May 28th, 2010 by TRT Blog

Late last week, TRT’s founder and president had a chance to offer his thoughts on a theme that we at The Refinishing Touch feel strongly about — the benefits of refurbishment over replacement and how sustainability has been translated by the public and private sectors.  Check out excerpts below from the article published in Hotel & Motel Management as a part of HotelWorld Network:

“The challenges faced by the hospitality industry throughout 2009 are still ongoing, and growth in 2010 is predicted to be sluggish at best. As organizations seek to lower costs and maintain profitability, it is increasingly obvious that the concept of sustainability isn’t just of interest to the environmental lobby; it’s also good business.”

“It’s time to see refurbishment as more than ‘making do.’ As increasing numbers of companies respond to consumer-driven demand for changing business practices through triple bottom line reporting, sustainability ranks highly. By focusing on sustainability in resource management, companies save money, while increasing their standing with consumers at the same time.”

Click here to view the full article.

Mario Insenga, The Refinishing Touch

May 25th, 2010 by TRT Blog

Conferences, expos and other events have been a fairly regular part of American business for some time now, but few subjects and points of interest have so rapidly gained traction across industries the way that “green” has.

Today in Concord, NH, the New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association played host to the New England Eco-Hospitality Expo and brought hospitality professionals together with experts in sustainability and companies providing eco-friendly products and services.

The Eco-Café floor at the event featured a range of vendors providing education and information on products and services for more environmentally-sensitive hospitality operations.

Dan Ruben, executive director of Boston Green Tourism, lead an Eco-Café discussion on sustainability issues for hospitality and attendees at the event were given the opportunity to choose from three tracks of sessions, during three separate timeslots throughout the day including:

• “Energy Efficiency and Conservation Basics for Hospitality”

• “Getting to Zero Waste—Source Reduction, Recycling and Composting”

• “Fostering a Values-based, Environmental Work Ethic”

• “Green Power Options—Local Renewable Projects”

• “How to Effectively Track Your Environmental Efforts”

Sessions were given from key members of the hospitality industry including members of the Sustainable Development & Energy Systems Group and the Environmental Protection Agency as well as individuals from some of New England’s most well known hotels including the Westin Copley Place and the ‘Director of Green’ from The Lenox Hotel.

It’s always encouraging to see friends in other areas of our industry coming together to learn and offer guidance on how to become (and stay) sustainable across all layers of a business. Keep an eye out in the coming weeks for details on another fantastic speaking opportunity that we have been invited to participate in by Boston Green Tourism’s, Dan Ruben—one that we’re very excited about and can’t wait to share!

May 19th, 2010 by TRT Blog

As a company keen  to share ideas about sustainable practices, we’re elated to see our founder and CEO share his expertise and our experience at industry events.  Today Mario Insenga has been speaking at the Philagreen Conference, run by the Philagreen Hospitality Association, an initiative comprised of hospitality and environmental professionals joining together to create sustainable “green” business practices.

The Philagreen Hospitality Association encourages and supports hospitality professionals to green their operations in a variety of ways, from using environmentally friendly cleaning products to obtaining LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.

Following a great introduction from Philagreen’s Francine Cohen, which outlined some of the experience we have gained over our thirty years in business (- did you know we’ve worked with more than 20 thousand hotels around the world?), Mario and was given the opportunity to explain how getting greener can and should be something that is an instant return on investment – and how these two types of ‘green’, the environment and the bottom line are not mutually exclusive – and even going so far to say that green doesn’t mean a thing in business if it doesn’t make or save money.

The event was engaging, and Mario got some interesting feedback on our approach -  the benefit and ease of extending the life of furniture past the seven year amortization period, how globally-respected brands have saved 80 percent by adopting refinishing and reuse, and changing attitudes so furniture is seen – and classified financially – as  an asset, and not a disposable line item. And the other price we each pay as 80 acres of rainforest is destroyed every minute.

Next week we’re going to share some more of Mario’s thoughts in an interview with him, as we ask where furniture should go as a line item on your balance sheet – expense or long term asset?

green, Mario Insenga, Philagreen Hospitality, Sustainability

May 19th, 2010 by TRT Blog

We are very proud to announce our new teaming agreement with UNICOR. Also known as Federal Prison Industries, Inc, UNICOR is a Government corporation which provides job skills training within the Federal Bureau of Prisons, to recycle televisions as part of its e-waste program.

As part of our TV recycling program, designed to complement our armoire conversion services, we will work closely together to recycle electronics safely and responsibly.

This program is very close to our hearts, as reusing and recycling the materials from end-of-life televisions conserves natural resources and avoids air and water pollution, as well as greenhouse gas emissions caused by manufacturing new products.

UNICOR has extensive expertise in the area and believes in maintaining the highest standards in occupational and environmental standards, which is why we believe it is the perfect partner for us and are very excited about our future collaboration.

To learn more, view the full press release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100519006530/en/Refinishing-Touch-Partners-UNICOR-Electronics-Recycling

electronics recycling, environmental standards, UNICOR

May 18th, 2010 by TRT Blog

As you all know, here at The Refinishing Touch, we are very much committed to providing services with minimal impact on the environment. Being green isn’t always easy, so we’ve put together our top 5 of the latest sustainable news from across the blogosphere to inform, entertain, and hopefully inspire you too!

• The Calistoga Ranch in Napa Valley finds a cute and eco-friendly alternative to lawnmowers with babydoll sheep.
• Hilton Worldwide proprietary LightStay system implementation helps the hospitality giant reduce carbon footprint—with utility costs savings of more than $29 million.
• Interested in responsible travel? Then the free Travel Guide Green eBook issued by The International Ecotourism society is a must-read.
• NY Times’ design critic Alice Rawsthorn takes a look at the latest progress in sustainable design and judges if recent attempts are cool, green or both.
• Ten interesting and creative ways to give your wine bottles a second life…in your garden.

green, Hilton Worldwide, Sustainability

May 14th, 2010 by TRT Blog

In late April, the American Institute of Architects unveiled the 10 best green buildings of the past year. Take a look at a slideshow of the winners at FastCompany.

The prize-winning architects used innovative cooling systems, made man-made wetlands, sustainably harvested woods and solar panels, all without any sacrifices in their buildings’ aesthetics.

We’re partial to the way Hopkins Architects and Centerbrook Architects integrated solar panels into Yale’s Kroon Hall, adding a modern, eco-friendly touch to the university’s familiar gothic look.

But see for yourself – check out all the winners here

May 13th, 2010 by TRT Blog

The Federal Times blog has posted up some interesting pictures from last week’s General Services Administration (GSA) Expo, which The Refinishing Touch team also attended. We’ve been working in the government sector for over thirty years now, and while it’s true that public opinion, general awareness and Obama’s green government agenda has helped to prioritize the review and adoption of sustainable processes and purchases, we think there’s still a need to both talk about and commit to cost-effectiveness.

One of the challenges faced in the public sector involves reviewing and setting budgets according to actual spending levels. In order to encourage positive changes, there need to be clear incentives for adopting more efficient methods of maintaining and managing assets, while ensuring there are no budgetary penalties for prudent reuse and refurbishment.

In the US we have a total estimated national debt of $12.9 trillion and counting, while the total non-federal public sector debt is thought to be approximately $3 trillion. In the face of these numbers it might seem a minor consolation to encourage reuse, recycling and modification of furniture assets across public sector organizations, however the needless trashing and replacement of assets is undeniably a contributory waste of both the planet’s and the government’s resources. Sustainability simply makes good financial, operational and environmental sense, whatever the scale.

May 9th, 2010 by TRT Blog

The green movement has had a lot of support throughout the years, but without the collective efforts of various organizations it would not have grown to be the movement it is today. That’s why events such as the upcoming USGBC annual Federal Summit, to be held by the U.S. Green Building Council in Washington D.C. on May 18 and 19, are so valuable to progressing green initiatives.

The Summit is brings together city, state, and federal government officials, industry leaders and experts from nonprofits to discuss experiences and share ideas for developing sustainable buildings in the public sector. At the Summit, attendees focus on topics such as sustainable return on investment (SROI), different approaches to “greening” existing buildings, and how to incorporate renewable energy systems. The U.S. Green Building Council’s government sector manager, Melissa Gallagher-Rogers, outlines some of the key offerings of the summit here (http://www.nlc.org/articles/articleItems/NCW042610/USGBCarticle.aspx).

As public sector organizations have to contend with a different set of concerns than private organizations, such as political considerations, compliance requirements and public benefits, it is vital for these professionals to share their successes to foster the development of sustainable initiatives in public buildings. With so many great minds coming together and the climate for sustainability, we are sure to see good things come out of this year’s Summit.

May 9th, 2010 by TRT Blog

Greetings from Orlando, Florida. We’re here along with other GSA vendors and agencies for the 16th Annual GSA Training Conference and Expo http://expo.gsa.gov/content/green-initiatives.

As a GSA-approved vendor, we’re invested in bringing our sustainable, environmentally responsible practices to government organizations. This year, it’s been a treat to see the GSA Expo do the same.

This year’s conference is the greenest yet with environmental training courses on topics such as green changes in the administration and congress; the legal requirements to buy green; green buildings and practices; energy programs for federal agencies, and meeting green purchasing requirements.

Attending government agencies will receive materials printed with soy-based ink on recycled paper and use electronic document storage, moving the Expo towards paperless status. More importantly, they’ll have a chance to meet with over 200 GSA vendors, displaying their BioBased, Energy-Efficient, Recycled Content, and Low Toxic Hazardous Constituent Products. To no surprise, this is where we fit in. We’ve had great success working with the GSA before, and we’d love to expand this relationship.

The GSA, through a ‘green purchasing’ emphasis, is buying into a culture of economic and environmental responsibility that The Refinishing Touch (link) has been involved in for years. It’s encouraging to see this emphasis on a GSA-wide level, and we’re looking forward to sharing our expertise while we’re here, as well as going forward.