Emeco
Emeco is an American furniture company based in Hanover (Pennsylvania, USA), founded in 1944 by Wilton Carlyle Dinges as the Electrical Machine and Equipment Company (Emeco) — initially as a government contractor manufacturing experimental antennas and jet engine parts. The decisive impetus came from a US Navy government contract: the 1006 Navy Chair was developed to withstand the extreme conditions aboard warships — salt-water resistant, non-corrosive, fireproof and, according to the company, torpedo-proof. The chairs are handcrafted from recycled aluminium through a 77-step process that gives the aluminium extraordinary strength. With a 150-year warranty, the 1006 Navy Chair is one of the most durable chairs in the history of industrial design. Production has taken place exclusively in Hanover, Pennsylvania, since the company's founding, on Elm Avenue — the original location of the business. Gregg Buchbinder took over the company in 1998 and first met Philippe Starck at the ICFF 1998 in New York, giving rise to a long-standing design partnership. In 2024, Emeco celebrated its 80th anniversary with a retrospective at Triennale Milano and a contemporary reissue of iconic designs by Jasper Morrison.
The company ethos is: "Begin with what's left over. Turn it into what will last." Around 90% of the product range is manufactured from recycled materials. Emeco was one of the first furniture companies to measure and declare the carbon footprint of its products. Design partnerships (selection): Philippe Starck (Hudson Chair 2000, numerous others; Broom Chair 2012 from recycled polypropylene and wood waste), Norman Foster (20-06 Stacking Chair, 2006), Frank Gehry, Ettore Sottsass (Nine-0), Jasper Morrison (1 Inch; Alfi 2015; Navy sofa and lounge chair reissue 2024), Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec, Naoto Fukasawa, Barber Osgerby (On & On Collection 2020, Core77 Design Award), Nendo, Konstantin Grcic (Parrish Chair 2014, iF Design Award). Coca-Cola collaboration: 111 Navy Chair (2010), made from at least 111 recycled PET bottles — Good Design Award 2010, iF Design Award 2011. Awards (selection): Good Design Award 2000 (Hudson Chair), Good Design Award 2010, iF Design Award 2011, iF Design Award 2014, Core77 Design Award 2020.
For architects and interior designers seeking for restaurant, hotel, office and contract projects an American furniture company that since 1944 has manufactured exclusively by hand from recycled aluminium in Hanover (Pennsylvania), holds in its range one of the most cited chairs in design history with the 1006 Navy Chair, formulated an award-winning pioneering achievement in the circular economy of industrial furniture with the 111 Navy Chair Coca-Cola collaboration, and presents with Starck, Norman Foster, Jasper Morrison and Frank Gehry one of the most renowned designer partner lists in the industry — Emeco is one of the key addresses in the segment of the American design furniture classic.
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Emeco
Emeco is an American furniture company based in Hanover (Pennsylvania, USA), founded in 1944 by Wilton Carlyle Dinges as the Electrical Machine and Equipment Company (Emeco) — initially as a government contractor manufacturing experimental antennas and jet engine parts. The decisive impetus came from a US Navy government contract: the 1006 Navy Chair was developed to withstand the extreme conditions aboard warships — salt-water resistant, non-corrosive, fireproof and, according to the company, torpedo-proof. The chairs are handcrafted from recycled aluminium through a 77-step process that gives the aluminium extraordinary strength. With a 150-year warranty, the 1006 Navy Chair is one of the most durable chairs in the history of industrial design. Production has taken place exclusively in Hanover, Pennsylvania, since the company's founding, on Elm Avenue — the original location of the business. Gregg Buchbinder took over the company in 1998 and first met Philippe Starck at the ICFF 1998 in New York, giving rise to a long-standing design partnership. In 2024, Emeco celebrated its 80th anniversary with a retrospective at Triennale Milano and a contemporary reissue of iconic designs by Jasper Morrison.
The company ethos is: "Begin with what's left over. Turn it into what will last." Around 90% of the product range is manufactured from recycled materials. Emeco was one of the first furniture companies to measure and declare the carbon footprint of its products. Design partnerships (selection): Philippe Starck (Hudson Chair 2000, numerous others; Broom Chair 2012 from recycled polypropylene and wood waste), Norman Foster (20-06 Stacking Chair, 2006), Frank Gehry, Ettore Sottsass (Nine-0), Jasper Morrison (1 Inch; Alfi 2015; Navy sofa and lounge chair reissue 2024), Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec, Naoto Fukasawa, Barber Osgerby (On & On Collection 2020, Core77 Design Award), Nendo, Konstantin Grcic (Parrish Chair 2014, iF Design Award). Coca-Cola collaboration: 111 Navy Chair (2010), made from at least 111 recycled PET bottles — Good Design Award 2010, iF Design Award 2011. Awards (selection): Good Design Award 2000 (Hudson Chair), Good Design Award 2010, iF Design Award 2011, iF Design Award 2014, Core77 Design Award 2020.
For architects and interior designers seeking for restaurant, hotel, office and contract projects an American furniture company that since 1944 has manufactured exclusively by hand from recycled aluminium in Hanover (Pennsylvania), holds in its range one of the most cited chairs in design history with the 1006 Navy Chair, formulated an award-winning pioneering achievement in the circular economy of industrial furniture with the 111 Navy Chair Coca-Cola collaboration, and presents with Starck, Norman Foster, Jasper Morrison and Frank Gehry one of the most renowned designer partner lists in the industry — Emeco is one of the key addresses in the segment of the American design furniture classic.