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Sauder wins Sage Award for eco-friendly practices

Heath E Combs -- Furniture Today, November 16, 2011

Sauder President and CEO Kevin Sauder, right, accepts the 2011 Sage Award from Kelsey Ness, left, of Cargill and Pat Bowling of the American Home Furnishings Alliance.ARCHBOLD, Ohio - Sauder Woodworking has won this year's Sage Award for environmental excellence in the furniture industry.
     Other finalists for the award, sponsored by the American Home Furnishings Alliance and Cargill's BiOH business and presented during the High Point Market, were Crypton Super Fabrics and Leggett & Platt Consumer Products.
     "The judges lauded this year's winner for their transparency and for sustainability goals that permeate the company, impacting both operations and products. They received high marks for using unbiased metrics to measure and track their progress," said Andy Counts, CEO of the AHFA.
     "Importantly, in an industry where high-end product has dominated the eco-friendly spotlight, this company brings a sound eco-friendly spotlight to the masses," he added.
     Sauder is a 77-year-old, family-run operation with nearly $450 million in annual sales and more than 2,000 employees in about 5 million square feet of manufacturing space.
     Kevin Sauder, president and CEO of the ready-to-assemble furniture source, said environmental stewardship "is part of the fabric of our company. We're a third-generation family business. Frugal Mennonites from way back, so we never wanted to waste anything."
     Sauder was lauded for its efforts in wood-fired cogeneration, which produces heat and power, consuming an average of 250 tons of wood waste a day. This year, the company invested $1.5 million to convert the lighting in 4 million square feet of space to energy efficient fluorescent fixtures, and $1.7 million to install new technology on 22 dust collection systems. The moves are expected to reduce Sauder's carbon footprint by an additional 27%.
     Additionally, all coatings and adhesives Sauder uses are either water-based or are 100% solids, the AHFA said.
Sauder received a $2,500 award to be donated to the environmental organization of its choice.

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