Emeco

Emeco is an American brand internationally renowned for chair production. Every Emeco chair is built to last, and a large part of the brand's production is made from recycled materials. The product's main characteristic is lightness, thanks to aluminium supported by other materials like plastic or wood. Perfect in residential contexts, Emeco chairs can also be used in public structures, hotels, restaurants, and offices. Famous for the US Navy chair, the company has established fruitful collaborations with prominent international designers. During the 2019 Salone del Mobile, Emeco presented the On & On chair, designed by Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby. Extremely light and easy to handle, it is also very resistant. Made from recycled materials, it can be recycled again at the end of its lifecycle; it is perfect for the home and commercial contexts, and indoor and outdoor spaces.

The Emeco US Navy Chair

Emeco, Electrical Machine and Equipment Company, was founded in 1944 in Hanover, Pennsylvania, by Wilton Carlyle Drains. Drains saw the skills and talents of the local craftspeople in the production of electrical machinery and equipment as a possible source of business. During World War II, Emeco was commissioned by the United States Government to make chairs that could withstand salt and seawater corrosion. He and his staff identified aluminium as the raw material for the new Emeco-designed product for US Navy ships. This fortunate intuition gave light to a chair that would be used on all Navy ships from that moment on. The 1006 Navy chair by Emeco, also known as the "Navy chair", goes through no less than 77 production stages before being declared ready for use. Some critical steps in the process are worth mentioning: welding, grinding, heat treatment, finishing and the precious anodising of the aluminium. Many years have passed since the creation of the first Emeco Navy. Over the years, many other Navies - all characterised by a number - have been created, along with many different collections with innovative names and designs.

Emeco and sustainable reuse

Gregg Buchbinder took over Emeco at the end of the 1990s and immediately understood that the company could become even more successful through recycling or sustainable reuse. The company now stands out in this field, and it can be said that this approach has been particularly successful. Orders, which until then had been the privilege of the Armed Forces, began to come in from other sectors such as dining and hospitality. Buchbinder understood the new market perfectly and called upon leading designers and architects, true fans of the Navy Chair, to give his products new forms and styles. Philippe Starck, Norman Foster, Jean Nouvel, Konstantin Grcic and even BMW designer Adrian van Hooydonk joined him to create unique designs for the Emeco collections. Emeco has always been environmentally sensitive and has put this into practice through the art of recycling. The choice and selection of all materials involve a strict protocol and careful procedures. The company is constantly seeking materials to recycle - not only aluminium but also other plastics and wood - focusing on their health. A concrete example of Emeco's commitment to sustainability is a 2010 agreement with Coca-Cola, enabling the company to recycle 3.5 million plastic bottles of the famous beverage - an initiative that led to the 111 Navy Chair, whose name refers to the exact number of CocaCola bottles needed to make it. When signing the agreement with Coca-Cola, Buchbinder stated, "In the early days, a soldier sitting on an Emeco chair was probably drinking a Coke".