LEICHT Contracts, one of the UK’s leading providers of German engineered kitchen furniture to the new build and regeneration construction market is proud to support the rise of greener property development in the UK, with its ongoing commitment to sustainability as a ‘climate-neutral manufacturer’ where it has entered into the Climate Pact for the Furniture Industry against climate change.
Sarah Edwards, Managing Director UK at LEICHT Contracts says, “Delivering premium projects which are compliant with building regulations is a complex process and we predict that eco-efficiency requirements are only set to grow. As a carbon neutral manufacturer, we pride ourselves on offering thoughtful and aspirational design by prioritising sustainability at every stage of the design and installation journey.”
In fact, the Future Homes standard is a massive turning point for sustainable building and from 2025, new homes will be required to produce 75-80% fewer carbon emissions than homes built under the current regulatory framework. Matt Goddon, Design Director explains “With the built environment facing new challenges, we try to ensure that ‘cradle to grave’ sustainability is factored in at both the consultation and construction process.”
Preserving the balance of nature, LEICHT Contracts is pleased to outline how it is helping to support the environment now, and for future generations to come:
Independent accreditation: LEICHT Contracts exclusively supply its range of LEICHT furniture, which is fully accredited as carbon neutral by the German Furniture Quality Association (DGM). In fact, LEICHT has been an active member of the DGM’s Climate Pact for the Furniture Industry since it was first created in 2016, under the guiding principle ‘Rebellion against Climate Change’ in order to make an important contribution to the United Nation’s plan to limit global temperature increase to 1.5 degree Celsius.
RAL quality guaranteed: LEICHT furniture passes stringent regular tests to retain its three RAL Quality Marks: for climate-neutral furniture production, for healthy living and for product quality. These internationally recognised standards ensure that only the very best, environmentally suitable, materials are being used and that LEICHT kitchens meet all safety related requirements for formaldehyde and other volatile substances – ensuring a purer indoor climate for extra wellness.
Carbon neutral production: LEICHT has been meeting the DGM’s exacting standards for almost a decade and has neutralised CO2 emissions completely, throughout the entire production chain and the company participates in the DGM three-stage pact, including balancing, reduction and compensation. LEICHT achieves this by supporting international projects promoting climate-neutral energy production, and by implementing its own measures.
Green energy sources: LEICHT furniture is made in factories using completely green electricity, obtaining heat from regenerative energy sources.
Green roofing: In addition, there is living green roof across half of the factory rooftop, a total of 39,000m2. That’s almost the size of 5.5 football pitches!
Rewilding: Rather than sealing unused outdoor spaces outside the LEICHT factory building with concrete, the ground has been left as Nature intended. A tree building and rewllding programme has led to the planting of over 50 trees and in total created almost 10,000m2 of flowering meadows.
Lighting: The entire lighting system at the LEICHT factory uses LED energy saving lamps and this commitment to using LED technology extends to the integrated lighting solutions available within LEICHT furniture too!
Green machines: When investing in new machinery for production, the environmental credentials and energy-conscious criteria of the machines are the highest priority to ensure the greatest eco-efficiency.
Image shows LEICHT furniture from the KYOTO range in Walnut. Unique and naturally attractive, the LEICHT KYOTO kitchen fronts are made of genuine wood veneer from the wood of walnut trees with vertical grain, which is continued throughout the entire unit height. Genuine wood fronts are all sealed with environmentally friendly water-based acrylic resin lacquers and are thus particularly easy to look after.