The Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Association (BIFMA) has joined the Sustainable Purchasing Council (SPC) as a strategic partner. The SPC, a new organization developed to harness the power of institutional purchasing for greater sustainability achievements, will publicly launch July 23, 2013.

“We have high hopes for the clarity that the SPC will bring to the marketplace,” said Brad Miller, BIFMA’s director of advocacy and communications. “The SPC will help everyone trying to make the best choices with their purchasing decisions.”

The SPC will interface regularly with its partners to identify opportunities for collaboration and added value. It does not seek to duplicate any of the functions of existing groups and will inform a systemic approach to institutional and corporate sustainable purchasing practices.

Miller, who served on the Green Products Roundtable, believes that the time is right to coordinate and stabilize the sustainability frontier.

“As organizations find it necessary to spend their limited dollars wisely, it is critical to bring all of the great environmental and sustainability assessment systems together for a better understanding of each program’s strengths.” Miller said.