Indoor Air Quality

Committed to healthy indoor air quality in schools.

Clean indoor air is a leading measure of a healthy learning environment. The key to indoor air quality is minimizing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) because prolonged exposure to them may increase the risk of childhood asthma. VOCs can be emitted by things commonly found in schools like cleaning agents, furnishings, paint, flooring and building products.

Recognizing the importance of clean indoor air, we’ve done our best to minimize the VOCs emitted Smith System® products. Through careful engineering, stringent materials selection and sound manufacturing processes, we’ve succeeded in creating a line of furniture that schools can feel good about from a health standpoint. In fact, our entire indoor line is GREENGUARD™ certified to meet indoor air quality standards for children and schools. Read about GREENGUARD™ certification. We are the first school furniture manufacturer to earn this level of certification for our entire indoor portfolio. Additionally, all Smith System® products comply with CA 01350 and have met the new CREL standard for formaldehyde emissions level of 9 μg/m3 (7.3 ppb) for three years.

For healthier living environments.

We’re working to make our manufacturing processes as efficient as possible because efficiency reduces waste. Specifically, we’re reducing waste that goes to landfills – this has been one of our most successful areas. In one summer, our bulk shipping initiative reduced the amount of corrugated cardboard used by 225,000 lbs. We’re also reducing energy used to produce our products – by working cleaner and smarter we’ve cut our energy consumption. We’re reducing the environmental impact on the part of our vendors – we work closely with those in the supply chain to make sure they’re doing their part to safeguard the environment when making goods from wood product, steel, and plastic. We’re reducing waste. Recently, rather than sending 50,000 lbs. of plastic (from chair shells and edge moldings that didn’t meet our quality standards) to the landfill, we had the material recycled for use by another manufacturer. And we’re reducing packaging used by our vendors.

Meanwhile, we’re increasing the recyclability of products – most of our chairs are composed of polypropylene plastics and chromed steel and are 99% recyclable (glides and/or casters make up the remaining 1%). Booktrucks are also 99% recyclable. And we’re increasing the use of recycled steel and renewable resources in our products.

Our products’ exceptional quality, durability and longevity take on added value in an environmental context. The longer they stay in service, the longer they stay out of landfills. And, as long as they’re in service, additional natural resources don’t have to be used to replace them.

Smith System® is a manufacturer of innovative products that make educational environments more healthy, comfortable and inspiring for students and educators. The spirit of innovation is not confined to our products, rather it extends to the thinking, processes, and materials we use to design, manufacture and even ship them. The feeling at our Carrollton, Texas manufacturing facility is, we don’t just want to make the best school furniture, we want to make it the best way.

Better function and comfort.

It may be simplistic, but better furniture is made better. Ours starts with dedicated craftspeople. They have the kind of pride that was common when we started business in 1905 but is all too hard to find today. The difference is, now we have much more sophisticated tools, more consistent materials, and better designs to work with. Today, even the old-timers would envy our quality and efficiency.

In our 100+ years in schools, we’ve learned which materials can make furniture and accessories that stand up to daily use in a classroom or elsewhere. High on our list are high-pressure plastic laminate, thick chrome plating, and rugged edge moldings. Our craftsmen transform these high-quality materials with proven techniques, like the MIG welds on our chair legs, our legendary outside-hold glides that stay on, baked-on powder-coat surfaces, and edge moldings stapled every 10″ and in corners.

The designs that guide our craftsmen have a big influence on how the furniture will perform for the student and the contribution it makes to the educational environment. Both affect student performance and can make certain furniture inapplicable for certain curricula. That’s why we offer a wide range of styles, so you can choose the design that best fits your academic needs, and provide the best possible learning environment for the students.