2018 R3 Conference presentation by Tucker Jadczak of IRN on how used office furniture and equipment is repurposed and reused.

1. Furniture and Office
Equipment Reuse

2. CHARITABLE REUSE
▪ Understand the magnitude of furniture waste issues
▪ Learn about the social, environmental, and fiscal benefits of reuse
▪ Understand who are the recipients and how furniture reaches them
▪ Discover the steps involved in a reuse program, and how IRN and
Casella collaborate in them

3. Fast Facts About Furniture Waste
• According to the EPA’s 2014 Advanced Sustainable Materials
Management report, it is estimated that 9.8 MILLION tons of
furniture were disposed into the landfill in 2009 alone.
• In the same study, it is estimated that furniture is one of the least
recycled items in the country, and one of the bulkiest to enter our
landfills.
• The cost to dispose of furniture by the landfill grows every year

4. Why Isn’t Surplus a Zero-waste Material?
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5. About IRN
• Established in 1999, IRN (Institution Recycling
Network) was designed to be a catch-all
recycler for educational, healthcare and
corporate institutions.
• IRN would help institutions recycle the small
stuff, like paper, batteries, lightbulbs, e-waste,
and everything else in between.

6. About IRN
• In 2002, our partner Boston College was looking to
recycle over 300 sets of dorm furniture.
• It was good stuff, and we asked why they wouldn’t
donate it to a charity instead of recycling it.
• BC’s response? They tried. They, alongside every
other college in Boston had filled up every halfway
house and goodwill within three neighboring
states. They just needed it to go away, sustainably.

7. From Recycling To Reuse
• We discovered a market failure. There was a huge need
among relief organizations for useable furniture, but no
one making the match.
• Potential generators who have surplus to dispose of do
not have the time or resources to network with dozens
of charities worldwide.
• Among potential recipients, no one has the time and
resources to contact the thousands of schools that might
have furniture to offer.
• Neither side has the capability to plan and manage the
projects to make the transfer happen – setting up
moving crews, transportation, pack trucks, fill out
customs paperwork, track the furniture to its destination.

8. What We Do
• Reuse or Recycle EVERYTHING
• Make Sure Reuse is SIMPLE
• Make Reuse COST EFFECTIVE

9. Who We Work With
Residential
31%
K-12
26%
Healthcare
4%
Office
39%

10. Reuse To Date
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2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
0.02 0.23
1.02
3.11
2.19 3.27 3.57
2.40
6.43 6.77
5.98
7.47
6.19
7.39 7.64
9.24

11. Where Does It All Go?
Disaster Relief
Economic
Development
Humanitarian
Missions

13. Benefits of Reuse
Cost Environment Society PR

14. The Process
S i t e V i s i t ( I f N e c e s s a r y ) D e v e l o p D e t a i l e d I n v e n t o r y
C o m p r e h e n s i v e P r o j e c t
P r o p o s a l
C o n f i r m S c h e d u l e A n d L o g i s t i c s E x e c u t e T h e P r o j e c t
I n i t i a l I n f o r m a t i o n

15. Loading a Truck

16. Conclusion Package
Cover Page Reuse Certificate Shipment Summary
Pr o j ec t Co n c l usio n Repo r t
IRN – The Reuse Network
7 Sout h St at e St reet , Su it e 2 Concor d, New Ham pshire 0 3 3 0 1
P: 6 0 3 -2 2 9 -1 9 6 2 F: 6 0 3 -2 2 9 -1 9 6 0 www.irnsurplus.com
SUR27 3 4
Ho gwar t s Sc ho o l o f Wizar dr y
Gal l o way Hil l s, MO 9 9 9 91
June 2 016

17. Partners in
Charitable Reuse

18. HOW IRN AND CASELLA COLLABORATE
▪ Casella gets a call
▪ Casella calls IRN
▪ IRN places with charity(ies)
▪ IRN, Casella and client collaborate on
project schedule
▪ Project happens

19. 2017
Southern New Hampshire University
• 240 Sets of Dorm Furniture.
(1,029 pieces)
• 9 Overseas Ocean Containers
• Destinations: Mongolia, Armenia,
Somalia, El Salvador, Nicaragua

20. SNHU Mongolia

21. SNHU Mongolia

22. Phillips Academy
• Multiple phases, many different
items
• Destinations: Multiple U.S. based
charities

23. Phillips Academy U.S