Company Secretary of HATIL, Md. Rezaul Karim ndc, has affirmed that the renowned furniture brand is firmly dedicated to working towards its sustainability commitment to the environment. “When we talk about a sustainable industry, there are some criteria to ascertain whether the company or the industry is sustainable.  The first criterion is environmental sustainability, which includes practices like sustainable sourcing, recycling and reusing of waste,” Md. Rezaul Karim ndc, told UNB during an exclusive interview. During the interview, the HATIL Company Secretary shared his deep admiration for the nation’s foremost furniture brand, shed light on the brand’s path to sustainability, and a glimpse into its sustainable practices. One of the most notable sustainable practices at HATIL revolves around the sourcing of one of its most vital raw materials: wood. “HATIL is committed to sustainability in terms of sourcing raw materials from overseas. For example, we don’t use local timber to manufacture our furniture as quality wood is not available. Initially, we used to source oak wood from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified forests in Canada. Now, we source FSC-certified Beech wood from Germany and pine wood from Spain. Our use of FSC-certified wood aligns with our commitment to environmental preservation,” Md. Rezaul Karim ndc, said.  At the same time, HATIL is reducing deforestation in Bangladesh where forests are below minimum standards. A product being certified by the Forest Stewardship Council means it meets the “gold standard” of ethical production. An FSC-certified forest, from where HATIL sources its wood, means that the forest is being managed in a way that preserves biodiversity and benefits the lives of local people and workers, while ensuring economic viability, according to the Forest Stewardship Council website.  Read more: HATIL’s ‘slim is smart’ has global appeal: Marketing Director Moshiur Rahman ‘REDUCE WASTE, MAXIMIZE PRODUCTIVITY’ One of HATIL’s key strategies to achieve maximum efficiency is embodied by the motto: “Reduce waste, maximize productivity.” But how does HATIL do that? “Well, if we want to reduce waste, we need to introduce better technologies, in other words, better machinery which would, in turn, enhance our overall productivity. The process also included recycling and reusing the waste,” the HATIL company secretary said. He also provided some insights into HATIL’s recycling and reuse policy to reduce waste.  “For example, we have installed a Coral Anti-pollution System to collect dust in HATIL. We collect dust from every piece of machinery. Then we recycle it and turn it into briquettes. We use the briquettes as fuel for our Thermo fluid heater,” he said, adding, “This is one of the examples of how we recycle our waste and reuse it in HATIL.” HATIL also recycles and uses wood offcuts to manufacture particle boards, he added.  Karim stressed the need to cease actions that harm the environment. “This holds true for the furniture industry as well. We must ensure that we are not contributing to deforestation in any manner, and we should strive to minimize our wood usage as much as possible,” he added. Read more: Commitment to quality behind HATIL’s success: Director Mahfuzur Rahman