A keener home is a Greener Home
We want you to feel good about your Keener kitchen, and you can – aesthetically and environmentally – thanks to the responsible practices at Keener Kitchen. Plus, homeowners who choose Keener also realize other significant benefits: a healthier living environment, use of local and renewable resources, and a more sustainable lifestyle, among others.
At Keener, efforts to minimize our environmental footprint began many years ago when we established three simple, but powerful, operating principles:
- Keener will embrace manufacturing processes that maximize renewable natural resources and reduce environmental impact
- Keener will provide exceptionally durable, high-quality products that contribute to a healthy indoor environment
- Keener will recycle and use recycled materials whenever possible
Here are several of Keener’s greenest practices, and why they matter.
Renewable Resources
The Keener Solution
Keener works only with suppliers who harvest trees from managed forests and who strictly abide by all state and federal guidelines. In addition, many Keener products use Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) for strength and durability, all of which is an Environmentally Preferable Product (EPP), independently certified by the Composite Panel Association (CPA) for their use of 100% recycled and recovered materials in their manufacture.
Why it matters to you
These practices enable Keener to reduce waste and preserve thousands of trees per year – many of them in Pennsylvania. By selecting Keener cabinetry, you help keep renewable resources growing close to home and help to keep Penn’s woods – wooded. That’s important to our state’s environment and to future generations.
Regional Sourcing
The Keener Solution
Keener’s commitment to regional sourcing and distribution – the use and transport of local materials – contributes to the most efficient use of resources and reduces long-distance trucking of parts and finished goods.
Why it matters to you
Regional sourcing reduces carbon emissions that can damage the atmosphere and helps to support our local economy technology advances.
Innovative Recycling Practices
The Keener Solution
Recycling has always been a way of life at Keener: cardboard, aluminum, plastic or manufacturing scraps, office waste -- even dust. Many of the by-products of the manufacture of our fine cabinets find their way into new purposes within our community.
Why it matters
When you choose a Keener kitchen, you help reduce the amount of waste in landfills. In addition, you recognize that our innovative recycling practices support our region: sawdust given to farmers for animal bedding, old cabinets repurposed for charity, wood scraps are used to fuel stoves in residential homes, and spent solvents used to heat our neighbor’s cement kilns.
INDOOR AIR QUALITY
The Keener Solution
Keener uses only plywoods that are formaldehyde-free in both their production and their formulation. We also provide the option of using “no added urea formaldehyde” particle board and MDF. These products offer extremely low formaldehyde off-gassing – in fact, the only formaldehyde in these products occurs naturally in the wood resins. Keener also uses the best and most innovative glues and cements in the industry. Our water-based contact cement contains no toxic ingredients, and our glues contain no volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and are certified by OSHA as non-carcinogenic.
Why it matters to you
Keener’s conscious selection of materials that protect your indoor air quality gives you peace of mind. You know that a Keener Kitchen means a healthier interior environment for you and your family.
AVAILABILITY OF FSC certified LUMBER
The Keener Solution
Keener has access to Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified lumber that has been harvested sustainably. FSC has a rigorous set of criteria for managing forest lands, and FSC lumber can be traced back to the originating, well-managed forest. While it can be difficult to obtain FSC lumber, some homeowners don’t mind the extra lead time required for kitchens using FSC lumber.
Why it matters to you
By offering FSC-certified lumber, Keener provides homeowners with a choice that enables them to support an important global initiative, protect indigenous peoples, and safeguard the planet’s resources.
Growing Greener All the Time
Keener is ever watchful for new, innovative green products, processes and resources. In fact, many of our products are compliant with the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, and, combined with Keener cabinetry, can help projects earn LEED points for their reduced environmental impact.
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