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OVERVIEW

Steelcase is assisting a Fortune 100 tech firm with ongoing renovations and upgrades. In early 2016 the firm undertook the relocation of about 1,900 staff from a two-story, 75,000 square foot complex in advance of renovation.

Steelcase and the regional lead dealer helped the client come up with a removal plan calling for a combination of redeployment and reuse. The majority of seating was either redeployed to other company facilities, or stored to be reinstalled as renovations were completed. Items slated for reuse included nearly 1,900 adjustable height desks, plus about 500 chairs and 60 work and conference tables.

The client required the project to be completed in several phases stretching over four months, as employees were moved to other company locations.

COMPOSITION

Item	Count	Item	Count
Desk, Adjustable Height	1,884	Conference Table	34
Task Chair	349	Work Table	24
Side/Other Chair	164	Storage Cabinet w/ Ped File	11
		TOTALS	2,466

IMPLEMENTATION

The project demanded close coordination between the client, Steelcase dealer, and IRN. The client notified the dealer of its move schedule (which changed several times during the project). The dealer in turn notified IRN, and assigned a moving crew for the requested dates. IRN reached out to its network of charitable partners, identified recipients for the client’s inventory, and set up trucking. On the move dates, the moving crew emptied the designated client space, set aside the items designated for redeployment (handled by the dealer), and loaded the inventory designated for reuse into trailers brought onsite by IRN.

With multiple schedule changes, the project was ultimately completed in seven phases stretching from February 22 to June 17.

CHALLENGES

The protracted schedule with multiple schedule and inventory changes was the most significant challenge on the project. There’s a cost to IRN and the charity every time a truck is scheduled and then canceled, so IRN had to wait until each phase of the project was firmly on the books before matching the inventory with a recipient and setting up trucking.

Additionally, the project phasing made it difficult to secure one or just a few recipients for the inventory. For all intents and purposes, IRN had to identify recipients, on short notice, as if for six independent projects.

DESTINATIONS

IRN has made a significant investment to expand our network of charitable partners here in the U.S. This project is a good example. Eighty percent of the inventory was distributed to seven different U.S. organizations: three tractor-trailers to Habitat for Humanity, two trailers to IRN’s charitable partner Life for Relief for schools in three states, two to a public school district, two to charter schools, and one to an adult education center. Three shipping containers or about one-fifth of the project were provided to our longtime partner Food for the Poor for schools in Honduras.

Recipient	Pieces	Weight
Food for the Poor, Honduras	182	11,458
Food for the Poor, Honduras	180	11,444
Food for the Poor, Honduras	190	12,350
Public School District	210	13,490
Charter School	127	8,191
Habitat for Humanity	142	6,271
Charter School	135	7,290
Habitat for Humanity	218	11,911
Habitat for Humanity	175	9,577
Public School District	168	10,628
Goodwill Industries	176	10,672
Life for Relief	209	11,562
Adult Education Nonprofit	123	7,410
Life for Relief	195	10,907
Life for Relief	36	4,144
TOTAL	2,466	147,385

 

“When we suggested reuse to the client, they were skeptical. When we finished the project, they were ecstatic. It upholds their commitment to sustainability, and it cost less than throwing the furniture in the landfill. We know we’ll see many more projects with them.”

Vice President, Steelcase Dealer