Hickory Springs announced that for today’s leading manufacturing companies, sustainability is more than just the latest green buzzword. While not necessarily creating new business practices, the concept of sustainable manufacturing provides a framework for prioritizing business investments, as well as for communicating green accomplishments to increasingly environmentally conscious customers and consumers.
With that goal in mind, Don Coleman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hickory Springs Manufacturing Company, one of the nation’s largest integrated manufacturers and an international supplier of components for the furniture and bedding industries, announced that the company is now formalizing a sustainability program that has existed at the plant level for years.
“Along with providing quality products, showing a good return on investment and striving to be a good employer and community neighbor, Hickory Springs works diligently to reduce its impact on our environment,” Coleman explained. “I am proud to announce that, based on localized efforts and success stories, Hickory Springs is making a bigger, broader commitment to sustainability. Though it will take time to develop a company-wide program, Hickory Springs is working to establish a comprehensive, meaningful Corporate Sustainability Initiative.”
Hickory Springs Corporate Sustainability Initiative is a continuous-improvement process aimed at increasing efficiency, reducing waste, easing environmental impact and boosting workplace safety. Although currently involved in sustainability practices such as recycling waste and energy reduction, the initiative will focus and increase the effectiveness of Hickory Springs’ sustainability management practices. Successful programs will be shared and followed company-wide. Products like Preserve® foam, which incorporates a significant percentage of non-petroleum ingredients into its traditionally all-petroleum based formula, and other products in the company’s new EarthCare Inside line of eco-friendly components, will continue to be developed.
“Although we have miles to go in development and implementation of our sustainability initiative, the effort has company support from the top down,” Coleman said. “Our work in this direction will include input and support from suppliers and customers. This is a significant priority that every employee can help us achieve on a day-to-day basis and will allow us to reach many more years of success.”
The company recently launched a new website, www.EarthCareInside.com, to support its program of sustainable and environmentally friendly components. The site features an explanation of the company's environmental commitment by Coleman and a special video introduction by well-known HGTV host Jim Parks. Veteran designer Jack Lewis was hired to develop scaled-down upholstered furniture products that save materials by using smaller amounts of Hickory Springs' components in them. The site will also feature facts, trivia and other information related to the environment, as well a link where consumers can contact Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing Dwayne Welch with questions.
Hickory Springs’ corporate headquarters is located in Hickory, North Carolina, where the international, privately held company was first founded in 1944 as a producer of furniture springs. Over the past 64 years, Hickory Springs has grown into one of the nation’s largest integrated manufacturers to the furniture and bedding industries with more than 60 operating facilities throughout the United States. In addition to its core furniture and bedding markets, Hickory Springs serves a growing range of customers in the construction, automotive, packaging, medical, marine and telecommunications industries.