Yes, the title is a paraphrase of the classic Tennessee Ernie Ford song, “Sixteen Tons.” In this case, we’re not shoveling coal but working some magic with a four-ton shipping container.
In a recent post, I talked about some of the tests that Federal Testing Laboratories performed on our furniture. These tests proved in a very scientific way that our EFT (environmentally farmed timber) Hevea brasiliensis is stronger than the red oak that is often considered the gold standard wood for furniture.
We are very proud of those results, and we know that when people sit down and take a look at them, they will probably find them quite convincing.
From time to time, however, we like to perform tests that are a little more, shall we say, attention-getting.
- 4 tons of pressure seems extreme…Not for our beds!
What you see here is the aforementioned shipping container sitting atop one of our dorm beds. (We use these to ship our furniture in large quantities by rail or ship.) That is 8,000 lbs. of steel weighing down on a structure of Hevea brasiliensis! Not only does our bed survive the ordeal—it also shows no sign of stress or strain whatsoever.
Technically speaking, our furniture is not indestructible. But it sure can take a lot of what students dish out and provide many years of service to a university. At the end of the day, that’s the test that really matters.
Matt
The ULoft Blog Team
About University Loft Company and our solid wood modular residence life furniture:
Since 1984, when James Jannetides built a loft configuration for his own dorm room at Southern Illinois University, hundreds of thousands of college students have enjoyed better campus living thanks to University Loft furniture. Today, University Loft serves more than 1,200 colleges, universities and related student housing partners. As Jannetides’ says: “We are always learning, always innovating, and always improving … our environment, our products, and our service. We are University Loft Company.”