A global manufacturer with sustainability and innovation at the heart of all that it does, ScanCom International has a strong ethos for the way it does business, from social accountability to ethical sourcing of raw materials and a transparent supply chain.
Consumers are more vocal than ever about protecting our planet and are making firm decisions about which brands they want to support. Manufacturers and retailers, alike, have had to up their game and hold themselves accountable for the products they put out into the world and what impact their processes have on the planet. For some, this will have been a recent mindset shift, but others have been on a longer journey, with sustainability now fully ingrained into the very fabric of the business.
One such manufacturer is ScanCom International; parent of leading UK-brand, LifestyleGarden®, and the pioneering company behind the iconic DuraOcean® chair, created in partnership with the world leading environmental and educational charity, the Eden Project.
ScanCom International has become a dominant player in the global market in recent years, and strives to deliver outstanding, beautiful pieces of furniture that combine international design and production with ethically sourced materials.
The company has been making furniture for more than 25 years and employs more than 4,500 people; primarily at its own facilities in Brazil, Indonesia and Vietnam. It also operates sales offices in in Europe, the US and Asia, and boasts showrooms in Saigon, Vietnam, and Palma, Spain, as well as its distribution centre and showroom in Essex, UK
Despite the scale of the corporation, ScanCom places as much value on the people within its organisation and the world we live in, as it does on the quality of the products it produces.
The foundation of its vision is “Doing Business the Right Way” and this approach is taken right across the firm; starting with the initial sourcing and processing of raw materials, through the production and design stages, until the final product reaches the customer. That means:
- responsible sourcing of FSC™ wood in Brazil and Indonesia
- protecting the environment by minimising waste, CO2 emissions and the consumption of resources and energy
- maintaining control of restricted substances in all materials used
- developing and maintaining a keen understanding and awareness of the environment amongst all employees through regular training and education
- respecting human and labour rights
- complete transparency, with all processes audited by external authorities
Every single piece of furniture is made at the company’s state-of-the-art production facilities in Asia and is rigorously tested to ensure it meets international standards for quality, durability and functionality. Considering it launches 750 products a year, that’s a lot of testing. In fact, on average, the company checks as many as 157,094 products a year. It also has its own climate room to really put outdoor furniture through its paces and demonstrate its durability in extreme weather conditions.
All of the materials used in its products are made in house, which means its UK-brand, LifestyleGarden®, can guarantee quality, consistency and sustainability. The manufacturer only uses teak that is FSC-certified; either new timber that has been grown in responsibly managed plantations or recycled teak that has been sourced from components and structures on the island of Java. The company is also proud to operate the most efficient wood factory in Asia.
Recycling materials and achieving zero waste are key considerations within the business and all of its facilities are set up to enable upcycling and other secondary use of materials. This vital control of the supply chain means ScanCom can manage every step of the process.
ScanCom International has set out, very clearly, its commitment to supporting labour rights and protection in the workplace, including freedom of association, the eradication of forced labour, the complete abolition of child labour, and zero tolerance of any form of discrimination.
The firm upholds BSCI monitoring and SA 8000 certification at facilities, is a signatory to the UN Global Compact – a voluntary pact amongst businesses to implement universal sustainability and socially responsible principles – and invests in maintaining a proper system for identifying any potential Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking risks at its own facilities and its supply chain, whilst ensuring a suitable mechanism is in place to prevent these risks from appearing in the first place. The company has also recently successfully gained an A-rating for the amfori BCSI audit, as well successfully completing a Sedex SMETA 4 Pillar audit.
The hope is that this action sends a clear signal to all of its stakeholders that it is wholly committed to doing business the right way, whilst also meeting the CSR requirements and high expectations of customers in 50 countries worldwide.
Making history
If you’re wondering where you’ve heard the name LifestyleGarden® before, cast your mind back to SOLEX 2019, when you will, no doubt, recall the game-changing launch of DuraOcean®. This pioneering collection – the world’s first commercially-available range of outdoor furniture made from plastic marine waste recovered from our oceans – was met with critical acclaim and emerged as a clear winner of the Best New Product Award at the outdoor living show. It also scooped Bronze in the Gardiente Outdoor Living Awards the same year and was shortlisted for the Recycled Product of the Year at the 2020 MRW National Recycling Awards.
In today’s market, LifestyleGarden® understands that environmentally responsible initiatives are the only way to deliver innovative product development and this launch raised the bar, setting a new standard for sustainable material innovation. LifestyleGarden® has made a commitment to ‘reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink’, and is on a mission to bring even more recycled material innovations to UK homes.
It is little surprise, then, that the newest chapter from this iconic company is the launch of a Nassau range of furniture, powered by the game-changing Social Plastic®. This dream partnership with Plastic Bank, epitomises everything LifestyleGarden® is trying to do as a company – provide innovation and excellence but not at the expense of the planet or the communities that occupy it. Helping to deliver this latest innovation, which strives to transcend people out of poverty, is a concept that fits so perfectly with LifestyleGarden®’s motto and is an achievement of which the company is extremely proud.
Collaborating for change
LifestyleGarden® and ScanCom International recognise that a vital part of achieving their vision means establishing key partnerships with organisations that share the same core values and hopes for the future of our planet. For almost three years now, LifestyleGarden® has nurtured a fruitful relationship with educational charity and Cornwall-based eco visitor attraction, the Eden Project. Over the years, the partnership has blossomed, with Eden Project lending its iconic branding to LifestyleGarden®‘s ranges, supporting the ground-breaking DuraOcean® chair and featuring the award-winning furniture in its Mediterranean Biome. It also resulted in the creation of exclusive limited-edition collections with motifs and designs that draw on the botanical plants and banyan trees at Eden Project; with certain pieces incorporated into a revamp of its on-site eatery. TheEden Project has very stringent criteria that brands it chooses to partner with must meet and cited ScanCom’s ethos for ‘Doing Business the Right Way’ as a major factor in its decision to work with the company.
ScanCom’s newest collaboration with the pioneering Plastic Bank is a hugely exciting next step in the company’s journey. ScanCom is inspired by these organisations, which share common goals of environmental responsibility and sustainability, whilst also being true innovators, driven by the desire to bring ambitious new concepts and products to market.Only through forging these trailblazing connections can ScanCom transcend its work and take its own innovation to the next level.
There is a lot of passion behind these projects and the way ScanCom International wants to do business in the modern world. Read more about the fantastic drive and story behind the Nassau powered by Social Plastic® launch or about the incredible journey and investment that brought DuraOcean® to market.
Find out more
If you want to find out more about LifestyleGarden® and its premium-quality outdoor furniture, please visit us at www.lifestylegarden.co.uk and follow the team on Facebook and Instagram.
Plastic Bank empowers the regenerative society. They build ethical recycling ecosystems in coastal communities and reprocess the material for reintroduction into the global supply chain as Social Plastic®. Collectors receive bonuses for the materials they collect which helps them provide basic family necessities such as groceries, cooking fuel, school tuition, and health insurance. Plastic Bank’s Alchemy™ blockchain platform secures the entire transaction and provides real-time data visualisation – allowing for transparency, traceability, and rapid scalability. Learn more at www.plasticbank.com
