Page 100 - Towards A Sustainable Future 2024

The typical workflow and business operations of the Environmental Aspects
company can be summarised as follows:
Wood is the primary resource to fabricate furniture at Gamar
• The design of the furniture pieces in the Singapore office. Furniture. Through investigation, the ESI team found that
• The fabrication and manufacturing processes of the significant amounts of solid off-cut wood, totalling up to
furniture pieces are contracted to their overseas twelve tonnes per month, (average over six months) are
contractor in Indonesia. generated from the fabrication process.
• Wood is sought from local sources, and a small fraction
is from community-sourced wood (or when specifically These off-cuts are stored for secondary and future use.
requested). However, due to the nature of the business model, which
• The fabricated furniture pieces are then shipped and often involves custom-made furniture, the off-cuts may not
transported to the Singapore warehouse. be quickly utilised and accumulate in warehouses, as shown
• Furniture pieces are inspected before delivery. in Figures 7 and 8. Excess off-cuts and furniture-related
• Delivery services to customers are outsourced to third- materials are gathered and sold as firewood to local villages
party vendors. to optimise space and offset raw material costs.

Acknowledging that woodfires produce carbon dioxide,
contributing to warming pollution in our atmosphere, is
crucial. The gap in time between carbon absorption and new
tree growth could span decades, depending on factors such
as tree type and forest stewardship initiatives.

Figures 7 and 8: Community-sourced wood, such as doors, are
shown stacked against a wall; Off-cut wood is typically sorted
into bags, shown against a backdrop of wood piles.
(source: Gamar Furniture)

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