Category Archives: Environment

Photo Gallery: Environmental Affairs Hosts Second Annual Green Fling

On April 22, our Corporate Conference Center transformed into “The Greatest Show on Earth Day” as the Environmental Affairs team hosted the second annual Green Fling. Employees enjoyed a morning of games, fortune telling, popcorn, cotton candy, music, and giveaways. Various community vendors shared ways we can better care for our environment, offered free plants and trees, and even collected employees’ recyclable household materials on-site. Here are some of our favorite photos!

 

Photo Gallery: Environmental Affairs Kicks Off First Annual Green Fling

It may have been pouring outside, but rain didn’t stop our Environmental Affairs team from kicking off the first annual Green Fling at the Corporate Office. On May 29, our Conference Center transformed into a party with games, prizes, music, giveaways, and a photo booth. Recycling vendors collected employees’ recyclable household materials such as cardboard, aluminum, and even electronic waste. Check out a few of our favorite photos from the day!

Company Spotlight: High Point Furniture Sets an Eco-Example

Ruby Jones and Richard Weeks each have over 20 years of experience with Leggett & Platt.

Ruby Jones and Richard Weeks each have over 20 years of experience with Leggett & Platt.

Environmental awareness runs deep at High Point Furniture in High Point, North Carolina. The Leggett & Platt manufacturing facility, which produces a variety of furniture components, recently hit a milestone, becoming landfill-free – meaning it reduced its waste sent to landfills from 41 tons a year to zero.

To accomplish this impressive goal, High Point has basically made recycling a way of life. Everything that is recyclable is recycled appropriately, and things that aren’t go to a waste-to-energy plant, where they’re converted into fuel for kilns.

Building a better recycling program

High Point began its recycling journey in October 2009, when the American Home Furnishing Alliance started the Enhancing Furniture’s Environmental Culture program and encouraged High Point to participate. By March of 2010, High Point had become the first supplier company to complete the program successfully. The branch found that, through the program, it could not only reduce its carbon footprint, but also save money along the way. Continue reading

Eco Initiative Highlights – Spring 2015

LP-Ecoiniative-3410-300x134-colorfixedHere are two recent examples of Leggett & Platt’s commitment to be a good steward of our resources and environment. (Items in italics might be slightly embellished.)

Saving Energy by Reducing Horsepower

With a goal of energy savings, our Houston Foam facility (in Mississippi, not Texas) evaluated every motor in the plant and found they could cut some unnecessary horsepower. By replacing an over-sized motor for grinding equipment and removing an auger and drying fans that were no longer needed, they reduced total horsepower by 180, or 8%.

According to latest reports, the 180 liberated horses are now running wild and free across Mississippi.

Putting an Old Boiler Out to Pasture

Our Sponge Cushion facility in Morris, IL, which makes carpet cushion, has reduced fuel consumption and emissions by retiring a half-century old piece of equipment.

Working with their natural gas provider, NICOR, the plant found that their 1950s boiler used to cure synthetic rubber was, not surprisingly, a bit of a gas guzzler. While the boiler had served them well (and certainly shows they know how to maintain plant equipment), Sponge Cushion estimated they could reduce fuel usage 53% by upgrading to a modern unit.

Once installed, however, the new boiler performed even better than expected, using 65% less fuel. This is saving 104,000 therms of natural gas and eliminating 500 tons of CO2 annually.

With its replacement sweating away, the retired boiler is cooling off poolside in Palm Springs.

Employee Spotlight: Russ Dunton & Jason Maneke Make an Environmental Impact

Russ Dunton & Jason Maneke

Jason (left) and Russ received the Indiana Governor’s Award in 2011 for their branch’s environmental efforts. “I had to wear a suit, so it was a big deal,” Jason joked.

Russ Dunton and Jason Maneke may be two of the most passionate people at Leggett & Platt. Both work at our branch in Kendallville, Indiana. Both exude excitement when they talk about their jobs. Both invest significant time and energy in their facility, the environment, and the intersection of those worlds.

Russ and Jason support a facility with 85 folks who work hard and stay put – the average employee tenure is 16.5 years! Their efforts have demonstrated how a single facility can make a large, ongoing impact on the environment.

Kendallville is a wire-forming business that supplies materials to the bedding and furniture industries. Russ currently serves as Branch Manager and has previous experience in engineering, IT, and machine design. Jason may wear the title Human Resources Manager, but he also oversees their safety, environmental, and continuous improvement efforts. Jason joined Leggett after being part of the plastics industry for many years.

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L&P operations cut costs while preserving environment: Fall Eco Initiative Highlights

LP-Ecoiniative-3410-300x134-colorfixedLeggett & Platt employees are committed to protecting and preserving the environment. We’re quite proud of the effort these teams have made through their commitment to the Eco Initiative, a program that provides guidelines for a proactive environmental management system.

We’ve highlighted five stories from the fall edition of “Eco News,” our quarterly internal newsletter, to share with you:

1. Flex-O-Lators improves efficiency and lowers costs through Eco Initiative

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Photo Gallery: Environmental Affairs Kicks Off Eco Initiative at Corporate Office

LP-Ecoiniative-3410-300x134-colorfixedLook inside Leggett & Platt and you’ll find employees who are committed to protecting and preserving the environment. On May 16, our Corporate Office kicked off participation in the Eco Initiative, joining over 50 other Leggett & Platt branches who have registered for or implemented the program.

The Eco Initiative provides a system to improve environmental performance in our operations which adds to our track record of environmental stewardship. To date, some of our efforts include energy savings through high-efficiency fluorescent bulbs and condensing units, as well as paper, plastic, aluminum, and cardboard recycling. In 2013, on average, the Corporate Office recycled approximately 30,000 lbs. of paper, 600 lbs. of plastic, and 7,000 lbs. of cardboard each month!

For more information, contact Theresa Block, Director of Environmental Affairs.

Eco Initiative Gallery (1 of 2)

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