{"id":887724,"date":"2026-07-07T10:19:46","date_gmt":"2026-07-07T14:19:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/?p=887724"},"modified":"2026-07-07T13:39:55","modified_gmt":"2026-07-07T17:39:55","slug":"rethinking-the-small-things-that-make-a-big-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/research\/articles\/topics\/people-planet\/rethinking-the-small-things-that-make-a-big-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"Rethinking the Small Things That Make a Big Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019ve learned over time that making more sustainable products isn\u2019t just about what comes next; it\u2019s also about looking back. Sometimes the biggest opportunities come from revisiting parts of our chairs that people touch every day but rarely think about.<\/p>\n

\"Ergonomic
A proprietary innovation in Steelcase armcaps is enhancing the recyclability of certain Steelcase task seating.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Arm caps are a perfect example. Those soft pads at the end of a chair may seem simple and straightforward, but across the office furniture industry they almost always rely on foam. Foam adds comfort, but it also needs a protective coating. That coating makes the foam nearly impossible to recycle, and the production process carries a higher carbon footprint than most people realize.<\/p>\n

A recent partnership with Amazon accelerated ongoing efforts at Steelcase to make task chairs more sustainable, beginning with increased recycled content in select models. That momentum led to a broader review of the seating portfolio; work that ultimately doubled the recycled content in top task chairs in the Americas.<\/p>\n

That momentum opened the door to tackle another challenge: removing single\u2011use arm cap foam in our task seating<\/a>, without sacrificing the comfort or durability people expect from our products.<\/p>\n

A new approach to comfort<\/h2>\n

That\u2019s where the new arm cap with flexible fin technology comes in. This patent\u2011pending innovation replaces foam with flexible \u201cfins\u201d that compress and rebound to create the same soft, supportive feel. Early development cycles across engineering, design, and operations focused on proving that this new approach could meet the high bar of quality set by Steelcase: uncompromising comfort, exceptional durability, and easier to disassemble. The fins create plushness and \u201cgive,\u201d offering comfort comparable to \u2013 and in some cases more plush than \u2013 traditional foam.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we iterated on the design, we committed to the idea that we can\u2019t compromise.\u201d<\/p>Justin Fochtmanager of the Steelcase task seating portfolio<\/span><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s one of the most personal surfaces across one of our highest-usage products. We knew it had to maintain that high standard of comfort.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
The patent-pending fins bend and offer ‘give’ the same way traditional foam does, but allow it to be more durable and have a lower carbon footprint.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And because the arm cap is a single molded piece, there\u2019s no foam to split, no layers to degrade, and no coating to crack over time. It lasts longer, performs better, and avoids the landfill at end of life. It is also designed to be fully disassembled and recycled back into new products.<\/p>\n

Designed for longevity and circularity<\/h2>\n

This blend of responsible material usage and circular design ultimately helps buyers meet their own sustainability goals. Focht says supporting people and the planet go hand\u2011in\u2011hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re designing products to serve the widest range of users while lasting as long as physically possible. The longer a chair lasts, the fewer resources are consumed in keeping it in use,\u201d Focht says. \u201cAnd ultimately, when it\u2019s finally replaced it should enter responsible waste streams rather than a landfill. With the new flexible fin arm cap, we didn\u2019t just remove single\u2011use foam; we created a new, sustainable way to deliver unwavering long\u2011term comfort.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
The innovative new armcap fin system from Steelcase is designed to be fully disassembled so it can be more easily recycled.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By designing for longevity and ensuring the material can be recycled, the new arm cap extends the life of our seating while reducing its impact \u2014 another step toward a more circular future. And it builds upon learnings and material innovations from doubling our task seating recycled content to our Circular by Steelcase<\/a>: Remade programs, as well as collaboration with global engineering teams.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a small component, but with a meaningful shift,\u201d Focht says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cBy continuing to lead the way towards net zero we help ensure that every chair our customers purchase goes so much further — both for their people, and the planet.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Arm caps seem simple, but flexible fin technology replaces hard\u2011to\u2011recycle foam with comfort that lasts longer and supports a more circular future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60004,"featured_media":887725,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"topic":[47663],"class_list":["post-887724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","topic-people-planet"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA More Sustainable Approach to Office Chair Design | Steelcase<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn how Steelcase is helping improve the sustainability of desk chairs with a new arm cap design to replace arm cap styles that contain hard-to-recycle foam.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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