The green carpenter
Green furniture is a sunrise industry, believes a former Petronas scholar. Oon Yeoh finds out more
LIKE many children whose parents run a family business, Harith Ridzuan didn‘t want to get involved. He wanted to do his own thing after graduating with a management degree from the UK. But fate had other plans for him.
“I was a Petronas scholar, so after graduation, I was looking at getting a job in Petronas. But at that time they didn‘t have a suitable job for me so I ended up working for my family,“begins Harith. The family business, One Tech, was a traditional wooden furniture maker.
The company supplied desks and chairs to many schools and offices around the country. Having grown up around furniture-making, Harith wasn‘t particularly excited about the business. However, while working there he noticed there was a lot of wastage and very little green practices in the factory. This sparked an idea to turn the company into an eco-friendly one.
HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT “GREENING“YOUR FAMILY BUSINESS?
One Tech was like many other furniture makers in Malaysia — not very green and not very concerned about sustainability. After I joined the company in 2008, I started doing a lot of research and met many different people to gather the necessary information and knowledge to make this change.
WAS THIS CHANGE A RESPONSE TO A DEMAND?
No, not really. When we started the transformation around 2013, there wasn‘t a lot of awareness or interest in green furniture. Nowadays, it‘s hip to be green. You see lots of hipster cafes and offices wanting green solutions but back then, the market really wasn‘t ready for it yet. But I felt it was the right direction to move towards.
YOU JOINED IN 2008 BUT ONLY STARTED THE TRANSFORMATION IN 2013. WHY DID IT TAKE SO LONG?
When I first joined, I had no idea about what it would take to turn the business into a green one. I really had no clue so I did a ridiculous amount of research before starting anything new.
WHAT WERE YOUR PARENTS‘ REACTION WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED UPCYCLING WOOD?
At the very beginning, before I was able to source for a steady supply of pallets, I used to go dumpster diving basically going to the garbage dump to look for used pallets. My mother used to question why I kept bringing garbage back but today they‘re delighted at what I‘ve done and they fully support the new approach.
SO YOU BASICALLY MAKE USE OF WOOD FROM OLD FURNITURE TO CREATE NEW PRODUCTS?
We make extensive use of pallets and we also use a lot of wood from old furniture, which we upcycle, that is, we re-use it and upgrade it to create something new. But we also make use of plantation wood, which is sustainable.
For example, old rubber trees are usually cut down and burnt. Well, instead of burning them we can use them to make furniture. But sustainability is much more than just about the raw materials you use.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT?
There are a lot of other factors involved than just raw materials. Doing things efficiently and using less electricity is being eco-friendly. For example, our office is designed for “light harvesting“where a lot of natural light can shine through. So during the day, we don‘t turn on the lights at all. We also harvest water from rainwater. A lot of thought has been put into waste management. Before, our waste was like 30 per cent. Now it‘s down to 5 per cent. So the design and processes in a company play an important role when you talk about sustainability.
GREEN PRODUCTS ARE GENERALLY NOT THAT MUCH CHEAPER THAN NORMAL PRODUCTS. WHY IS THAT GIVEN THAT THE RAW MATERIALS ARE USUALLY OLD MATERIALS?
Old wood is cheaper than new wood, true. But the process of upcycling the wood and turning it into high-quality material for our products takes a lot of time and resources. That‘s why the products are not so cheap.
FROM A BUSINESS STANDPOINT, IS IT WORTH THE TROUBLE?
We think it is. Some might say it‘d be so much easier just to use new wood. Then we wouldn‘t have to process it so much. But people need to understand that there‘s a lot of heart involved in what we do. If we wanted to just make money, we might as well just use traditional materials. That would save us a lot of time and effort. But we believe green, sustainable products are the way to go.
SO IDEALISM IS PART OF YOUR MOTIVATION?
Millennials are generally quite an idealistic lot. They want to contribute to society and leave a good legacy. Well, I‘m a millennial too. I feel whatever I do must have a purpose beyond just making money. It needs to be something I‘m passionate about, something that I find interesting, and something where I can make a difference.
DO YOU FIND A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE KEEN TO WORK IN A GREEN COMPANY?
Yes. We actually have a lot of students who intern at our company. In fact, our factory is a “teaching factory“— we take in a lot university students who want to learn about green manufacturing. We want to give young people as much exposure to green best practices as possible. So students are always welcome here.
DO YOU HAVE ANY SIBLINGS WHO ALSO WORK IN THE COMPANY?
I‘m the first of 10 siblings so naturally it was I who would be the first to join the family business.
Today, four of my other siblings and their spouses work in the company so it‘s really very much a family business. They‘re all doing different things at the company. For example, one of them is an architect, another is an engineer, another an electrician and another is involved in marketing. So it‘s a good team.
DO YOU THINK ALL YOUR SIBLINGS WILL END UP WORKING FOR THE COMPANY EVENTUALLY?
It looks like it! Actually, when I first joined the company, none of my siblings were interested. I myself wasn‘t keen to join. But after I took over and changed the company into an eco-friendly one, it‘s a different story. Traditional furniture is a sunset industry. But green furniture is a sunrise industry. Everyone‘s excited about it.