Sustainability

Vital Office is sustainable:

Vital Office traditionally relies on timeless quality products, especially tops, which ergonomically supported because working people, contribute to the overall health and generate a sustainable, versatile working environment.

Office furniture

Vital Office are set to change. A few intelligent table shapes allow diverse workgroup and spatial concepts.

Sustainability

Vital Office starts already in the design of intelligent multi-functional table forms, which support the changes in a constantly changing world of work. And ensure long term - long term - the flexibility the company, which it needs in the competition.

Already in the 1990s we developed for high-quality, long-lasting and pure ecological tabletops. Optimized the production process the vital Office tops are a cost-effective alternative to the usual and less sustainable composite material panels chipboard and Kunststoffumleimer today.

Ecology and tops made of solid wood

Flexible, long-lasting forms of intelligent table justify also investing in solid wood worktops. Since 2005, we are working on improving our technical equipment and can offer today, efficient and ecologically sustainable produced solid wood panels. Alternatively we offer an oiled or ecologically water-painted surface. A particularly environmentally friendly and at the same time attractive variant is the solid wood panels made of bamboo, which has already taken her grateful lovers in many small and large Office projects.

Health and the environment belong together.

Vital Office stands not only for a healthy Office environment, but also for sustainable, resource-saving and material-roofed manufacturing.

We are committed to do so, to protect our environment and to offer our customers responsibly designed and produced products.

What does sustainability mean for Office furniture?

The definition is very extensive. Basically between ecological, economic and social sustainability. However, from the definitions, is a core message filter. Sustainability describes a system that promotes forward-looking development of human existence.

So, the ecological pole GmbH on behalf of the Federal Association for environmental consultancy has a study¹ were created, formulated in the concrete criteria for the sustainability of office furniture. Specially for Office furniture means sustainably:

1. Resource-saving and low-emission production

2. Longevity

3. Emissions during the use

4. Repair capacity and upgradeability

5. Recycling after use and harmless disposal

Starting from this independent study for sustainable office furniture we adopt here specifically to - what is demanded in this study and how is this achieved by vital Office:

1. Resources-saving and low-emission production

   Subject:
   "It such raw materials and materials should be used primarily, that are sufficiently available or renewable and can be won, manufactured or processed with minimal environmental impact."

   Vital-Office - quality you can trust:

   In Germany, we manufacture quality controlled resources-saving and low-emission. Our technically high-quality and modern machine park guarantees the latest technology when it comes to produce materials resources sparingly gently and low emissions. For example, Plate blanks using optimized and the still falling residual quantities in the factory boiler of biomass burnt, which covers 100% of the factory heat demand and helps balance to a better CO ².

   The traditional artisan expertise of our dedicated trained master carpenter and journeymen guarantees a high degree of effectiveness and self control.

   Selection of raw materials, we take care to relate them by responsible, committed to sustainable producers. For standard products, we use only high-quality MDF and chipboard, which are made of wood of European forests. For higher value products made of solid wood we care, that the wood from controlled cultivation.

2. Longevity

   Subject:
   "One of the most important features in the fabric power reduction is the useful life of products. For renewable raw materials, the use of the products must be longer than the regeneration phase of raw materials. Mineral and fossil feedstocks appropriately longer life expectancy of the products must be tied to."

   Vital-Office - quality you can trust:

   Durability starts with vital Office already in the design of intelligent multi-functional table forms, which support the changes in a constantly changing world of work. And ensure long term - long term - the flexibility the company, which it needs in the competition.

   Our office furniture ranges have a timeless design that can easily be used over decades. Intelligent forms and the variability enable countless layouts of jobs and make this a long-term use. So the duration of use is greater than the phase of growth.

   Already in the 1990s, we constructed special modular convertible desk combinations used has been proven for more than 20 years, still very satisfied employees. Many clients confirm us the flexibility and high-quality value of our products.

   Flexible, long-lasting forms of intelligent table justify also investing in solid wood worktops. Since 2005, we are working on improving our technical equipment and can offer today, efficient and ecologically sustainable produced solid wood panels. Alternatively we offer an oiled or ecologically water-painted surface. A particular resources and at the same time attractive variant is solid wood panels made of bamboo. Bamboo grows very quickly and is as stable as the German oak. Also the use of land for growing bamboo is extremely low: only about 1/20 of the area is requires compared to a conventional wood construction for the cultivation of bamboo.

3. Emissions during the use

   Subject:
   "The materials used should be as little as possible, or treated with additives. In particular natural products such as wood should be left untreated and leave as close to nature in their surface structure. For an emission-free use phase as well as for a recycling value maintaining singlemode high and a harmless disposal these properties are essential."

   Vital-Office - quality you can trust:

   We produce uniform tops in MDF, multiplex and solid wood. We offer either a naturally waxed, oiled or ecologically water-lacquered surface for table tops with real wood surface. In the latter case we use water-soluble, curing UV lacquers. The emission levels of the furniture surfaces are far below the required values for VOC (volatile organic compounds; Solvent). Through the processing of water-based paints about save 90% on solvents. For particle board and MDF - panels, only low-formaldehyde sheets of class E1 used as it prescribes the European standard. Therefore, wood panels may not more than 0.1 ppm formaldehyde contribute to the indoor pollution. Glues also lead only environmentally friendly, low-formaldehyde products (< 0.2% formaldehyde) used. The furniture surfaces contain also no CMRs (carcinogenic, mutagenic, toxic for reproduction).

4. Repair capacity and upgradeability

   Subject:
   "The simple and complete and fast dismantling of a product is an important prerequisite for the repair ability. Product parts, which soiling leads to the shortening of the duration of use, must be cleaned. The fast dismantling is a prerequisite for the pure separation of parts of the product in addition to use."

   Vital-Office - quality you can trust:

   Already in the design of furniture, vital Office is intent on ensuring a long service life for over 20 years on. So the then revolutionary vital Office modular cabinet system was developed in the late 1980s after following sustainable guidelines.

   1. Perfect and fast dismantling - all parts of the Cabinet are connected each other through again-detachable stable metal closing. Advantage: Large closets can be decomposed in to narrow stairways spent at the point of use and reassembled there.

   2. Interchangeability any Cabinet part - a standardized drilling system in combination with the fast dismantling guarantees the interchangeability of each individual part of the Cabinet - cabinet sides in the long term. Soil, cover / plate, rear panel, doors (front) and also the fitting parts such as handles, door fittings and locks. This system is unchanged until today after more than 20 years. Many customers make use of it and order spare parts for E.g. damaged Cabinet parts for over 20 years use.

   3. Variability - the design can be varied by replacing Cabinet parts. So for example the standard Cabinet cover (plate) can be replaced later by a MDF panel with profile edges or solid wood panels in individual arch form.

   4. Modularity by uniform design for all Cabinet types - it's prerequisite for a modular closet system, where doors / revolving door cabinets, sliding-door cabinets, blind / shutter cabinets, open shelves, drawers and filing cabinets or glass door cabinets either side by side and above can be combined. It is to note that the combined cabinets is also aesthetically fit to each other in construction and design. (This cheap productions not the case, since only the cheapest production determines the construction and therefore each cabinet type sliding - door, door - another lowest design gets.)

   5. Modularity through a strict grid system - cabinets stack: bottom 2 folder height sliding doors, Middle 3 folder levels 2 folder heights Tower – is shelf, top doors and next to it a swing door cabinet with 4 folder heights and 3 folder levels through a sophisticated standardised grid system possible.

   Conclusion: Vital Office cabinets can since over 20 years be retrofitted at any time economically, complements and repaired. That now, after more than 20 years other manufacturers with their high-quality product lines focus on the vital Office design also confirmed the unique sustainable design and construction quality of the vital Office products.

5. Recycling after use and harmless disposal

   Subject:
   "The diversity of the materials should be low. Specifically, the use of many different plastics is evaluated negatively because the varietal reuse is so unlikely, more materials are used. All materials used must be marked, as far as the material is not clearly identifiable. The raw materials used, as well as their treatment and equipment must be so designed that a harmless disposal is possible. This ensures among other things by abandoning pollutants in the application, avoidance of composite materials and a manufacturer's take-back concept."

   Vital-Office - quality you can trust:

   Already in the 1990s we developed for high-quality, long-lasting and pure ecological tabletops. The usual chipboard, which typically glued along the edges with a 2-3 mm strong Kunststoffanleimer made of PVC or ABS are not the pure recyclability criteria. In the case of a thermal disposal, the edges of plastic-producing partly toxic substances must be separated from the particle board, creates a relatively high amount of work can be better invested in varietal table tops.

   The homogeneous pure vital Office desktops, with natural waxed edge, today a sustainable quality and at the same time low-cost alternative to the usual composite material panels made of particle board and Kunststoffanleimer are optimized in the production process.

   Flexible, long-lasting forms of intelligent table justify also investing in solid wood worktops. Since 2005, we are working on improving our technical equipment and can offer today, efficient and ecologically sustainable produced solid wood panels. Alternatively we offer an oiled or ecologically water-painted surface. A particularly environmentally friendly and at the same time attractive variant is for example solid wood panels made of bamboo, which we offer in 40 mm and 25 mm in thickness.