Smed, A Calgary based company, centers around both new manufacturing ideals, and those set by is pre-successors, the Smed Family. Ideals such as lean manufacturing and one-piece flow, single Smed out, while making it one of the leading furniture manufacturing companies in the field. Former CEO Mogens Smed founded the company in 1983, after he began designing modular office furniture in 1974. In 1983 Smed was officially founded, and in 1996 the company went public with their designs. As of today Smed is no longer run or owned by the Smed family, instead it was purchased in 2000 by Haworth Inc. of Holland Michigan.
Manufacturing Process.
The Smed factory floor centers around a flexible one piece flow system. A large staff and a well-constructed work floor enable Smed to carry on a product or a set of products from start to finish in an orderly manner. Smed managers designed the factory floor to run in the most efficient method possible.
The Smed process begins with an order from either a familiar client or a new job. A qualified design team pulls the design into the "Smed" world. Often Smed will re-do or design an entire office structure for a company, such as new offices for an entire floor. Once the design is complete a prototype is generally produced if it is a new idea. Then if the prototype suffices the design goes to the manufacturing floor.
The design begins by being cut out of whatever the specified wood may be. In Smed, designs for the same office are formed from the same log of wood so that the grain structure will match from panel to panel of the office furniture. Wood substrates are comprised of sustainable or new growth forest and recycled material.
The furniture goes through such processes as veneering, which is a closed room from the rest of the shop, to avoid dust and contamination. Smed goes through over 1 million sq. ft of Veneer per month. Veneering adds a very thin layer of wood to the outside of the panels.
