Herman Miller Resolve System User Manual

Y

Our sustainability goals by the year 2020:

• Zero carbon footprint

• Zero landfill

• Zero hazardous waste generation

• Zero air emissions (VOCs)

• Zero process water use

• 100 percent renewable electrical energy use via renewable
energy credits and a power purchase agreement

• Company buildings constructed to a minimum LEED Silver certification

• 100 percent of sales from DfE approved products

Environmental Product Summary

Resolve® System

Design Story: A Simple, Precise, and Timeless
Office System

Herman Miller and designer Ayse Birsel saw the
sweeping changes in work and technology as a great
opportunity to reexamine and resolve (re-solve) critical
workplace issues. The result is the Resolve system, an
elegantly simple structure of poles and screens that’s
easily disassembled for recycling.

Resolve uses much less material than a traditional
office system, which significantly reduces its
environmental impact. Thanks to its dematerialized
construction, a Resolve installation weighs between
30-70 percent less than a traditional office, depending
on the office application.

The Resolve system has a precise vocabulary that’s
easy to add to and reconfigure. Its design is fresh
today, and will be for decades to come.

Herman Miller’s Design Protocol

Our commitment to corporate sustainability naturally
includes minimizing the environmental impact of each
of our products. Our Design for Environment team (DfE)
applies environmentally sensitive design standards to
both new and existing Herman Miller products.

• LCA—Have we optimized the product based on the
entire life cycle?

level® Certification

Resolve is certified level 1. The level conformance
mark ensures a comprehensive, independent, and
impartial assessment of the environmental and social
impacts of a product.

Global GreenTag

Resolve is Global GreenTag
certified. Global GreenTag

CertTM

GreenRate Certified

CertTM

GreenRate Level A

CertTM

is an Australian
Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
approved National Certification Mark, an ISO compliant
ecolabel and Green Building Councils of Australia
and New Zealand recognized third party certifier.
GreenTag GreenRate certification enables products
to be allocated Level A, B or C in the Green Building
Council of Australia (GBCA) and New Zealand GBC’s
Green StarTM tools and certify both VOC and
formaldehyde (composite wood) credits.

Material Content

The Resolve system’s components are constructed from
steel, wood, plastic, aluminum, and other materials.

The DfE Design Protocol goes beyond regulatory
compliance to thoroughly evaluate new product
designs in four key areas:

STEEL 48%

WOOD 31%

• Material Chemistry and Safety of Inputs—
What chemicals are in the materials we specify, and
are they the safest available?

• Disassembly—Can we take products apart at the

PLASTIC 12%

ALUMINUM 6%

OTHER 3%

end of their useful life, to recycle their materials?

• Recyclability—Do the materials contain recycled
content, and more importantly, can the materials be
recycled at the end of the product’s useful life?

z 1

Resolve is up to 56 percent recyclable at the end of
its useful life.

® Y and Z, Resolve and Formcoat are among the registered trademarks of Herman Miller, Inc.
® level is a trademark of BIFMA International.
Global GreenTag
National Certification Mark.
® GREENGUARD is a registered trademark of the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute.
© 2012 Herman Miller, Inc., Zeeland, Michigan

CertTM

is an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) approved

Y

Environmental Product Summary

Resolve® System

The typical Resolve system set-up is comprised of
49 percent recycled content. This figure breaks
down to 14 percent post-consumer and 35 percent
pre-consumer recycled content.

POST-CONSUMER
RECYCLED CONTENT 14%

PRE-CONSUMER
RECYCLED CONTENT 35%

• Resolve’s entire weight-bearing structure—poles,
support arms, trusses—is made of steel that has
approximately 35-percent recycled content and is
100 percent recyclable.

• Most metal components have a powder-coat paint
finish that emits negligible volatile organic compounds
(VOCs).

• Plastic components are identified with an ASTM
recycling code whenever possible, to aid in returning
these materials to the recycling stream.

• Wood, while not technically recyclable, can be
cycled back to the natural environment, such as
through composting. The wood content in our work
surfaces and storage unit substrates is comprised
of 100-percent reclaimed wood, as certified by the
Composite Panel Associations EPP. This wood
content is made primarily of sawdust generated by
other wood process operations. Additionally, wood
waste from our operations can be burned in our
energy center, which generates steam that we use in
our operations facilities.

• Formcoat® work surfaces are finished with a
polyester-based powder coating that seals the wood
substrate and reduces off-gassing.

• Single-material polyester fabric (boundary screens,
flags, rolling screens, and canopies) is recyclable as
high-grade polyester.

• Returnable/Recyclable Packaging—Packaging
materials include corrugated cardboard, molded
pulp, and expanded polystyrene foam. These
materials are part of a closed-loop recycling system,
meaning they can be recycled repeatedly.

– Whenever possible, shipments between

Herman Miller and its suppliers include the use
of pallets and other returnable packaging to
minimize waste.

z 2

Manufacturing Process

• Worker Health and Safety—Herman Miller strives to
meet or exceed OSHA standards. Herman Miller has
an OHSAS 18001-certified safety management system.

Product Performance

• Designed for minimal material use, reduced energy
requirements, easy reconfiguration, and durability.

• Resolve screens are easily changed to extend life of
installation.

• Backed by Herman Miller’s 12-year, 24/7 warranty.

Indoor Air Quality

The Resolve system is GREENGUARD® certified as a
low-emitting product that meets current indoor air
quality standards.

Corporate Environmental Policy

For more information on Herman Miller’s Corporate
Environmental Policy and other environmental
efforts, visit the “Environmental Advocacy” section of
HermanMiller.com.

Supplier Support

At Herman Miller, we are committed to working closely
with our suppliers to reduce our collective impact on
the environment. We not only encourage our suppliers
to minimize their operations’ environmental impacts,
but require they assist us in decreasing our facilities’
negative environmental effects, as well.

LEED

The Resolve system may contribute to LEED credits
due to its returnable/reusable packaging, durability,
pre-consumer and post-consumer recycled content.
Depending on location, Resolve also may contribute
to a LEED Regional Materials credit. Please refer to
http://hermanmiller.com/ecoScorecard or contact
your Herman Miller representative for detailed LEED
information.

It’s important to note that no interior furnishings,
individually or collectively, can guarantee a
specific number of points for LEED certification.

Herman Miller complies with the Federal Trade commission’s Part 260

Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims.

® Y and Z, Resolve and Formcoat are among the registered trademarks of Herman Miller, Inc.
® level is a trademark of BIFMA International.
Global GreenTag
National Certification Mark.
® GREENGUARD is a registered trademark of the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute.
© 2012 Herman Miller, Inc., Zeeland, Michigan

CertTM

is an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) approved