QUALITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
LOCAL PRODUCTION AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY
We strive to take the environment into consideration in everything we do. Lepo’s factory has an excellent logistical location near its customer base and responsible subcontractors. Most of our permanent subcontractors are situated within a 50-kilometre radius. Since our factory is located in a groundwater area, we pay extra attention to environmental matters, for example at the loading bay. We have moved on from heating the factory with oil to the more eco-friendly district heating and have renewed our windows in order to avoid unnecessary heat loss. The factory’s fluorescent lamps have also been updated to longer-lasting and more energy-efficient LED tubes.
Our furniture for public spaces is manufactured locally using certified high-quality materials, such as Finnish wood and durable upholstery fabrics meant for public spaces. We are pleased to see that fabric manufacturers are increasingly incorporating innovative materials made out of recycled fibres into their selection. In treating metal parts, we prefer powder coating, and have switched from hexavalent chromium plating to the more eco-friendly trivalent chromium plating.
Our products are always made to order. The stock is kept to a minimum and there is hardly any material waste. For instance, our upholstery fabrics are ordered according to demand, the length of the fabric being accurate to within 5 centimetres. We will forward any unused pieces of fabric and leather to kindergartens and local artisans. At the factory we recycle by sorting and properly disposing of the production waste. Pieces of fabric, plastic and wood waste are collected, cardboard waste is baled, and everything is delivered to a waste-to-energy plant. Metal scraps are recycled, and coating agents, such as varnish and paint, are collected in containers and delivered to a waste collection facility for appropriate and safe disposal. We utilize surplus plastic foam to protect the furniture during shipping, and shredded plastic foam can be used as cushion stuffing.
We minimize the amount of packaging waste by using our own transport methods to deliver furniture. We recently renewed our delivery vehicles to reduce fuel consumption. We ship orders using joint deliveries according to carefully planned itineraries.
SUSTAINABLE AND RESPONSIBLE DESIGN
Our quality control system ensures constant development, and guarantees high customer satisfaction. Well-designed and ergonomic furniture is durable. Our product design focuses on easy maintenance and the possibility of refurbishment. We refurbish our furniture lines to prolong their lifespan: we renew the cushions, reupholster, recoat the metal frames and replace the glides when necessary. Products at the end of their life can be dismantled for recycling. If needed, we can take care of recycling on behalf of the customer.
The Association for Finnish Work has granted the entire Lepo collection the Avainlippu (Key Flag) and Design from Finland marks. And the company has joined the Luotettava kumppani (trusted partner) scheme, in support of fair competition in the sector. Rinki Oy, Finland’s lead company for recycling packaging material, has granted the Rinki mark for Lepo’s environmentally-friendly reprocessing. Finland’s leading business paper Kauppalehti recognised Lepo as a leading company in 2012 and 2020.
