On 1 September, Herman Miller announced a change that heralds the beginning of a new era. The leading global office furniture provider is incorporating ocean-bound plastic across its entire portfolio of Aeron Chairs. First in line is Aeron in a new colour, Onyx Ultra Matte, which contains 2.5 pounds (1.13 kg) of ocean-bound plastic. Herman Miller predicts that the material change will prevent 150 tons of plastic from reaching the ocean each year – the equivalent of 15 million single-use plastic bottles.
Ocean-bound plastic is what’s called ‘mismanaged waste.’ That is, waste found within 50 km of a coastline; waste that’s not being collected, and that’s unlikely to be collected. Including (but is not limited to) bottle tops, fishing equipment, plastic bottles and jugs, this waste will eventually find its way to the oceans, bringing another 8 million metric tons of plastic into marine environments that contain 150 million metric tons of plastic. Our oceans support 80 percent of the planet’s biodiversity. They are critical to climate regulation, weather control and humanity’s survival – meaning that fast, significant change vital.
Herman Miller’s updates to Aeron could not have come at a better time, then. They are part of the brand’s partnership with NextWave Plastics, an open-source initiative bringing multinational technology and consumer brands together with a common goal. Their mission is to drastically – and rapidly – reduce the amount of plastic litter reaching the world’s waterways by developing the first global network of ocean-bound plastic supply chains.
Herman Miller is a founding member of NextWave, and together, they are working to create a complete plastic supply chain ecosystem in countries like India and Indonesia. In doing so, Herman Miller and NextWave are creating environmental impact by diverting mismanaged plastic away from the seas and oceans of the world.
They are also creating social and economic impact by turning plastic waste into a commodity. This creates livelihoods for those living in coastal locations across India and Indonesia, among others. When plastic waste builds up in, suppliers work with local pickers to collect the plastic. Once collected, the material is ground, washed and pelletised. From there, it’s sold to manufacturers who test and re-engineer the plastic so that it can be incorporated into the manufacturing process for products such as the Aeron Chair.
Aeron is not the only Herman Miller product to be made using ocean-bound plastic. Already in production are OE1 accessories and the Revenio textile collection. Herman Miller has also partnered with suppliers to incorporate ocean-bound plastic into packaging solutions. All in, the brand’s initiatives form a powerful combination. The brand is set to prevent a total of 234 metric tons of plastic from entering our waterways annually (that’s equivalent to 13 million single-use water bottles each year). The brand also plans to increase recycled content in its products ¬– including ocean-bound plastics – by 50 percent by 2030.
Aeron’s new Onyx Ultra Matte colourway will be available to order in India from November 2021. All Aeron colours and configurations are being updated to contain ocean-bound plastic.
For more information, please visit www.hermanmiller.in, or reach out to the company on 1800 1212 114 or India_Custcare@hermanmiller.com
Related links:
www. hermanmiller.in/aeron
www.hermanmiller.in/sustainability
www.hermanmiller.in/ocean-bound-plastic
www.nextwaveplastics.org