Office Standards: Furniture

• ​​​​Standards ensure that only commercial grade furnishings - suitable for higher education facilities and meet code requirements - are installed at RIT.

• Employees across campus should have the same level of furniture available to them regardless of their department or college. RIT can reuse furniture across campus, which saves costs and is in line with our sustainability goals for the campus.
• Furniture standards present multiple options and layouts for furniture that will best fit the needs of our diverse campus population. The furniture within the standards is flexible in design, allowing for furniture reuse and modifications to meet changing program needs.

• Products in the standards generally have a 10+ year warranty. This means that if something breaks or no longer works (such as an arm falling off a chair, or a drawer that no longer closes, or the edge peeling off the side of a desk), the furniture vendor will assess and either make the repair, order parts and pieces (at no charge to you) to make the repair at a later date, or replace the whole piece of furniture (again, at no cost to you).
• Even if the item is past the warranty date, the furniture vendor can still assess the item and recommend solutions. Often times, parts or pieces can be ordered to remedy, which is much more cost-effective than ordering a whole new furniture item. This extends the life of the product, therefore saving RIT money and achieves our goals of sustainability.

• Both manufacturers are dedicated to sustainability and using products that align with RIT's sustainability goals.
  • Steelcase
  • MillerKnoll
• The furniture's utilization is the most significant phase of its entire life cycle; environmental impacts must be minimized as much as possible. To this end, purchased items must have an extensive useful life.
• The standard products were selected using the following criteria:
  • Durability
  • Timeless design
  • Possibility of repairing or adapting
  • Standard dimensions
  • Ease of care and maintenance
  • 10+ year warranty: considering the costs related to planning, procurement, utilization, operation, and maintenance as well as asset disposal, buying high-performance items has positive impacts

Will need a FMS project:

• If the estimated budget amount for the anticipated order is over $5,000.
• If there will be other work associated with the furniture purchase, such as any wall painting, carpet replacement, or electrical/data work.

Won’t need an FMS project:

• If the order is for an individual piece of furniture, such as a desk chair, file cabinet, or markerboard.

• RIT standard furniture (modular or kit-of-parts) can be reconfigured by the space occupant as each piece is freestanding. Note that this applies to individual offices without furniture panels.
• The majority of office furniture systems need to be handled through the furniture vendor. Since office furniture is under warranty, certified installers who are trained should handle the moves. This will ensure no warranties are voided. Submit a Furniture Move request through the Request A Service webpage.

• Browse the standard items available through Intivity or Sedgwick Business Interiors using the links provided in the above Suppliers section.
• Decide which chair to purchase. If you want to test a sample chair, contact the Planning & Design department.
• Request a quote through the associated furniture vendor contact; once received, you can issue a PO direct without FMS involvement.

• Furniture can be listed as free for RIT use via email per the RIT List Sites Policy.
• Alternately, submit a Furniture Move request through the Request A Service webpage; this service request will require a chargeback account number to be provided.