Join Schroders - sign up for Steelcase’s Green Scheme

Steelcase has just signed up global asset management company, Schroders, for the first of many fit-out projects that will see corporate clients ensuring the re-use of old office furniture within the charity and community sectors.

Rather than paying to have old office equipment taken to the dump, Steelcase encourages customers to sign up to a re-use scheme, which it operates in partnership with registered charity and social enterprise Green-Works.

There is a cost to the service but re-use still makes economic sense. Although landfill costs in the UK have traditionally been low, landfill tax has been subject to an increase of £3 per tonne per years since 2002 and Defra has state that landfill tax will increase to around £35 per tonne in the next 4 years. This is a significant increase in waste disposal costs for businesses and local authorities.

Mark Spragg, Managing Director of Steelcase UK, said: “Global corporates like Schroders are exactly the kind of client that we want to influence with this initiative. They have the potential to make the greatest impact, not just through the size of the projects but by acting as trailblazers in the industry to encourage others to sign up.”

By signing up to the Steelcase-Green-Works reuse scheme Schroders allowed its old furniture to be distributed to a number of organisations including St Mark’s Church and Community Centre in South Newham, the community based Belfast Arts centre ‘Arts for All’, Atlee Youth and Community centre in Spitalfields and Transform Newham.

List of office furniture Green-Works will collect

Green-Works will collect the following items:

• All types of chairs including break out, reception, canteen and meeting room chairs
• All types of desks
• Filing cabinets
• Tambours (storage cabinet with flexible or roller door)
• Cupboards
• Pedestals (under or side of desk storage unit)
• Meeting, printer, round and canteen tables
• File or plan chests
• Bookcases
• Mobile and desk screens
• Magazine racks
• Coat racks and stands        
• Notice, white boards and flipcharts
• Safes
• Electrical equipment e.g. printers, laminators, fans, heaters, faxes etc.
• Fire extinguishers
• Pictures, paintings and plants
• In-trays, desk tidies and bins
• Suspension files, ring binders and stationery

Green-Works won’t collect:

• Bags of rubbish
• IT equipment (details of charities who do this can be supplied)
• Fridges ,TV’s and CRT monitors (old style computer screens)

Remember Green-Works will collect regardless of condition or age and guarantee that none goes to landfill. If you are unsure of anything please contact Green-Works on 0845 230 2 231.