Environmental sustainability assessment of wooden furniture produced in Pakistan

Abstract

Life cycle assessment was carried out for a conventional wooden furniture set produced in Mardan division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan during 2018-19. Primary data regarding inputs and outputs were collected through questionnaire surveys from 100 conventional wooden furniture set manufacturers, 50 in district Mardan and 50 in district Swabi. In the present study, cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment approach was applied for a functional unit of one conventional wooden furniture set. Production weighted average data were modelled in the environmental impacts modelling software i.e., SimaPro v.8.5. The results showed that textile used in sofa set, wood preservative for polishing and preventing insects attack and petrol used in generator had the highest contribution to all the environmental impact categories evaluated. Total cumulative energy demand for wooden furniture set manufactured was 30,005 MJ with most of the energy acquired from non-renewable fossil fuel resources.

A Review on Sustainability Characteristics Development for Wooden Furniture Design

“…Since wood is a reputable material in the furniture industry, it provides various benefits, such as renewable resources, regenerative fuel, a pleasant, beautiful appearance, high insulation capacity, low weight, and ability to mitigate climate change by acting as a carbon sink [34]. Wood species is a primary consideration when determining suitability for furniture production.…”