Ethan Allen announces the completion of the Enhancing Furniture's Environmental Culture (EFEC) program in its Vermont facilities. Launched by the American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA) in 1999, EFEC is an environmental management system that requires companies-on a facility-by-facility basis-to analyze and better understand the environmental impact of their processes, raw materials, and finished products.
"Implementing EFEC at the manufacturing level is a great way for us to make our workplaces more environmentally responsible and to protect the local environment for our employees and their communities," said Mike Worth, Regional Operations Manager for Ethan Allen in northeastern Vermont. "Employee interest and involvement is an important part of the success of our efforts, and we encourage our associates to make their households more environmentally responsible as well."
In the Orleans and Beecher Falls plants, the company is incorporating EFEC requirements into its existing environmental health and safety management system. Ethan Allen has also completed EFEC audits in its facilities in Maiden and Old Fort, North Carolina, and has begun to implement the program in its Passaic, New Jersey facility.
After the program was implemented in Orleans and Beecher Falls, each facility underwent the EFEC registration process. Registration is contingent upon a policy of continuous improvement in the areas of water and energy conservation, recycling, and waste reduction. An audit has been completed by a certified EFEC auditor; the EFEC's Board of Examiners determines whether all criteria for registration has been met.
Two of the company's distribution centers and about 20 retail service centers will also be implementing the program. Eventually, Ethan Allen plans to implement EFEC in all of its retail locations and pursue Sustainable By Design (SBD) certification. The AHFA's SBD program requires companies to calculate their baseline carbon footprints and to develop strategies for reducing those footprints. In addition, SBD-certified companies must develop social responsibility programs that include codes of conduct for all overseas suppliers.
About Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH) is a leading interior design company and manufacturer and retailer of quality home furnishings. The company offers free interior design service to its clients and sells a full range of furniture products and decorative accessories through ethanallen.com and a network of approximately 300 Design Centers in the United States and abroad. Ethan Allen owns and operates eight manufacturing facilities including five manufacturing plants and one sawmill in the United States plus two plants in Mexico and Honduras. Approximately seventy percent of its products are made in its United States plants. For more information on Ethan Allen's products and services, visit ethanallen.com.
Beecher Falls, VT - May 8, 2012
Ethan Allen Furniture completes environmental audit at Vermont plants
Submitted by tim
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