77 steps

This is our starting point - sheets and tubes of recycled aluminum. Which we cut, bend, form, weld, heat treat, hand brush and anodize in 77 individual steps.

Recycled aluminum is a smart material - it's lightweight, non-corrosive, fire resistant, anti-bacterial, endlessly recyclable and has a small carbon footprint. In its natural form, aluminum is soft and malleable. Perfect for us to shape into furniture. Which we then turn extraordinarily strong through an elaborate heat treating process. Engineering, chemistry and Pennsylvania elbow grease in perfect harmony.

Every chair leg, every seat pan and every frame is welded together into a one-piece entity. We don't use any hardware or fasteners for our all-aluminum chairs and stools. The uniform, monolithic construction is part of what makes Emeco chairs extraordinarily strong.

Some products require meters and meters of weld. It takes a highly skilled craftsman to feed the welding alloy evenly for an even weld seam. Not too thick, not too thin.

After welding, every weld is ground perfectly smooth and flush, to create a streamlined silhouette. Grinding down welds requires meticulous attention. If you don't apply enough pressure, the surface will appear bumpy. Grind too hard and the weld is compromised.

How the welds have been ground is one of the signs of handcraft that each Emeco chair carries. Another sign, unique to our 1006 Navy chair, are the three weld beads that each welder leaves at the top of the bars in the chair back. The craftsman's signature, unique to each chair, and never ground down.

Our proprietary heat treatment process is where the soft, malleable aluminum turns super strong. First, the chair is submerged in a 1000°F salt bath, which hardens the aluminum from the soft 0 temper to T4. The chair is then quenched in a cold bath.

Finally, the chair is baked in a special oven overnight, which takes the aluminum from T4 to T6, three times harder than steel. This process is part of the secret behind the unique strength and long lifespan of our furniture.

Our signature finish is hand brushed, clear anodized. First, we brush each part of the aluminum in the direction of the aluminum grain.

Then, the product is anodized, an electrolytic process that transforms the surface from aluminum to aluminum oxide. - The chair is submerged in our anodization tanks, where an electric current runs. The result is a super hard wearing, scratch resistant, outdoor approved finish that is next to the hardness of a diamond.

Our hand polished finish is something extra. It takes us eight additional hours per chair and results in a sparkling finish.

Every product is polished three times. First, we polish all individual parts, such as chair legs. Then we polish assembled parts that have been welded together. Finally, we polish the whole product, every little curve.

The gleaming result is like a piece of jewelry to sit on. Time well spent, in our view.

We often pair our recycled aluminum with other materials, such as soft textiles and warm wood. Upholstery is offered in graded in textiles and leathers as well as custom materials. All seat pads and chair seats are upholstered by hand in-house at the Emeco factory.

Our wood is sourced locally from sustainably managed forests and crafted in partnership with Amish woodworkers in neighboring Lancaster, Pennylsvania.

Aluminum is endlessly recyclable. All off-cuts and scraps from the Emeco factory are collected and returned for recycling, to come back as sheets and tubes of recycled aluminum to craft into new furniture, closing the loop.