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Finding Green at NeoCon

New this year: eco-driven articles in the Show Daily.

Penny Bonda -- Interior Design, 6/10/2005 12:00:00 AM

Brides marry, students graduate and designers go to NeoCon World's Trade Fair. It must be June! The mammoth annual event in Chicago is next Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and it’s time to begin planning your visit—not an easy job with so much going on. If you’re a greenie like me you’ll want to zero in on what’s new in sustainability—the products, seminars and other special events.

So here’s your handy guide beginning with rule #1: leave the Manolo’s at home—you’re going to do a lot of walking—and make your fashion statement instead with your roomiest tote. The first thing you’ll want to put in it after arriving at the Mart are the Show Directory and the Show Daily which not only provide the news items and road maps you’ve become accustomed to, but this year will feature a special section for manufacturers to tell their green stories. Called the "LEED-CI Green Scene at NeoCon" and presented by Interior Design and the US Green Building Council, it will help you navigate the greenest manufacturers at the Mart floor by floor.

Before heading for the elevators—oh those elevators—check out the Prius on display, America’s most popular and hard-to-get hybrid automobile and learn how to win one by dropping your business card into bowls in showrooms and booths participating in Interior Design’s SELECT program. Click here for the link to this resource.

The USGBC’s exhibit space on the newly reconfigured 7th floor is a must-see destination. Housed within the GREENlife resource hub and lounge, USGBC’s NeoCon centerpiece will be the eagerly awaited debut of the LEED-CI Reference Guide. USGBC staff will be there to walk you through the guide, answer your most frequently asked or even obscure questions and otherwise aid the design community in getting the tools they need to green their interiors projects. Yes, the reference guide with its spiffy new look will be for sale at one-third off the regular price.

Other features within the GREENlife lounge are also worth a look. Designed by TVS, GREENlife will be a terrific resource for finding the companies, products, organizations and design firms who believe in sustainability as a core value. Rest awhile on the eco-furniture before venturing out into the Mart in search of more. Be sure to pick up a copy of the Green Guide to NeoCon with a listing of 24 companies who are participating in the Green Walk on Tuesday.

As you wander the floors you’ll surely visit the showrooms and booths of the usual green suspects—the furniture, carpet and textile companies who have long been associated with environmental achievement: Herman Miller’s new chair, the Bolyu carpet with its recycled content backing, Interface’s latest collection by David Oakey manufactured from a blend of Invista and PLA fibers, Daylight—the cool stack chair from KI, and the eco-intelligence textile collection from Victor Innovatex – to name just a few.

There are, however, some relatively new players for you to discover. While on the 8th floor, stop in and see Tricycle and check out SIM, their product simulation technology that does a super job of digitally replicating carpet—so well, in fact, that those cumbersome and landfill-choking samples might become obsolete. If you’re looking for some gorgeous high-end furnishings, make your way up to the 18th floor and visit El Furniture—a leader in sustainable design.

NeoCon is chock full of learning opportunities and since I’m participating in two of them, I’ll mention them first. On Monday afternoon I’m presenting the Beginner’s Guide to Green Interiors, an hour-long seminar offered by ASID for the green novice. On Tuesday I’m partnering with Environmental Building News’ Nadav Malin to conduct a daylong Green Guru Tour of NeoCon. We’ll be leading a small group of participants to go around as a friendly sort of SWAT team--visiting top manufacturers, grilling their key staff about the green aspects of their products, and discussing the pros and cons of each manufacturer's approach. For information on this program, including fees and registration, visit www.BuildingGreen.com/go/GreenTour.

The Mart is offering an entire environmental track of educational seminars. One you won’t want to miss is the presentation by the design team of Interface’s Atlanta showroom, the only project to have achieved a LEED-CI platinum rating. I also recommend Kirsten Ritchie’s session on choosing environmentally preferable products and Bonnie Bruce’s seminar on LCA, both of which will aid designers with their green decision making processes. Be sure to refer to your show directory for full descriptions and locations for all the sessions.

There you have it—a (very) short guide to turning a darker shade of green at NeoCon—and you might even drive home in your very own Prius!