Reasons Why Furniture Reupholstery Helps Promote Sustainability

Most of the upholstered furniture currently being manufactured in Australia is constructed in a time consuming, labour-intensive way using a multitude of components. The complexity of construction and difficulty in separating individual components makes this style of furniture impossible to recycle. End of life (EOL) is often when the fabric wears, becomes soiled, or the owner follows the next fashion trend and the whole piece is then sent to landfill. It is generally more expensive to remove the cover to re-upholster than it is to start from new, because of the labour costs. However, there is a greater matter at hand that must be dealt with – sustainability. And furniture reupholstery is the best way to shed light in this matter. Below are reasons why furniture reupholstery helps promote sustainability.

Furniture Reupholstery Decreases Waste in Landfills

Every year there is more and more furniture on roadsides, put out for collection, to end up as landfill. In this decade of sustainability where the global demand to stop wasting natural resources and to reduce pollution is greater than ever before, the Fellow believes that this is inexcusable and the trend must be halted. By introducing skills to the local industry that will enable them to produce better quality, longer lasting furniture and covers that can be laundered or replaced, we will not only help them be more competitive on the global market but we will also be reducing the energy used to manufacture ‘disposable’ furniture.

Furniture Reupholstery Saves Resources for Production

Luckily, re-upholstery has not just become an emerging trend, experts are starting to realise that it makes environmental sense too. Sustainable design shouldn’t be a subcategory of furniture design but an integral part of it. By extending the life of furniture through re-upholstering, you extend the life of the product. This means that you minimise both the need for additional resources to manufacture new furniture and also the energy involved in manufacturing new products.

This idea lies at the heart of an increasingly popular philosophy: circular economy thinking. This is when designers and manufacturers “seek to extend a product’s life by designing it so that it can be re-manufactured at the end of its ‘first life’ and then resold or reused.

Re-upholstery of old couches comes out as a top way to produce something new out of something old with a minimal carbon footprint. And yet, currently only a shocking 17 per cent of old sofas are being re-used. This is often because people cut off unsightly fire labels (they cannot then be legally resold) but it is often because the general public is unaware of the environmental benefits of “upcycling” – also known as “creative reuse.” This is due to all the embedded energy that exists in the sofa. It also saves on the resources that go into the production of a new one.

We, at Absolute Upholstery can definitely assist you with the upholstery of your antique furniture. We are proud of our fantastic reputation for top quality work and great service for all your upholstery needs and preferences. When you have the right upholstery design and quality, mixing and matching your sofa cushions will not be a difficult task, and it will be something that you’ll truly enjoy.

Optimized by: Netwizard SEO