As part of what he calls a "cradle to cradle" strategy, Jim Ecclestone, president of funiture manufacturer
Calstone Inc in Scarborough, has implemented a zero-waste strategy to take back and reuse all of the products it manufactures.
"Every day in the paper you read about global warming," Ecclestone says, "and I had to start thinking about the kind of company we'd be in 25 years," when his children are in charge, he says. A manufacturer of institutional furniture, Calstone has been in business since the mid-1980s. Recently, however, its drive to sustainability was spurred on when York University asked the company to take back some of the (still perfectly usable) furniture it had purchased due to a renovation. "We looked at it and turned it apart and it was as good as new -- we were able to reuse about 80 per cent of it in brand new products," he says.
That led to the current initiative, which pledges that
0 per cent of Calstone's products will end up in landfill. The company will take back every product it sells (paying a $15-per-item fee) and reuse all elements of the product. It's part of a larger strategy that includes recycling rainwater, a heat exchange system, and a living wall. Ecclestone says the company hopes to reach a zero emissions target for its factory soon.
The sustainable growth isn't just good citizenship, of course. Ecclestone says that in reusing perfectly sound materials he's able to save on manufacturing costs. And besides that, his company's green credentials make their products all the more attractive to potential buyers. A new contract to supply all of Pitney-Bowes' furniture, for example, can be partly attributed to sustainability. The company reached a low of 28 employees after the financial crisis of 2008, but saw employment grow by eight staff members last year. Ecclestone expects to hire significantly more employees in 2010.
"Trying to put a dollar value on what green initiatives have given us -- it's a little early," he says. "But all signs are that it's a big positive for business."
Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Jim Ecclestone, President, Calstone Inc.
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