Revised ANSI/BIFMA Furniture Sustainability Standard streamlines requirements and aligns with key sustainability frameworks
May 13, 2025 – The Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Association (BIFMA) has just announced that the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has approved the revised ANSI/BIFMA e3-2024 Furniture Sustainability Standard. This landmark revision, which received unanimous support from the final ANSI ballot, marks a major advancement in sustainability for the furniture industry.
Over the past three years, the BIFMA e3 Subcommittee — comprising a diverse group of BIFMA members, government agencies, architects, designers, and other industry stakeholders — collaboratively reimagined the standard. The rigorous revision process began with a pilot review and continued through two cycles of association ballots followed by two ANSI ballots. Each phase generated invaluable feedback that helped shape a more transparent, accessible and performance-driven standard.
Key guiding principles during the revision included:
- Simplification of the standard: Streamlining requirements for clarity and ease of implementation
- Establishment of minimum requirements per tier: Transitioning from a credit-based system to clearly defined minimum standards for each performance level
- Alignment with key partners: Maintaining strong consistency with foundational sustainability frameworks such as LEED, WELL and ILFI
As a result, the updated standard introduces several significant enhancements:
- LEVEL 4 achievement: Establishing a new milestone for industry excellence and innovation
- Climate-positive criteria: Pushing the envelope of sustainability by advancing beyond neutrality
- Chemical optimization: Implementing a class-based approach that sets stringent criteria for chemical management
The revised framework builds successively from foundational policies and inventories (Level 1) through assessments and, ultimately, optimization, culminating in the industry-leading benchmarks set by Level 4.
Mendy Claridge, e3 Subcommittee Chair and Director Program Management and Transformation at Kimball International, stated:
This revision represents a bold step forward for sustainable furniture design and manufacturing. By streamlining the requirements and integrating progressive criteria, this allows the industry to meet market sustainability demands while aligning with complementary standards globally.
BIFMA extends its sincere thanks to every individual and organization that contributed insights throughout this review process, saying that their collaboration ensured the development of a standard that not only meets current environmental challenges but also sets a visionary roadmap for the future of sustainable furniture design.
To access the ANSI/BIFMA e3-2024 Furniture Sustainability Standard and additional BIFMA standards, visit BIFMA.