We make lights from Australian timber, so we owe the forest some care. This is where we stand today, what we commit to, and what we'll report back on as we grow. We're a new studio, so we'd rather be clear about our commitments than make claims we can't yet prove.
We work with four Australian hardwoods: messmate, Tasmanian blackwood, marri and spotted gum. Our commitment is simple: timber from plantation, regrowth and reclaimed sources only, and never from old-growth forest.
Ask us where the timber in your piece came from and we'll tell you. As our supply grows we'll publish our sources and any certification they hold on this page.
Most of our lights are built from four to six pieces of timber, cut from the parts of a board that suit them, instead of being machined from one large solid block. Gum veins, kino lines and colour shifts stay in, because they're part of the tree.
Offcuts are used for smaller parts like canopies, collars and sconce discs. What can't be used is recovered rather than sent to landfill.
Almost everything we sell is made after you order it. That means no warehouse of unsold stock and no end-of-season clearance. The few pieces we keep ready to ship are made in small runs.
Our pieces are made by a specialist manufacturing partner overseas that we've worked with for years. Shipping them to Australia has a footprint, and measuring it honestly is one of our first jobs.
Timber is finished with a low-VOC hardwax oil or a waterborne coating, chosen for the piece. Metal parts are aluminium and steel, glass is opal or frosted, and ceramics are slip cast. Every light uses LED globes or modules.
We design with mechanical fixings wherever we can, so timber, metal, glass and electrics can be separated for repair or recycling.
Timber and joinery are covered for 10 years, and electrical components for 2 years, on top of your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.
After that we'll still look after your light. We offer a repair and refinish service, and replacement parts such as shades, cords, diffusers and electrical components for the life of each design.
If you no longer need an Onus Wood piece, send it back to us. Through our take-back program we'll reuse what we can, refinish and rehome good pieces, and recycle the timber, metal and glass that can't be reused.
Every year we'll update this page with what we've actually done, not just what we intend.
Questions or ideas? Email hello@onuswood.com. You can also download this statement as a PDF.