Heartland Table Sustainable Furniture by Fred Sparks |
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| DESIGN DETAILS | |||||
| DESIGN NAME: Heartland Table PRIMARY FUNCTION: Sustainable Furniture INSPIRATION: Making nice things that leave a minimal impact on the environment. UNIQUE PROPERTIES / PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The Heartland Table is a multipurpose heirloom quality piece of furniture. It was designed with a modern aesthetic and with sustainable manufacturing processes at the heart of its essence. It’s aptly named as its design, materials, and manufacturing all occurs in the Midwest, USA. OPERATION / FLOW / INTERACTION: We used our proprietary sustainable design strategies, as well as Sustainable Minds software, to help our Client find the most sustainable production options for their product offerings. The process used revealed that 25 pounds of the reclaimed urban lumber had a 99 percent smaller carbon footprint at manufacture compared to the same amount of standard-practice sourced lumber. This assumes the average approximate 35 year product life for heirloom modern furniture. Additionally, the Heartland Table with wooden legs has a 97 percent smaller carbon footprint at manufacture when compared to the standard wood sourcing process. In order to reduce our Client’s carbon footprint, we chose an “X” design for the foundation of the table because it reduces the material used compared to the standard box frame for a table. This “X” frame design not only benefits the environment and consumer, but the manufacturer as well. The “X” frame requires only 140 inches wood compared to 186 inches for a standard table frame. This extra 46 inches of material cuts directly into the bottom line. With the new design, the manufacturer cuts its costs on each product made. PROJECT DURATION AND LOCATION: June 2012 St. Louis (USA) - December 2012 St. Louis (USA) FITS BEST INTO CATEGORY: Furniture Design |
PRODUCTION / REALIZATION TECHNOLOGY: The Heartland Table is manufactured using urban reclaimed lumber as opposed to standard lumber sourcing. Urban reclaimed lumber is wood from trees in urban settings that are diseased, a nuisance, or that have fallen. This wood typically left to the incinerator or landfill, is instead reclaimed and finished. We used our proprietary sustainable design strategies, as well as Sustainable Minds software, to help our Client find the most sustainable production options for their product offerings. The process used revealed that 25 pounds of the reclaimed urban lumber had a 99 percent smaller carbon footprint at manufacture compared to the same amount of standard-practice sourced lumber. This assumes the average approximate 35 year product life for heirloom modern furniture. Additionally, the Heartland Table with wooden legs has a 97 percent smaller carbon footprint at manufacture when compared to the standard wood sourcing process. In order to reduce our Client’s carbon footprint, we chose an “X” design for the foundation of the table because it reduces the material used compared to the standard box frame for a table. This “X” frame design not only benefits the environment and consumer, but the manufacturer as well. The “X” frame requires only 140 inches wood compared to 186 inches for a standard table frame. This extra 46 inches of material cuts directly into the bottom line. With the new design, the manufacturer cuts its costs on each product made. The “X” frame creates a lighter visual underneath the table. Coupled with the clean lines and pop of color it creates a modern but approachable appearance that is very versatile and fits into many spaces. We were able to design the table with mass production in mind, minimizing costs and using materials and processes that make manufacturing simple. At the same time each table has a unique aesthetic due to its urban wood top, giving an individual feel to each table. SPECIFICATIONS / TECHNICAL PROPERTIES: legs and rail flush with table top • 38mm reclaimed hardwood top • recycled steel or reclaimed hardwood base • 762mm high with leveling glides • power/ data options available • zero VOC water based finishes 914mm x 1829mm (Seats 6) - 914mm x 2133mm (Seats 8) - 914mm x 2438mm (Seats 8) TAGS: heartland table, fredsparks, iconmodern, sustainable design, saint louis RESEARCH ABSTRACT: We used our proprietary sustainable design strategies, as well as Sustainable Minds software, to help our Client find the most sustainable production options for their product offerings. The process used revealed that 25 pounds of the reclaimed urban lumber had a 99 percent smaller carbon footprint at manufacture compared to the same amount of standard-practice sourced lumber. This assumes the average approximate 35 year product life for heirloom modern furniture. Additionally, the Heartland Table with wooden legs has a 97 percent smaller carbon footprint at manufacture when compared to the standard wood sourcing process. In order to reduce our Client’s carbon footprint, we chose an “X” design for the foundation of the table because it reduces the material used compared to the standard box frame for a table. This “X” frame design not only benefits the environment and consumer, but the manufacturer as well. The “X” frame requires only 140 inches wood compared to 186 inches for a standard table frame. This extra 46 inches of material cuts directly into the bottom line. With the new design, the manufacturer cuts its costs on each product made. CHALLENGE: The challenge presented was to develop a piece of furniture utilizing sustainable manufacturing practices that could be measured and validated. No green-washing here! The client furniture company was already manufacturing for corporate clients like Whole Foods and Starbucks, but wanted to expand their offerings to include pieces that could bridge the gap between corporate and private consumers. ADDED DATE: 2013-02-26 12:11:49 TEAM MEMBERS (1) : Ken Harris, Aaron Brookhart, Brandon Hefer, Justin Snell, Kent Ritzel IMAGE CREDITS: Fred Sparks, 2012. |
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| Visit the following page to learn more: http://www.fredsparks.com | |||||
| CLIENT/STUDIO/BRAND DETAILS | |
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NAME: Icon Modern PROFILE: Explained simply, Icon Modern takes pride in saving trees from your fireplace; they actively seek local hardwoods and turn them into beautiful furniture. Icon Modern's products are manufactured using urban lumber, harvested exclusively in and around the city of Chicago, USA. These trees may have died naturally from disease or storm damage, or possibly were removed for construction or safety reasons. Instead of being used for firewood or chipped for landfill, Icon Modern reclaim the raw material to create a bold statement of both design and resourcefulness. Because every tree is different, every piece of furniture Icon Modern makes will be unique in both its past and future life. They embrace the character and beauty of reclaimed hardwoods. |
| AWARD DETAILS | |
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Heartland Table Sustainable Furniture by Fred Sparks is Winner in Furniture Design Category, 2012 - 2013.· Press Members: Login or Register to request an exclusive interview with Fred Sparks. · Click here to register inorder to view the profile and other works by Fred Sparks. |
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