The First Facility Management Blog

Located in the heart of New York City, the company’s Fifth Avenue location provided SmithGroup, a Chicago-based design group, with an ideal space to reflect The HON Company’s core values—office furniture that is flexible, durable, and environmentally preferential.

HON’s most notable initiative, Nature Core™, takes center stage in the New York space. Designed for use inside the company’s Initiate® panel systems, Nature Core is made from an annually renewable crop, kenaf. This panel “filler” provides sustainable benefits and can improve indoor air quality when used in Initiate panel systems.

The showroom houses other products that fulfill stringent indoor air quality requirements. In addition to Initiate, more than 90% of HON’s seating line, laminate desking, and its Accomplish™ line of classroom furniture have received various levels of Indoor Advantage certification from Scientific Certification Systems (SCS). As a third-party auditor, SCS helps manufacturers, like HON, meet the highest certification of environmental and quality performance.

Other products that have a notable presence include HON’s Park Avenue Veneer line, Accomplish classroom furniture, F3TM seating with ilira® - stretch, 10500 desking series, Perpetual® Nesting tables, and TerceroTM conference tables.

The HON Company’s laminate case good workstations have been certified by Scientific Certification System (SCS) Indoor Advantage program. Certification in this program signifies that the product has met rigorous criteria for indoor air quality standards (IAQ) in the United States.

This certification marks The HON Company’s ninth product line in two years to receive either SCS Indoor Advantage or SCS Indoor Advantage Gold recognition, cementing the company’s ongoing environmental commitment and active participation in sustainability initiatives, as well as its support of the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) system.

SCS, a third-party auditor and certifier of environmental and sustainability claims, has developed internationally recognized standards and certification programs designed to help manufacturers meet the highest level of environmental and quality performance. The SCS Indoor Advantage certification program tests and certifies products for indoor air quality.

“As one of the largest providers of professional office furniture, The HON Company is committed to developing products that incorporate sustainable design with minimal impact on the environment,” said Eric Jackson, vice president of wood case goods for The HON Company. “Achieving the Indoor Advantage certification from SCS guarantees that we offer our customers all the benefits of traditional workstations with the additional benefits of environmental performance.”

The HON Company strives to emphasize efficiency and waste elimination in all of its operations. To this end, the IAQ certification process is an extension of The HON Company’s commitment to find new and innovative ways to bring sustainable products to market.

Additionally, as part of The HON Company’s initiative to ensure all products adhere to the LEED system standards, the company also makes material improvements to existing lines. As such, several furniture lines, in addition to the newly certified laminate casegoods collection, have received the SCS Indoor Advantage Gold certification. These include the F3™, 7800 and Pillowsoft seating lines; all metal storage products; and the Accomplish™ line of classroom furniture.

(Pictured: HON Park Avenue Laminate Office)

To provide a more specialized view in the areas of sales and marketing, Eric Jungbluth, president of The HON Company, has announced two key organizational changes. Don Mead has accepted the position of vice president, marketing, and Jeff Lorenger has accepted the position of vice president of sales.

“As we continue to position The HON Company for aggressive, profitable growth and the achievement of our strategic priorities, we are looking for ways to streamline our structure and processes,” said Jungbluth. “We are pleased to announce Don and Jeff’s new roles, which will help us enhance our focus, visibility and performance to meet and exceed our customer’s expectations.”

In his new role, Mead will be responsible for building and leading a strong team dedicated to enhancing capabilities and building The HON Company brand through market research, brand communications, public relations, events, showrooms, and channel marketing. Prior to this position, Mead served as vice president of product marketing and development where he led the company’s product development and marketing initiatives. He joined HNI Corporation in 2000 and has held numerous positions with increasing responsibility during his tenure with the company.

As vice president of sales, Lorenger will continue to build and lead the sales team to improve HON’s strategic selling capabilities, drive top-line sales growth, and increase market share. He will also have overall management and leadership responsibility for all operations of customer support. Lorenger joined HNI Corporation in 1998. Previously, Lorenger served as vice president, general counsel and secretary of HNI Corporation. Prior to this position, he held various roles with HNI and its operating companies, including: vice president, seating business, Allsteel Inc.; vice president, marketing, Allsteel Inc.; vice president, member and community relations, Allsteel Inc.; and senior counsel, HNI Corporation.

About The HON Company
The HON Company is designer and manufacturer of workplace furniture including chairs, storage, panel systems, tables, and desks. Headquartered in Muscatine, IA, The HON Company has numerous manufacturing facilities located throughout the United States, and markets its products through a nationwide network of dealers and retailers. The HON Company is an operating company of HNI Corporation (formerly HON INDUSTRIES).

The HON Company Announces Contributing Sponsorship in 2007 Solar Decathlon

As part of a continued commitment to reduce our impact on the environment, The HON Company is proud to be a sponsor of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) 2007 Solar Decathlon. This unique event showcases the environmental visions of aspiring architects, engineers and interior designers. This year, 20 teams from colleges and universities across the globe will converge upon Washington, D.C., Oct. 12- 20 to test their skills in an unparalleled competition to design, build and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar house using environmentally preferential building products and furnishings.

This year marks The HON Company’s sponsorship debut. As a Contributing Sponsor, HON is donating furnishings to two homes and also providing several common areas with its newest products, including the Initiate panel systems with Nature Core and its popular F3 seating line. The company will also host educational presentations during the course of the competition.

“We’re proud to be part of all of the excitement that surrounds this important event,” said Don Mead, HON’s vice president of Marketing. “We look forward to working with the promising Solar Decathletes - tomorrow’s engineers, architects and designers - in the shared quest to chart a greener course for our world.”

During the event, the 20 teams participate in 10 contests to determine an overall winner. Using only solar energy, the teams generate enough electricity to run a modern household. With an eye on energy efficiency, the students carefully choose the systems, products and appliances used in their houses.

The HON Company donated furnishings to two teams: the University of Missouri - Rolla and the University of Illinois. Students from these schools used laminate tables and chairs certified by Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) Indoor Advantage program, which tests to the most rigorous standards of air quality in the United States. They also used the company’s Park Avenue Collection lounge seating made with 100-percent recycled fabrics.

In late September, the homes will be transported from the various campuses where they were designed, to be constructed on the National Mall in Washington where they will form a “solar village.” Houses are open for public tours over the week-long contest period.

HON donated furniture for common areas on the Mall. The main event tent’s greeter stations and desk areas feature Initiate with the sustainable Nature Core, the company’s premiere panel system and F3 task chairs, along with the student lounge area. Local HON employees will be working as volunteers throughout the week long event.

Additionally, on October 15 and 16, Mindy Billingsley, The HON Company’s environmental marketing manager, will present a 30-minute educational seminar, “Empowering You: Environmental Solutions for Office Interiors.” She will discuss SCS Indoor Advantage certification and the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED for Commercial Interiors (LEED-CI) rating system. Billingsley also presents a podcast that can be downloaded from the Solar Decathlon’s My Space page or the Web site.

“Sixty years ago, HON embarked upon its enduring environmental journey, and the company has no intention of slowing down along that path,” Mead said. “We’ve continued our green mindset throughout the years and have sought new and better ways to preserve the environment. The Solar Decathlon is well aligned with The HON Company’s long-term aspirations to improve the Earth’s well being. We want to do what it takes to spread the word about environmental responsibility. Educating young minds is key to instilling this to the many generations that follow.”

About the Solar Decathlon
The Solar Decathlon is a competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy in partnership with its National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The American Institute of Architects (AIA) American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), BP and Sprint are partnering with DOE as title sponsors.

Los Angeles South Gate Plant Joins List of Distinguished North American Plants Recognized as the Best in Lean Manufacturing

The HON Company announced that its South Gate manufacturing plant, located eight miles south of Los Angeles, has received the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing. Recognized as the premier manufacturing award in North America, the Shingo Prize honors organizations that demonstrate business excellence and world-class performance in quality, cost, and delivery achieved through lean principles and techniques.

Established in 1988, the Shingo Prize is the only award program in the world focused on lean manufacturing. Plants are evaluated on Customer Satisfaction and Profitability; Quality, Cost and Delivery; Lean Core Operations; and Leadership and Empowerment Enablers. A Board of Examiners consisting of over 175 lean leaders throughout North America, representing primarily former Shingo Prize recipient companies, carry out the rigorous process of evaluating the 100 page Achievement Report and the 2-3 day company Site Evaluation Visit for each nominee.

Established in 1981, The HON Company’s South Gate Plant has a team of 340 members who contribute to the daily pursuit of operational excellence through Rapid Continuous Improvement (RCI). Key results demonstrated by the plant include:

• Delivered the highest level of quality products and service by achieving the lowest rate of customer complaints within The HON Company for eight consecutive years
• Improved on-time shipment of South Gate products to 99.6% while reducing the level of inventory stored at the plant
• Exceeded environmental requirements by reducing air emissions by 79% over the past three years
• Executed RCI practices, enabling South Gate to implement 1,935 member suggestions in 2006 alone
• Contributed more than 2,600 hours of community service during the past three years

“This award recognizes the results of years of work by our members at South Gate and throughout The HON Company,” said Kevin Mathis, VP of Operations “Beginning in 1992, we learned from Japanese consultants how to take all forms of waste out of our operation. These methods are now known as Lean Manufacturing. Our members have learned how to work in teams to achieve breakthrough performance in quality, delivery, cost reduction and creating a great place to work. We are proud of all our members. Receiving the Shingo Prize is a great honor.”