Theresa May visits furniture company as she campaigns for local elections

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Theresa May has visited a furniture company in the West Midlands as part of the Tories’ local election campaign.
The Prime Minister met machinists and other workers at Boss Design, posing for a selfie with technician upholsterer Derek Whitehouse at the company’s factory in Dudley, West Midlands.
Boss Design manufactures and supplies furniture for commercial use in the overseas and home markets, including the presenters’ seats currently used on the set of Match Of The Day.
Mr Whitehouse, from Bridgnorth, Shropshire, told reporters he would not be able to post the selfie to social media until he had a break from his work.
The 47-year-old, who has worked for the firm for more than two decades, told reporters: “She briefly asked me how long I had been here and asked me about the process of the work.”
Around 4,400 council seats will be up for grabs on May 3, with elections being held in 150 local authority areas across England.
Polls are also taking place to elect mayors in the London boroughs of Hackney, Lewisham, Newham and Tower Hamlets, the borough of Watford, and in the Sheffield City Region.
Conservative Party chairman Brandon Lewis said next week’s local elections would give voters a chance to influence the cost of local services, as well as how they are run.
“It’s about how often your bins are collected, your roads are repaired, your streets and parks are swept and kept tidy,” Mr Lewis said.
“Across the country, it’s Conservative councils delivering high-quality local services while managing taxpayers’ money wisely and keeping council tax down.”

Source Link: (Belfast Telegraph)

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/theresa-may-visits-furniture-company-as-she-campaigns-for-local-elections-36834280.html

JSJ Corp. to close office furniture manufacturer izzy+

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GRAND HAVEN — JSJ Corp. plans to wind down office furniture maker izzy+ after 17 years of operation.
The manufacturing holding company said today that it would discontinue production of izzy+ branded products and refocus its resources on other manufacturing segments in its portfolio, including automotive, medical and equipment.

JSJ Chairman and CEO Nelson Jacobson said the company planned to repurpose an izzy+ facility at 17237 Van Wagoner Road in Spring Lake and transition “as many people as possible to support three of our other well-known businesses in the area.”

“We are a 100-year-old company, and as we go through and look at the opportunities we have, furniture just doesn’t fit as well as the other businesses we have,” Jacobson told MiBiz. “We’ve been able to take these resources and skills and transfer them effectively.”

Read more: (MIBIZ)

https://mibiz.com/item/25755-jsj-corp-to-close-office-furniture-manufacturer-izzy

HNI Corporation Announces Retirement Of Stan A. Askren And Appointment Of Jeffrey D. Lorenger

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MUSCATINE, Iowa, April 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — HNI Corporation (NYSE: HNI) announced today, the retirement of Stan A. Askren and the promotion of Jeffrey D. Lorenger as President, HNI Corporation and the election of Mr. Lorenger to the Board of Directors of HNI Corporation.
Mr. Askren informed the Board he expects to retire as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors no later than December 31, 2018.  The Board anticipates Mr. Lorenger will be promoted to Chief Executive Officer before the end of the year.
Mr. Askren’ s announced retirement along with Mr. Lorenger’s promotion to President of HNI Corporation and election as a Director are part of a long-planned and orderly succession process that has been underway for an extended period.
“Jeff and I will be conducting a stepped and orderly leadership hand-off between now and the end of the year.  Jeff has a great track record of driving profitable sales growth in businesses he has led.  Jeff has a great set of developmental experiences, serving in multiple roles at corporate and in the operating units.  He is uniquely qualified to lead HNI Corporation,” said Mr. Askren.
Mr. Lorenger joined HNI Corporation in 1998 and has held multiple executive level positions including as President, Office Furniture; President, Contract Furniture Group; President, Allsteel; Vice President, Sales and Marketing, The HON Company; and Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary for HNI Corporation.
“I have enjoyed my 26 years at HNI, more than 14 as Chairman, President and CEO, immensely.  I appreciate the tremendous support I have received from HNI members and from the HNI Board of Directors over the years.  It’s been a great run.  I’m confident the best is yet to come under Jeff’s leadership,” said Mr. Askren.

Read more: (PR NEWSWIRE)

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hni-corporation-announces-retirement-of-stan-a-askren-and-appointment-of-jeffrey-d-lorenger-300633909.html

Humanscale Launches First-Ever Task Chair Made with Recycled Fishing Nets

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Smart Ocean Task Chair Developed with Bureo Incorporates Almost 2 lbs. of Plastic Pollution & Marks First NextWave Product Available to Purchase
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Humanscale is thrilled to introduce the Smart Ocean chair, an inventive adaption of the legendary Diffrient Smart chair that incorporates almost 2 lbs. of recycled fishing net material (NetPlus). Sourced from Bureo, an emerging venture developing innovative solutions to prevent ocean plastic pollution, this is the first tangible product of its new partnership and marks the first product available to purchase from the consortium of companies under the NextWave initiative.
“Fishing nets comprise approximately 10% of the plastic pollution in the ocean today,” says Humanscale Founder and CEO Robert King. “Our partnership with Bureo helps further our goal to achieve a net positive impact on our natural environment. The Smart Ocean task chair not only supports the health and comfort of our customers, but actually removes plastic from the ocean, supporting the overall health and well-being of a greater ecosystem.”
The nets used in the production of the new task chair are from Bureo’s Net Positiva recycling program, which facilitates the collection of discarded plastic fishing nets and provides incentives to participating coastal communities. The nets are then transformed into plastic pellets and used to manufacture quality products such as skateboards, sunglasses, and now — for the first time ever — an ergonomic task chair.
Founding members of the NextWave initiative, Humanscale and Bureo are leveraging supply chains as a means of keeping plastics out of the ocean. Smart Ocean is just the first solution to come to market. Humanscale plans to replicate material solutions across their product line, supporting the expansion of Bureo’s recycling program and lowering dependency on new plastics.

Read more: (BUSINESS WIRE)

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180404006352/en/Humanscale-Launches-First-Ever-Task-Chair-Recycled-Fishing