Notice of Plant Closure – Friday, June 1 2012 for Physical Inventory
VIA’s production department will be closed on Friday, June 1st in order to accommodate our annual physical inventory. This closure applies to the plant only. No existing orders will be impacted. Orders received with this date will be handled individually until plant production reaches capacity during this period.

The business offices including the sales, accounting, and customer service departments will remain open for business.

Orders received on 05/30/2012 will be scheduled for shipment on June 4, 2012.

We wish you a Happy Memorial Day, and thank you for your continued support of VIA. It is our desire to provide as little disruption as possible, during our inventory plant closure.

We appreciate your support during this period!

VIA Seating took part in a business roundtable at the White House on Friday, March 30, 2012. This event brought together suppliers, federal representatives, and private, NGO and academic participants to discuss building a more sustainable supply chain for Federal government purchasing. Sustainability is the umbrella term that factors in strong environmental and social equity policies along with price in making buying decisions.

Click here to read the official national press release, which includes comments from VIA’s sustainability lead Lee Denny, Senior Design Engineer.

VIA Seating was asked to participate because we have made a significant commitment to sustainability in the past two years.

• Participant – GSA/EPA Federal Supplier Greenhouse Gas
• Emissions Inventory Pilot program.
• Member, Sustainability Committee, Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturer’s Association (BIFMA).
• Sponsor – BIFMA initiative to establish e3/Level sustainability standards and certification for products including materials, use of energy, human and ecosystem health and social responsibility.
• e3/Level certification in 2012.
• Conformance to ANSI/BIFMA Furniture Emissions Standard (M7.1/X7.1-2011) and Indoor Air Quality (low off gassing), certified by Scientific Certification Systems (SCS-Indoor Advantage Gold).
• Purchased Green-e certified renewable energy certificates equal to one-third of total energy use for 2011.
• Business practices minimize energy usage, landfill use and water resources
• Sustainability is supported by product durability (Forever Warranty™).

Participants (88 total)

• Government representatives, including senior White House Advisors; senior executives from major corporations and small businesses; representatives from academia and NGOs.
• The office furniture industry was represented by BIFMA, Herman Miller and VIA Seating.
• VIA was one of five small business participants.

Meeting notes

• Statements from government officials followed by open discussion regarding overcoming barriers, key drivers and overall alignment.
• Discussed the impact of sustainability on small businesses in our industry with Linda Chero, Regional Commissioner of Federal Acquisition Services for Furniture, GSA.
• The triple bottom line of sustainability, generally understood as “People, Planet, Profit”, is defined as “People, Planet, Mission” by government.
• Care was taken to avoid defining sustainability in terms of global warming.
• Sustainability is a new paradigm, akin to the Industrial Revolution in driving market transformation.
• Competitive drivers are becoming the norm in an ongoing process (not a one-time event).
• The challenge: to view this movement as organizational sustainability, not the more limiting green label.
• Opportunities for government to ease the sustainability process:
  -Leadership toward development of standards.
  -Provide access to difficult and expensive data necessary to support the movement.
• Data drives expanded use and innovation, and supports small business.
  -86 percent of all GSA contract holders are small businesses.
• Consistent standards:
  -Level the playing field, accelerate speed, and lower the costs of compliance and adoption for all.
  -Reduce the waste brought about by reporting on disparate standards, improving the efficiency of tax dollars.

Driving Forces

• Paradigm shift/movement
• Government and industry support
• Cost reduction as an outcome
• Media attention
• Existing industry frameworks
• Social move towards transparency
• Altruistic motivation (helping people and planet)
• Ultimately, shared interests

Restraining Forces

• Impact to small business
• Requires cultural change
• Disparate standards and industries
• Complexity of alignment
• Litigious culture
• Investment required during a time of recession

The roundtable discussed building a more sustainable supply chain for Federal government purchasing. This event brought together suppliers and federal representation with private, NGO and academic participants. Sustainability is the umbrella term that factors in strong environmental and social equity policies along with price in making buying decisions.

Via Seating was chosen to join this conversation because of its participation in the GSA/EPA Federal Supplier Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Inventory pilot program.

“As a company we believe it is our responsibility to implement programs and practices that support sustainability’s triple bottom line of people, planet and profit,” said Harris. “This elite pilot requires Via Seating to provide annual corporate-wide greenhouse gas emissions data through 2013 and share the challenges this creates within our organization.”

Through the pilot, Via Seating reports corporate energy data and commits to a company-wide greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal over the next two years. Performance will be measured by a third party auditing team at the conclusion of the pilot.

The pilot was created to assist the federal government in assessing the benefits and challenges small businesses face in inventorying and disclosing GHG emissions data.

Via Seating is distinguishing itself as a leader among small businesses in the area of sustainability. The company buys a third of its energy from renewable sources and has adopted sustainability standards forged in partnerships across the industry.

“We are honored to represent our company and our industry at this important White House event,” said Lee Denny, Via Seating’s sustainability project lead. “We have a strong commitment to sustainability, and are proud of our efforts to be an exemplary corporate citizen in this area.”

We are required to develop a corporate-wide GHG inventory, report corporate inventory data, develop an Inventory Management Plan, and develop a company-wide GHG emissions reduction goal to reduce absolute emissions by a minimum of 2% in 2 years or less. These goals will be measured by a 3rd party auditing team at the conclusion of the Pilot.

The Pilot will assist GSA in assessing the benefits and challenges specific to small businesses that choose to inventory and disclose GHG emissions data. GSA is also interested in identifying the type of outreach, education, and other direct assistance and incentives that will encourage small business federal contractors to inventory and disclose their GHG emissions data.

VIA is taking a lead role in helping the United States reduce the impacts of climate change. We are very proud to be a part of the Pilot.

For more information, visit the EPA’s Climate Change page.

We’re proud to announce that ALL Proform models and configurations are available for sale and are currently shipping.

Proform’s thin modern design and uncommon comfort begin with the adjustable height mesh back and striking rectilinear profile.

VIA has evolved the mesh platform with rich tailoring as only VIA can. Proform Parallel in leather is an advanced classic – designed to be noticed behind a desk or around a conference room. The appeal of Proform Panel is timeless and elegant in its simplicity.

Whether in Mesh, Parallel design, or Panel design, Proform™ strikes a pose that you simply cannot resist. Starting at just $586 list for Mesh and $736 list for stitch, the Proform™ truly is comfort combined with beautifully affordable pricing.

VIA is combining a fresh emphasis on design with great prices with the new Proform series of seating. The Proform™ series is new, slim, elegant, modern, and affordable offering three back options, two back sizes, five arms, and three Controls. Find your chair in Proform.

And if it’s a VIA, you know it has distinctive comfort and performance.

Please take the time to sign up to follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

George’s proven track record of success brings a number of long lasting, trusted dealer relationships throughout the Western States. His focus on brand and high touch relationship building is a strong asset to the VIA Sales Team.

“I knew of VIA’s solid market reputation, so when I learned of the opportunity, I knew I wanted to pursue the position,” Mr. Soles said. “The ‘entrepreneurial’ spirit of everyone I met at VIA when interviewing was meaningful. This struck me as a company on a mission, and I wanted to contribute to taking VIA to the next level.”

Mr. Soles will be working substantially with VIA reps and distribution to grow VIA relationships and business in AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR, UT, and WA. Mr. Soles will be promoting VIA’s strategies of comfort combined with beautifully affordable design, True 48-Hour Shipping, and Forever Warrant programs. Mr. Soles will also be a leader in defining new strategies to grow VIA and the VIA brand.

“In the longer term, teaming work styles and ‘virtual’ work locations will reward innovation/value providers,” Soles continued. “It comes down to compelling design, combined with flawless quality and operational execution, and VIA is definitely a company achieving those goals daily with their focus and strategy.

VIA will be closed in observance of the following holidays:

• Thanksgiving – November 24th through November 25th.
• Christmas – December 23rd through December 26th
• New Years – December 30th through January 2nd.

This holiday closure includes the entire organization.

Notice of Plant Closure – Wednesday, December 28th – Thursday December 29th

VIA’s production department will be closed on Wednesday, December 28th through Thursday December 29th in order to accommodate training, and process improvement implementations. This closure applies to the plant only. There will be limited production and shipments during this period. No existing orders will be impacted. Orders received with these requested dates will be handled individually until plant production reaches capacity during this period.

The business offices including the sales, accounting, and customer service departments will remain open for business.

• Orders received on 12/27/11 will be scheduled for shipment on January 3, 2012
• Orders received on 12/28/11 will be scheduled for shipment on January 4, 2012
• Orders received on 12/29/11 will be scheduled for shipment on January 5, 2012.

We wish you be the best of Holidays Seasons, and thank you for your continued support of VIA. It is our desire to provide the best quality seating, a high level personal touch to all our customers and we appreciate your support during this period.

]]> http://www.viaseating.com/blog/via-2011-2012-holiday-closure-and-production-schedule/feed 0 http://www.viaseating.com/blog/via-tools-capgiza-updated http://www.viaseating.com/blog/via-tools-capgiza-updated#comments Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:24:11 +0000 Todd http://www.viaseating.com/?p=10834 Continue reading →]]> VIA 2011-2012 Pricing Updated in October 2011 CAP/Giza Software

Pricing Accurate and Available Now within the 20-20 Technologies Inc. tool set

VIA is committed to making the sales process as convenient and simple as possible for our partners. We’re excited to announce new tools and programs that fit perfectly into our commitment to our partners and customers. VIA is happy to announce our 2011-2012 pricing update to Worksheet, the industry’s most trusted specification software for every office interior business for CAP/GIZA Studios.

The pricing update is part of 20-20 Technologies October 2011 release and is available for download at 20-20.net. The new pricing is also contained on the October 2011 Commercial Disc Set (DVD update) shipping now. We have included 3D files with these tools for the first time, as well.

To download or install from DVD, users must have an active license with 20-20 Technologies for CAP/GIZA to install the update, which includes an active USB security key that is provided to users by 20-20.

PLEASE NOTE: Effective November 15, 2011 VIA will no longer accept pricing that used pre-October 2011 data from 20-20 Technologies.

Onwards and Upwards!

Nora Fenlon
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
VIA, Inc.

]]> http://www.viaseating.com/blog/via-tools-capgiza-updated/feed 0 http://www.viaseating.com/blog/via-chooses-the-lowe-group-as-reps-for-southern-texas http://www.viaseating.com/blog/via-chooses-the-lowe-group-as-reps-for-southern-texas#comments Tue, 18 Oct 2011 23:01:55 +0000 Todd http://www.viaseating.com/?p=10803 Continue reading →]]> VIA is proud to have chosen new representation for the Southern Texas market (Houston, Austin, San Antonio). The Lowe Group will now be representing VIA chairs in this important market, effective October 3, 2011. VIA would like to welcome aboard The Lowe Group, and we are looking forward to hosting the principals to VIA for a factory visit and training in October.

About the Lowe Group
The Lowe Group (Rick Lowe & Company) is a manufacturer’s rep organization specializing in the sale of fine educational, commercial, healthcare, government, and contract office furniture, signage and seating. RLC’s goal is to furnish concept-through-installation solutions to architects, design firms, facility planning managers, and dealers with excellent service and cost-effective innovation, quality, simplicity, superior design and workmanship that result in long-term, trusted relationships and repeat business with our customers.

RLC (The Lowe Group) has over 35 years of previous award-winning rep experience that provides strong corporate leadership, quotations and bids, drawings and layouts, sales presentations, major accounts and projects sales and support, product knowledge and training, problem resolution, management and oversight of project installation, and caring customer service and tech support through the use of Giza and other computer programs.

You can get to know more about VIA’s newest Reps by visiting www.the-lowegroup.com.

]]> http://www.viaseating.com/blog/via-chooses-the-lowe-group-as-reps-for-southern-texas/feed 0 http://www.viaseating.com/blog/new-enhancements-to-via-carmel-series http://www.viaseating.com/blog/new-enhancements-to-via-carmel-series#comments Tue, 11 Oct 2011 23:14:21 +0000 Todd http://www.viaseating.com/?p=10799 Continue reading →]]> Carmel Gets Deeper for More Balanced Comfort –

Comfort combined with beautifully affordable design. That’s a core value of VIA.

We’re excited to announce a new enhancement to one of our most popular Executive/Conference chairs – the Carmel. For the single shell high back and the single shell mid back, we have re-engineered the shell to add an additional 1″ to the seat depth. That’s an impressive 19.5″ of seat depth on the single shell Carmel. The additional 1″ allows for a much improved seating experience.

The split back version of the Carmel offers a seat slide that allows the user to adjust the seat depth to their preference.

The Full Carmel Series
Stunning tuxedo tailoring and stitching from front to back. The Mid Back is a conference room winner with its handsome looks, soothing comfort, and gorgeous back tailoring. Both the High Back and Mid Back are available as conference-friendly single shell or as a full-function, split-back execu-task seating solution.

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