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Save the Forest by Using Reclaimed Furniture

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Save the Forest by Using Reclaimed Furniture | How to Make a Cafe Table to Look More Beautiful and Instagramable
21
Jan

Reclaimed Wood

Reclaimed wood is one of the alternatives to address the problem of scarcity of wood and answer the demands of eco-living. Reclaimed wood is the use of an object that uses wood material to be converted into another object, so that wood which has previously been used with its shape and function can then be changed in shape and even in function. For furniture design products in the country, the use of reclaimed wood has long been done but not many people know about it.

Timber reclamation activities can be said to be the same as recycling activities, but in furniture production activities the use of wood materials other than recycled wood can also reduce the use of wood and use existing wood materials as much as possible. As far as possible the residual or production yield or wood waste is not more than 5%, even as far as possible the residual can be remade into other products. The wise use of reclaimed wood and very little waste not only requires expertise but the most important thing is the spirit of loving nature and the forest, this is the role of designers who love nature playing an important role. Many furniture producers and industries in Indonesia use reclaimed wood furniture and the main market for these products is the European market.

Many people in European countries are very fond of this type of furniture material. The shape and model of furniture were born to adapt materials that have unique shape characteristics. Many requests for furniture or other goods with wood raw materials have resulted in increased demand for raw materials while the supply of reclaimed wood raw materials is limited. This had become an obstacle in production. As in economic principles, if demand is large but goods are low the price will rise; especially if the item has a unique value.

This also happened to reclaimed wooden furniture. Material constraints cause limited production and the uniqueness of the product causes the price of goods to be high. It is not uncommon for potential buyers to turn to products that are not reclaimed or resemble reclaimed, but use new wood raw materials. To market reclaimed products, producers take various steps such as providing education to the public about eco-living, telling potential buyers about all the benefits of reclaimed wood to obtaining international certification.

an internationally recognized symbol if the product being marketed uses wood raw materials from the forest responsibly. All wood taken from the forest through an official process and wood took is really unprotected wood in the sense that the amount is still very much. This certification was issued by a world organization called the Forest Stewardship Council which is very determined to fight for the preservation of forests in the world. This symbol also provides certification to companies that use recycled products and other materials that have a substitution value (sustainable).

Besides being reclaimed, there is another action that is quite well known in the eco-living movement, which is sustainable, which means sustainable or there is a replacement. Sustainable in the furniture world has also been done for a long time, such as by using raw materials that are easily recovered or can be cultivated, for example, the use of bamboo or rattan material. The use of natural fibers which are also evident in Indonesia such as abaca fibers, fibers from water hyacinth, fibers from grass, and fibers from banana trees. The fiber is woven and made into a kind of rope or a kind of mat and then assisted with other materials and can be combined so that it becomes an attractive and very identical product.

 

Sources of raw materials

Many sources of raw materials for this type of furniture, especially in Indonesia, because wood material is used in almost every object of daily necessities, such as for houses consisting of house poles, door frames, and windows. Wood raw materials can also be obtained from sawn company waste, which generally does not utilize parts of the wood that have holes or are damaged by insects. For furniture that uses reclaimed wood, the value can be increased again when combined with substitute material (sustainable), such as rattan, bamboo, natural fiber, even with a metal material. For metal itself, it can be obtained from nail wastes obtained when receiving raw materials from the house.
Pieces of waste wood from sawmills and used wood from demolition houses, consisting of a frame jamb, frame easel or wooden floor.
Timber logs under trees, waste from sawmills, railroad bearings and demolition from houses.
Wood from a house, with various shapes and holes

Designing reclaimed wood-based furniture

In designing furniture, forming material becomes the main element besides the elements of art and technique. Because reclaimed wood has constraints in terms of the limited amount of raw materials as well as constraints in terms of the shape of its raw materials, in designing furniture based on reclaimed wood must be careful in choosing wood. Pieces of each part of the design must be matched first to the size of the raw material, then wisely ensure that the pieces are maximized and if there is a waste cut-off then it can be collected and can be treated laminated or joined and combined. Lamination techniques can be an alternative solution if the raw materials owned by producers in small pieces. Lamination also provides added value in terms of design, especially if you want to obtain an intermittent surface pattern.
From some examples of furniture designs above, we cannot distinguish the type of material, whether it uses reclaimed wood or not. But if we are more observant then there are differences in terms of material dimensions and furniture details. For ordinary people who want to buy furniture with reclaimed wood material, it is necessary to ask for guarantees and certifications, on the contrary, the producers must include certification and narration in the form of original stories from the furniture material. As noted at the outset that furniture with reclaimed wood has a higher value and, of course, in terms of price is also higher compared to furniture with non-reclaimed raw material, but these obstacles are now fading as community awareness of the importance of forest conservation. In Indonesia, consumers who use furniture from reclaimed wood are increasing in number.

CONCLUSION

Public awareness of nature conservation, especially tropical forests, has become increasingly high, so the use of reclaimed wood and substitute materials has been common. In Indonesia, awareness to produce and buy goods from reclamation materials and substitutions has begun to exist. The designers are required to love nature and realize that their share in determining the preservation of nature is huge. The design is the beginning of the eco-living movement and all objects that are designed and then produced from the start must be wise, both from the choice of material to its impact in the future, because everything will come back again and directly impact us and the environment.
source: Oktavianus Marti Nangoy
Journal article Humaniora Binus • 2010
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