We are so excited about attending this year’s Las Vegas Market, January 30-February 3 at the huge World Market Center. Each year, there are always plenty of new and exciting things to see and do, so even if you have attended in the past, you’ll want to spend time planning out this year’s adventure.
On opening day, make the First Look Exhibit in the Building B lobby one of your first stops. You will be able to pick up a copy of the First Look Book (limited quantities available) and see a showcase of the new product trends to be discovered at the show.
Speaking of trendy, we’re looking forward to the Food Truck Festival, to be held opening day at 6 p.m. in the Grand Plaza. The courtyard will be transformed into a four-wheeled, gourmet food fiesta. There will also be a DJ spinning favorites from the 50s and 60s. Should be a fun evening!
If you prefer something a little more low key, check out high tea, taking place Monday through Thursday in C512 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. You’ll enjoy complimentary tea sandwiches, cocktails and a selection of gourmet teas.
First Time Buyers Orientation
If you haven’t attended this event, this special orientation can be extremely helpful. It takes place from on January 30th from 10-11 a.m. in room C368, and is designed to help you maximize your buying time. You’ll get a rundown on all of the resources, destinations, seminars and events happening at the Las Vegas Market.
Seminars and Continuing Education Credits
There are a number of valuable seminars planned. One that sounds intriguing to us is LuxeEco and One Good World: Designing the Future, happening on January 30th from 11 a.m. to noon. This is a panel discussion among the Sustainable Furnishings Council’s distinguished DESIGNINGGreen Leaders, and should be quite informative. It’s also worth 0.1 CEU.
Verified Eco-Friendly Exhibitors
Perusing the list, we found many eco-friendly exhibitors including Artists Guild of America, Jordan Spence Design, Matt Downer Designs and a company called Groovystuff, based in Dallas, that features seven distinct one-of-a-kind collections. You’ll find everything from artwork to bedding and decorative accessories made with materials that are kind to Mother Nature. Of course, be sure to watch for products made with BiOH. Our partners who will be exhibiting at the show include: Broyhill (A1053), Harden (A901), Hickory Springs (B-0918), Klaussner (A847, A801), Comfort Solutions (A538, A542, A546) and Natura (A946).
Buyer Services
We love the Buyer Lounges, located in each building. They are a great place to rendezvous, relax and grab a snack. Each building also has a Business Center where you can connect with your home office via Internet, phone or fax. This is also where you can make copies or send mail. The Internet Lounges in Buildings A and B have WiFi and communications devices available.
Transportation and Concierge Services
The complimentary M Line shuttles run all day between the World Market Center and select host hotels. Once you arrive at the event, convenient skybridges connect all of the buildings. If you want to take in more of the sights and sounds of Las Vegas, there is a Vegas.com computer kiosk concierge in Building A where you can find dining options and even buy show tickets.
One last word of advice: wear comfortable shoes! The World Market Center is a five million square foot campus!
The BiOH® Polyols team extends our congratulations to Sauder Woodworking, which was named the 2011 winner of the home furnishing industry’s prestigious Sage Award for environmental excellence. The award was given last month during the Open Day Press Breakfast at the High Point Market. Other finalists included Crypton Super Fabrics and Leggett &Platt Home Furniture Components. This was the fourth consecutive year that BiOH® polyols has partnered with the AHFA to present the Sage Award winner with a $2,500 donation to any non-profit organization of its choice.
 The Sage Award is an opportunity to recognize excellence in the home furnishings and bedding industries through honoring and acknowledging companies who lead in area of:
Reducing their environmental footprint
Expanding their positive social impact
Running a profitable business
The purpose of the Sage Award is to seek out, discover and recognize true industry innovators from whom others can learn. This award is founded on the belief that environmental excellence is an ongoing journey requiring flexibility, insight and constant learning. The annual Award honors businesses that demonstrate a passion for and a sustained commitment to that journey.
North America’s leading producer of ready-to-assemble furniture, Sauder Woodworking, embodies these environmental requirements and many more. Long before “sustainability” was a global concern, Sauder Woodworking’s reuse of scrap material and efficient, RTA shipping was setting a standard for sustainable business practices for the future.
Today the company uses:
Over 95 percent of the wood fiber used to produce the wood components of Sauder furniture comes from post-industrial or post-consumer recycled wood.
All engineered wood components meet or exceed California’s formaldehyde emissions limits.
The composite wood panels used in Sauder furniture use up to 95 percent of the wood resource, compared to an average of 60 to 65 percent that is used when constructing solid wood furniture.
Back panels are constructed using 100 percent post-consumer recycled material.
All coatings and adhesives are either water based or are 100 percent solids. None are solvent based.
Since 2010 alone, the company has invested over $2 million in processes to recover and reuse wood waste; $1.5 million to convert lighting in over 4 million square feet of manufacturing space; and $1.7 million in a system to optimize air flow and reduce energy use.
Finalist, Leggett & Platt Home Furniture Components,has been producing furniture components for over 125 years and sells its engineered components to over 1,500 furniture makers worldwide. All 13 of the company’s Home Furniture Components facilities in six states areimplementing A-H-F-A’s EFEC – “Enhancing Furniture’s Environmental Culture” environmental management system. Since beginning the efforts in 2008, the 13 facilities have realized enormous reductions in energy and water use. They also have reduced the use of raw materials and packaging and minimized waste production. Packaging innovations alone reduced tons of corrugated waste and saved tens of thousands of dollars.
Finalist Crypton Super Fabric is a specially engineered fabric system with an integrated moisture barrier. Unlike applied fabric protection coatings, Crypton’s environmentally friendly, patented process is engineered into the fabric, encapsulating every fiber. The company’s manufacturing facility in Kings Mountain, N.C., leverages best practices and manufacturing technologies to consume less water and energy, emit less pollution and reduce the use of packaging materials. The company also supports the development of the Sustainability Assessment for Commercial Furnishings Fabric.
The competition for this year’s award was challenging. The incredibly talented judges representing furniture and bedding industry leaders, environmental journalists, sustainability experts & the furniture industry business press were:
Sharon Bradley, Executive Director of the Wester Home Furnishings Association
Heather Gadonniex, Environmental Product Declaration program  manager of the Underwriters Laboratories
Leslie Guevarra, associate editor for Greener World Media, the online publishing group founded by Joel Makower
Jessica Kellner,Editor in Chief of Natural Home Magazine
Jean Nayer, former editor-in-chief of Woman’s Day Special Interest Magazines and author of “Green Living by Design”
Powell Slaughter, Editor at Home Furnishings Business
Ryan Trainer, President of the International Sleep Products Association
Steve Walker, Assistant Directorof the Furniture Manufacturing and Management Center at North Carolina State University
Criteria for judging is based on three key points; Sustainable Business Practices, Commitment to Social Responsibility and Profitable Growth. We commend all entrants for their dedication to these efforts.
Andy Counts, CEO of AHFA with finalist from Crypton Fabrics and Kelsey Ness, Cargill's BiOH Marketing Specialist
Andy Counts, CEO of AHFA, with 2011 Sage Award Winner Kevin Sauder from Sauder Woodworking and Kelsey Ness, Cargill's BiOH Marketing Specialist
Andy Counts, CEO of AHFA with the Leggett & Platt finalists and Kelsey Ness, Cargill's BiOH Marketing Specialist
Good news! We now have an amazing interactive training video to help you and your employees quickly grasp how to talk with your customers about sustainability and buying green furnishings, including a simple ways to explain the BiOH® polyols difference. It’s a great resource that’s fast and fun to use. After just a few minutes, you and your employees will be sounding like sustainability experts.
Hesitant to try it? Check out this training video testimonial from Furnitureland South’s Cameron Lindsay as he talks about the importance of sales training for sustainable products made with BiOH polyols and how it can increase your sales today!
Try it out! It’s more than just a video. With a few clicks of your mouse, you’ll be immersed in short Q&As, and you’ll also discover how consumers responded to a sustainability and home furnishing survey. Most important: you’ll learn the key messages that will resonate with your customers: comfort, durability and environmentally friendly benefits.
Watching this retail training video could easily differentiate your store from your competition. Most consumers want to buy green home furnishings. They want to do their part for the environment but they need your help finding and choosing the right sustainable products.
As more people become aware of sustainable furniture, it’s important to educate them about their options including the significance and value of foams and mattresses made with BiOH® Polyols. In some cases, you may be the only one who knows about this option! That will make you the subject matter expert and it may be the tipping point that could lead to more sales.
After viewing our new interactive retail training video, you will be ready to help your customers make an informed purchase decision that’s right for them and their families.
If you are a retailer and you carry these furniture brands, contact us about co-branding opportunities. We can provide you with retail resources. Or, ask your manufacturer if they have resources to help you promote BiOH in your store.
BiOH® is excited to announce the launch of our co-branding program with Klaussner Home Furnishing (KHF) at High Point Market Oct 22-27th in High Point, NC!If you are at Market this week, stop into Klaussner’s Showroom & check out the BiOH kiosk to learn more about the Free Online Retail Training and gain more insight into what BiOH can do for you!
 Klaussner Home Furnishings made with BiOH Video:
There is a growing trend of furniture manufacturers such as KHF finding ways to distinguish themselves on the eco-friendly scale. “It’s long been evident to us that when retail shoppers are offered the option of a product that is more environmentally friendly, those shoppers will select the more eco-friendly product,” confirmed KHF’s Marketing and Brand Manager Brian Myers. KHF has long been an avid supporter of environmental initiatives, and its continuous actions are evident.
Its sustainability accomplishments include:
Purchasing wood materials from suppliers who are part of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, which has strict standards for replacing harvested trees while protecting wildlife, plants and soil and water quality.
Using recycled steel in its eco-friendly seating system.
Choosing fiber-fill for cushions and pillows that is derived from recycled materials.
Recycling 100 percent of excess packaging, fabric, leather, foam materials—which keeps those materials out of landfills and enables the re-use of products such as foams, which can become carpet padding.
Taking one step further, KHF has decided to fully co-brand with BiOH on its entire domestic upholstery product line featuring cushions that are made with BiOH polyols derived from soy beans. KHF has previously used BiOH Polyols in the foam process, and saw this co-branding as an opportunity to further its commitment to adding more sustainable components to its products. With BiOH, KHF has the capability to differentiate itself in the furniture market through focusing on the emerging eco-friendly consumer niche.
Klaussner is definitely on the right track in boosting its environmental outlook with its BiOH collaboration. According to results of the 2008 Green Marketing Consumer Study sponsored by the Sustainable Furnishing Council surveying 300 female homeowners between ages 30-60, while four percent purchased eco-friendly furnishings, the rest either didn’t know there was an eco-friendly option or said it wasn’t available.
Now, nearly three years later, the furniture market has drastically changed and manufacturers are listening. Consumers are willing to purchase a product that is of long-term benefit at a reasonable cost. They are waiting for manufacturers to deliver a quality product. Klaussner Home Furnishings has listened and has taken actions that will set a leading example for years to come.
Make sure to look for the BiOH® Brand hang tag on your next furniture purchase.
Posted by Nicole, BiOH Polyols Marketing Manager on March 14, 2011
Welcome to the BiOH® revolution, a quiet revolution where small steps can lead to a big impact.
If you have ever wondered who we are and what we are all about then wait no longer. We have just launched a new video that simplifies the BiOH® polyols story.
We have removed the complicated chemical lingo and added a snazzy new tune. Â Just watch our quick one minute video to learn more and share your thoughts.
Posted by Nicole, BiOH Polyols Marketing Manager on March 4, 2011
If you have been keeping up with the news lately, you might have noticed a new challenge by ABC World News called Made in America. Part of the feature challanged one Texas family to empty their home of all foreign made products and replace them by purchasing products “Made in America.”
This feature gave exposure to many furniture and bedding industry partners who manufacture American made products every day and who also use BiOH® polyols in their cushioning. One company, Harden Furniture was featured in a video segment talking about how they are responsibly managing the forests that they obtain for their wood products.
Bedding manufactures Sealy and Simmons were listed as well. Â
Apartment Sofa by LEE
One common mistake consumers can often make is thinking that domestically made furniture and appliances cost more money. This segment shows consumers where to purchase products “Made in America” and how they could even save money by doing so! For more information, you can also visit the Made in the USA Foundation.
Posted by Nicole, BiOH Polyols Marketing Manager on January 24, 2011
This week the BiOH® polyols team heads out to the real city that never sleeps to uncover the latest and greatest trends in the furniture and bedding marketplace at the annual Las Vegas Market . World Market Center is the place to see “everything that’s new and unexpected in the world of home furnishings, all in one inspiring venue.”
If you want to be ahead of the curve and know new industry trends before everyone else, just like I do, this market is the place to be. Another great place to trend-spot is by flipping through the pages of Bedroom Magazine, the “Sleep Retailers Magazine.” Pick up a copy of the Winter 2011 issue or visit their website to read a new and exciting article titled Cargill provides Insights on Marketing “Green” featuring Cargill’s BiOH® Business Unit Leader, Yusuf Wazirzada.Â
Before heading out to Las Vegas, make sure to cast your vote online for the One Good Chair People’s Choice competition sponsored by the Sustainable Furnishings Council and World Market Center Las Vegas. This competition is similar to BiOH® polyols Project Udesign because the designs use sustainable materials but are not upholstered furniture like BiOH® soy-based foam ingredients.
Fingers crossed for a successful market visit that we learn a lot from the bedding industry leaders and maybe we’ll even get a little bit of sleep along the way!
The Sage Award is an opportunity to recognize excellence in the home furnishings and bedding industries through honoring and acknowledging companies who lead in area of:
Reducing their environmental footprint
Expanding their positive social impact
Running a profitable business
This is the third year BiOH® polyols has partnered with the AHFA to present the Sage Award winner with a $2,500 donation to any non-profit organization of its choice. The purpose of the Sage Award is to seek out, discover and recognize true industry innovators from whom others can learn. This award is founded on the belief that environmental excellence is an ongoing journey requiring flexibility, insight and constant learning. The annual Award honors businesses that demonstrate a passion for and a sustained commitment to that journey.
Zenda Leather embodies these environmental requirements and many more by having internationally-recognized ISO 14001 environmental management certifications for its factories. This certification controls use of natural resources, handling and treatment of waste, and energy consumption. Over the last five years they also have:
Developed practices to reduce over 3 million kilograms of solid waste per year by producing compost.
Opened the first private energy plant in Uruguay that transforms waste into energy, eliminating the company’s need to buy power from an outside source
Built a waste treatment plant in which the biological sludge is used as organic fertilizer for local farmland and also saves an estimated 2 million liters of water per day by recycling rainwater.
Invested in developing more eco-friendly products and introduced “Eden” leather to the residential market in 2008. Only natural extracts – no metals – are used in the tanning process for Eden leather. They have over 10 years of experience making chrome-free leather for the automotive industry.
Â
Edith Ledzema and Juan Diego Casaretto of Zenda Leather
Finalists Flexsteel Industries, Inc. was the first AHFA member company to implement the program EFEC – “Enhancing Furniture’s Environmental Culture” – a voluntary environmental management program for furniture manufacturers in all seven plants. As a result of the new practices and policies established during implementation of EFEC, they:
Reduced its waste to landfill from 554 tons per quarter in March of 2009 to 114 tons per quarter as of June 2010.
Energy consumption has declined every quarter since March 2009.
Water consumption and natural gas have also been reduced and the company has increased its use of recycled materials in operations and product development.
Pushed sustainable practices through the supply chain by requiring vendors to establish environmental goals – an effort now completed by 86 percent of its suppliers.
Finalist TLS by Design, which stands for Total Life Style, is an innovative, family-run business striving to follow an environmentally-responsible path. They are seriously committed to the environmental journey and on their way to be LEED® certified. In addition to energy efficient practices they also:
Use soy-based BiOH® polyols for foam cushioning, locally purchase recycled steel springs and all wood finishes are water-based.
70 percent of the company’s products are produced and sourced within a 75-mile radius of its base in Portland, Indiana including using local forests and mills for wood.
Repurposed their facility section by section, including buying old bowling alley lanes for a “new” 60-foot long cutting table and hired locally displaced employees.
Finalists TLS by Design's Jeff Day and guest
The competition for this year’s award was challenging. Thankfully we had a handful of incredibly talented judges. Ten environmental, media and industry leaders accepted the responsibility of reading and judging the entries. They included:
Ray Allegrezza,Editor in Chief of Furniture Today.
Mary Frye, Executive Director of the Home Furnishings Independents AssociationÂ
Heather Gadonniex, managing partner of MindClick, a San Francisco-based consultancy specializing in sustainable business
Leslie Guevarra, associate editor for Greener World Media, the online publishing group founded by Joel Makower
Susan Inglis,Executive Director of the Sustainable Furniture Council,
Robyn Griggs Lawrence, Editor in Chief of Natural Home Magazine
Jean Nayer, former editor-in-chief of Woman’s Day Special Interest Magazines and author of “Green Living by Design”
Richard Prisco, professor of industrial design, department of technology, Appalachian State University
Ryan Trainer, President of the International Sleep Products Association
Steve Walker, Assistant Directorof the Furniture Manufacturing and Management Center at North Carolina State University
Criteria for judging is based on three key points; Sustainable Business Practices, Commitment to Social Responsibility and Profitable Growth. We commend all entrants for their dedication to these efforts. For more information about the Sage Awards please visit: www.sageaward.org.
Posted by Nicole, BiOH Polyols Marketing Manager on November 23, 2010
In order to be a responsible corporation, a company must aim to be responsible across many ways that they manage and operate their business. We are excited to announce that on October 15, 2010, BiOH® Polyols corporate office team moved into a Gold LEED certified workspace. Cargill Incorporated through its Facility Department decided to use the LEED certification as a way to demonstrate broad commitment to sustainable office space design. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a ratings system guided by the U.S. Green Building Council.
At 766,300 square feet, Excelsior Crossings is one of the largest LEED application office-buildings in the Minneapolis metropolitan area. Excelsior Crossings located in the suburb of Hopkins, MN is the realization of decades of commitment to environmental stewardship.
Excelsior Crossings Campus in Hopkins, Minnesota
The list to gain LEED certification through the USGBC is quite lengthy and can be achieved in a variety of ways. There are three Excelsior Crossings office buildings in which the first was awarded LEED Gold certification in 2008, the second in 2010 and the third is in the process for early 2011. Â Keep reading to learn more about the sustainable strategies Cargill is implementing in the planning, design and operation of the Excelsior Crossings campus.
USGBC LEED Gold Plaques
How we got to GOLD:
18 environmental and design credits implemented at Excelsior Crossings:
• Building orientation
• Alternative transportation (excited to park my bicycle up front when I unthaw from winter!)
• Storm water maintenance (come take a swim in our beautiful pond, not!)
• Water conservation
• “Smart” irrigation
• Energy performance & operations
• Environmentally friendly refrigerants
• Use & collection of recycled materials (you don’t get $.05 per can but consider it a good deed)
• Local construction materials
• Sustainable harvested certified wood products
• Day lighting and daylight sensors
• Reduce the quantity of indoor air contaminants
• Outside views for occupants (it’s fun to laugh at people stuck in traffic, until it becomes you)
• Thermal comfort for occupants (finally, no winter wardrobe and blanket in summer!)
• Green housekeeping plan
• Chemical-free water treatment
• Greenhouse gas neutral furniture and seating
(the use of BiOH® in sustainable lobby seating really helped gain GOLD)
• Environmental education and display.
Excelsior Crossings Campus LEED Display
We are very excited to share our new campus and ways that we are paving the journey to a better environment. Feel free to stop by and see this beauty all for yourself. Also, leave comments on how you or your company is doing great things to be more environmentally friendly. It’s very inspiring!
Posted by Nicole, BiOH Polyols Marketing Manager on October 15, 2010
Have you ever wondered where everyone in the furniture industry is during the entire month of October? Well, I have a little secret and if you didn’t already know… it’s time for the season’s hottest event for the Home Furnishings industry!  High Point Market is “the world’s home for home furnishings” and runs October 16-21, 2010 in High Point, NC. This is where the furniture industry comes together to share, collaborate and connect with some of the industry’s most influential retailers and manufacturers.
The BiOH® polyols team is hitting the road and headed to the beautiful state of North Carolina where I get to experience my first High Point Market. Of course we are thrilled to kick-off the week at the Century Furniture showroom with the Project UDesign tweet-up on Monday evening.  Don’t forget that UDecide the winner! So hurry up and visit the BiOH® polyols fan page before 11:59pm EST on Tuesday, October 19, 2010. We will announce the winner at the WITHIT student mentoring breakfast on Wednesday, October 20. Check back for more details on the winner… Until then, watch this video about the top three SCAD student designs and view inspirational quotes on sustainability from passionate interior design bloggers.
In addition to Project UDesign, we will be visiting with many of our incredible partners who share the soy love for sustainability and BiOH® polyols. If you happen to be at High Point Market, make sure to stop by one of these manufacturers and inquire about their furniture with BiOH polyols.
The BiOH experience offers resources for you to learn and participate in helping communities and the environment. It is brought to you by the BiOH polyols business — a maker of soy-based ingredients for foam. Please explore our site and then share your thoughts with us. We want to hear from you!
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