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Article: Furniture firm saves like no other
- Article from:
- Oakland Tribune
- Article date:
- August 9, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2006 Oakland Tribune. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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WEARING a full face mask, Antonio Bermudez sprays powder finish on
a table leg at the factory of Metro, a 101-year-old Oakland furniture
manufacturer. As he works, every puff of powder that doesn't stick to
the metal is sucked into a vacuum chamber to be captured and reused.
The $44.4 million, 200-employee company has created one of the
country's first energy-saving, environmentally friendly furniture
finishing systems. Metro's annual saving from this and other
conservation efforts: more than $150,000.
"The finishing system is the beacon, the representation of what
we're trying to do," said Kevin Owens, Metro's director of
environmental strategy.
The company has made environmental issues ...