We are happy to announce a new set of resources enabling you to purchase the greenest, safest furniture products available. The San Francisco Department of the Environment has developed these furniture specifications over the past two years, in consultation with City departments and our nonprofit partners. Concerned about off-gassing, formaldehyde, flame retardants, or fluorinated chemicals? Now you have solutions that will help you create a healthy indoor environment! Please forward this email to any City staff involved in purchasing furniture.
Our updated SFApproved page on less-toxic furniture has all the information. It lists:
- Product names (we've done the work for you)
- City approved vendors
- Criteria/specifications anyone can paste into contracts
- Citywide term contracts so you can see discounted prices (click links that say “Special Purchasing Instructions”)
To make accessing this information easier, we are providing some direct links here:
Greenest
- Seating (Benches, Chairs, Couches, Theater): List of products (including special instructions on fabric, wood and finishes)
- Systems Furniture (Workspaces - Cubicles, Storage, Desks, Tables). Check the links for various Knoll product lines.
Greener
- Furniture & Fabric List (Office & Healthcare) from the Healthy Hospitals Initiative (HHI): List of products (click on company logos - scroll down for fabrics)
- Healthier Furniture Guide (Office & Healthcare) from the Center for Environmental Health (CEH): List of products (choose fabrics from HHI list - scroll down)
Green
- San Francisco passed an ordinance in 2017 prohibiting the sale of upholstered furniture and certain juvenile products containing flame retardants, starting in 2019. At the very least, make sure to purchase furniture labeled as "containing no added flame retardant chemicals"
