Global technology research firm Technavio predicts the U.S. recycled office furniture market will reach $2.68 billion by 2020, in its latest report.

The research study covers the present scenario and growth prospects of the recycled office furniture market in the U.S. for 2016-2020. The report considered revenue generated from the sales of recycled office furniture in calculating the market size.

Recycled office furniture is a term used for any post-consumer office furniture that has been salvaged from the solid waste stream and brought back into the market with or without repairs.  This includes remanufactured, refurbished, and reused office furniture - basically all furniture being used again.

Competitive market scenario

Vendors are increasingly developing their operational efficiency to increase production and reduce costs. They are using wood waste for construction purposes and taking advantage of on-site and off-site recycling processes to increase production.

Technavio’s lead analyst for research on retail goods and services Brijesh Choubey says, “With the competition in the market becoming more intense over the years, many vendors are using online media to enhance reach and overall value for customers, which include corporate businesses, small business owners, and home office furniture buyers. Manufacturers are also opting for direct marketing through catalogs.”
 

Technavio says the following three factors are contributing to the growth of the recycled office furniture market in the US:

Rise in number of offices

Growing demand for customization of office furniture
Increased demand for eco-friendly office furniture

The rise in the number of office buildings and technology parks in the U.S. has enhanced the sales of office furniture in the past few years. With multinational companies (MNCs) expanding their businesses into new cities and countries, and with the rise in the number of employees, office spaces across the country are also expanding. This is expected to lead to increased demand for recycled office furniture over the next five years.

The US has been the world's largest recipient of foreign direct investment (FDI) since 2006. The favorable government policies, a highly innovative environment, the availability of appropriate legal protection for companies, and the rising foreign direct investments have increased the number of MNCs in the US. The commercial leasing market in the US grew at an average annual rate of 5.4% during 2010-2015, and was valued at USD 176.3 billion in 2015. The commercial leasing industry includes the renting of retail buildings, office buildings, and industrial buildings.

Growing demand for customization of office furniture

Technavio says customized and made-to-order furniture made out of recycled materials has been gaining significant customer interest in the last five years. Companies like Contact Furnishings, RecycledBrooklyn, Business Furniture of Long Island, Davies Office, and others offer high-quality office furniture that is remanufactured, refurbished, and recycled from industrial materials and old wood. With office and commercial spaces becoming increasingly conscious of the need to combine design with functionality and sustainability goals while also keeping costs to a minimum, a growing number are opting for customized recycled furniture. The rise of the home office work culture has also led to considerable demand for customized recycled furniture. Domestic manufacturers are using mass customization as a strategy to maintain their competitive edge, particularly with the import of furniture gaining ground.

Increased demand for eco-friendly office furniture

Rising concerns about the preservation of the environment are leading to an increase in demand for recycled and green office furniture. Furniture manufacturers are increasingly using eco-friendly materials for their products. Vendors today are considering long-term ecological sustainability while manufacturing furniture products, and use wood that is sourced from sustainably grown forests. Metals used include a requisite quantity of recycled content, and substances that have heavy metals or tri-organic content are not used.

(Source: woodworkingnetwork.com  Author: Robert Dalheim)