From the very beginning in 1927, Albert Nothdurft, the founder of ALNO, was conscious of the impact on the environment and the effect of limited and dwindling resources. Now, as then, ALNO has taken the next step forward in product design by leading the industry in a renaissance of high-design and global responsibility.
For over 80 years, ALNO has led the industry in “green” manufacturing, long before it became fashionable. For over 20 years, ALNO has been using non-toxic paints and lacquers, free from heavy metals and low in emissions. ALNO products are manufactured using recycled and regenerated wood from certified resources as well as the continued use of non-toxic laminates, aluminum, glass and technical veneers. ALNO only uses lumber, veneers and wood panels from fully managed and sustainable forests.
The factory itself is a living statement in sustainability with its “Zero Waste” resource management system, whereby all waste is either reconstituted into new materials or used as fuel to heat the factory, saving 3 million liters of heating oil each year. As the first to implement such standards, the ALNO factory is hailed as a role model of “Green” manufacturing by the German government.
At ALNO, the reduction and elimination of waste has always been a fundamental manufacturing element. With computerization of the manufacturing process and OTM (On Time Manufacturing) practices, ALNO controls the environment used in production and has eliminated the need to stockpile and warehouse large quantities of raw materials. It is also a standard practice to recycle all wood cuttings and sawdust. In addition, ALNO uses only controlled growth forests for its veneers and solid wood doors. By managing production and waste properly, we become more aware of the environment around us and our obligation to the world at large.
ALNO, as well as its primary suppliers, have invested both time and money into research and development in order to manufacture without the use of toxic materials often associated with the production of lacquers and plastics. From the very beginning, ALNO had no difficulty complying with the standards of safety adopted by the European Community. At ALNO, the final quality of our product, as well as the environmental results of production, are serious matters, about which everybody feels responsible. Thus, even the things not produced inside ALNO become a part of ALNO.
Production management is a condition that cannot be sacrificed if one wants to control the manufacturing process and the quality of the final product. Internationally, ALNO is recognized and accredited for its unparalleled, consistent, quality production. As a technological vanguard, ALNO is without equal. In fact, some of the world’s finest manufacturers of machines, as well as facilities operation managers, study and test new technologies, materials, and procedures at ALNO. Our new technologies set the standards for efficiency in production and quality control. However, this has not made us complacent; we believe we can always improve ourselves. For this reason, ALNO factories and products are continually evolving, so we can set the industry standard.
GREEN FEATURES
