ASSMANN wins biggest order in their history – thanks to PEFC certification

28 November 2018 News

Right in time for the start of the winter semester, German furniture manufacturer ASSMANN supplied PEFC-certified office furniture for 3000 workspaces at the Ruhr University Bochum in Germany.

The use of certified timber was a requirement for obtaining the large-scale order.

An extraordinary project

The order of 3.3 million euros is the biggest in the 80-year history of the family firm.

More than 1,400 cubic metres of PEFC-certified timber were used for furnishing the University. Driving one after the other, the 202 lorries that delivered the furnishing would have formed a 3.3-kilometre-long convoy.

“We are proud to have managed an order of this magnitude in our renowned, high quality,” said managing partner Dirk Aßmann.

Besides the production and the delivery of the furniture, ASSMANN was also responsible for the project management and the assembly of the desks, roller containers and shelfs.

“The biggest challenge was the logistics. From the assembly of the items in our facilities to the timely delivery and final installation”, explained key account manager Axel Ellermann. “Despite the large number of items, there was no delay in the process”.

Sustainable timber as a precondition

A crucial condition for awarding this major public order was the use of wood from sustainably managed forests. ASSMANN could demonstrate this through their PEFC certificate, which they have held since 2017.

For more and more public contracts, a proof of origin for timber products is required.

Already in 2010, the German government determined that all wood products acquired by the public sector must originate from legal and sustainable forestry. The supplier has to prove this by presenting a certificate from PEFC or a comparable organization. Other EU countries have issued similar guidelines.

Photo credits: ASSMANN