismantled and recycled, achieving the following results:
• 12 skids (6,600 pounds) of material were diverted from landfill and taken to off-site recyclers
• The proceeds from selling the scrap metal, over $600, were donated to The Repair Café, Toronto
In order to accomplish this, 12 volunteers from The Repair Café, along with Partners in Project Green, directed and assisted by Keilhauer staff, dismantled and meticulously separated the materials into these categories:
1. Motor, machine, and metal table base – all taken to a metal recycler
2. Wood table top – recycled on site
3. Plastic, paper, and fabric components – recycled on site
According to Amandine Johnson, sustainability coordinator, Keilhauer, “This event has truly highlighted the importance of working together to harness the rich skill-sets within our community to provide solutions with lasting sustainable effects. Over the years, these machines have been picked clean of their useable parts, in order to repair our current fleet, and were no longer usable. By disassembling the main components, we were able to separate not only the metals, by type, and retain a higher yield, but also recycle the plastic and fiber parts and dispose the machine oil safely, rather than letting it seep into the landfill.”
ALL ABOUT KIELHAUER
Keilhauer offers a complete range of seating and tables to accommodate all types of meetings – from private, formal conference rooms, to lounge areas in public spaces, to casual chats around a coffee table. Designed by world-renowned furniture designers with scrupulous attention to detail, Keilhauer products are engineered and manufactured out of its two Toronto, Ontario facilities and are built for long life, with a conscientious focus on environmental design principles.
For more info, visit http://www.keilhauer.com/home.html
ALL ABOUT PARTNERS IN PROJECT GREEN
By providing critical knowledge, effective programs, and access to a community of like-minded peers, Partners in Project Green helps businesses in the Pearson Eco-Business Zone unlock collaborative advantage and extract maximum value from pursuing sustainability excellence in the areas of energy performance, waste management, water stewardship and stakeholder engagement.
For more info, visit http://www.partnersinprojectgreen.com/
ALL ABOUT THE REPAIR CAFÉ TORONTO
Repair Café Toronto was founded by a small group of citizens in Toronto who support the repair movement started by Repair Café Foundation in Amsterdam. The aim of the organization is to build a more sustainable society and counter the throwaway mindset by matching volunteer “fixers” with visitors who learn to repair items for free. Repair Café Toronto launched its first repair café in May 2013.
For more info, visit http://repaircafetoronto.ca/