Y

Our Journey Towards

A Better World Around You

Contents

1. Who we are
1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 A message from CEO Brian Walker Who is Herman Miller? Our legacy of leadership, corporate values, and community Our history of design and innovation

2. Dimensions of our Better World program

2.1 2.3 Community Service Health & Well-being 2.2 Inclusiveness & Diversity 2.4 Environmental Advocacy

Additional GRI data on hermanmiller.com

1.1 | Who we are

Asking the right questions: A message from CEO Brian Walker

Its important to ask the right questions, isnt it? We used to ask how to avoid filling landfills. Or how to reduce our use of styrofoam? Now we ask about shrinking our carbon footprint and the true environmental and social costs of manufacturing, assembling, and shipping a product. Or how integral is building a better world to our corporate strategy? Are we using green energy? Can we point to measureable results? Times have certainly changed since Herman Millers environmental programs began in the 1980s. Now we see environmental advocacy as part of a larger effortone we call Better World. For years, one of our corporate values has been A Better World, which shows just how critical it is to our business. We put together this Better World Report every year to let you know how were doing. Are we perfect and do we always reach our goals? Of course not. Building a better world is not so much a goal as an everyday fact of life. For me, the remarkable thing about our efforts to build a better world is their broad-based support throughout the global Herman Miller community. Widespread engagement on the part of Herman Miller employees has led to wide variety of recognition: #1 rankings in FORTUNEs Most Admired companies survey, eighth consecutive listing in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, a Sector Leader and Sector Mover in Sustainable Asset Management (SAM) Sustainability Yearbook 2011, Just Means Social Innovation Award for Best Sustainability Performance, EPA WasteWise Award for Green Purchasing, and a perfect score for the fourth consecutive year in the Human Rights Campaigns Corporate Equality Index. Will we constantly try to improve the performance of our customers environments? Yes. Will we continue to work toward the goals stated in this report and build on the progress we are reporting here? By all means. And I truly hope this report will give you some ideas about how you can join us. Thank you,

Brian Walker
Chief Executive Officer

A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller

1.2 | Who we are

Who is Herman Miller?

A business is rightly judged by its products and services, but it must also face scrutiny as to its humanity.
DJ De Pree, founder, Herman Miller, Inc.

Herman Miller is named after a West Michigan businessman who helped DJ De Pree buy the Michigan Star Furniture Company in 1923. It didnt hurt that Herman Miller was DJs fatherin-law. Since Miller had a good reputation for honesty and was well-known in the business community, DJ renamed the company after him. And weve been Herman Miller ever since.

A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller

1.3 | Who we are

Our legacy of leadership, corporate values, and community

Herman Miller is well-known for its philosophy of leadership and employee engagement. Our former chairman and CEO Max De Pree wrote about it all in his books Leadership Is an Art and Leadership Jazz. We call our corporate values Things that Matter. Here is our corporate mission. We will be the leading provider of thoughtfully designed interior products for places where people work, heal, learn, and live. Our products will solve real problems, delight the eye, complement the ways our customers choose to express their environments, and they will be affordable. We will be an inspiration to our customers in the ways we create a great place to work for our employees, achieve operational excellence, provide a solid investment for our shareholders, advocate for the environment, unite a diverse and talented group of people, and exemplify a force for positive change in the communities in which we live and serve. Ultimately, our aspiration is to design and build a better world around you. Whether you are an employee, a customer, a shareholder, or a neighbor, we will use our energy, our creativity, and our resources to improve the places where you work, heal, learn, and live. Herman Millers culture results from the collective attitudes, aspirations, ideals, and experiences of the people who work here. We believe that each person at Herman Miller has potential and multiple talents. We also believe that the way we experience Herman Miller as employees is important to our ability to perform at the highest levelsfor our customers, our shareholders, and our neighbors. Our leaders, including our board of directors, take our commitment to building a better world seriously. They review our performance, monitor compliance with ethical standards, and measure their own compensation against their ability to manage our business according to our values. We have a strong tradition of employee engagement at Herman Miller. Most of us own stock, and we work together to delight our customers with great design reliably delivered. For more about who we are and what we do, please visit hermanmiller.com.

A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller

1.4 | Who we are

Our history of design and innovation

For over 75 years, we have worked with some of the most outstanding designers in the world Gilbert Rohde, George Nelson, Charles and Ray Eames, Alexander Girard, Isamu Noguchi, Robert Propst, Bill Stumpf, Studio 7.5, and Yves Bhar. They have taught us a habit of mind that begins with a problem, researches possibilities, and produces a durable and beautiful solution. That is our view of design. This way of thinking about design has led us to be innovative in many parts of our business. Our environmental advocacy continues to lead our industry. Our graphics and communications are distinctive and award-winning. The Herman Miller Performance System, modeled on the Toyota Production System, innovates every day and delivers our products dependably around the world. We innovate in our human resource programs to make the employee experience at Herman Miller fulfilling and productive. Above all, our design thinking has led us to consider a better world around you our ultimate aspiration, one that requires not only sustainable business practices, but community service, health and well-being, safety, and inclusiveness and diversity.

A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller

2 | Dimensions of our Better World program

When we think about building a better world around you, we organize our work into four areas:
Community service Inclusiveness & diversity Health & well-being Environmental advocacy
In working in these areas, it boils down to building communitywith you and around you, in your work space and in your neighborhood, among family and among colleagues, in our backyard and around the world. Read on to see how weve done in the ongoing process of meeting our goals.

A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller

2.1 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Connecting with Kids in Bangalore August 7, 2010, was an unusual Saturday for a group of Herman Miller employees in Bangalore. After 10 days of collecting donations and a 30-minute drive, the team arrived at the Ashraya Orphanage. Fourteen kids greeted them, told them their names, one by one, and continued with all the innocent things you can think of, in the words of Chanda Gohrani. The Herman Miller team was so touched by the example of a volunteer music teacher at the orphanage, several of them signed up to teach classes every weekend. This is what we mean by community service.

Community Service
We take community service seriously. Our employees seek out volunteer opportunities in the community, and we allow each of them sixteen paid hours a year to work with the charitable organizations of their choice. Herman Miller people regularly take part in initiatives ranging from highway and river cleanups to youth mentoring programs. Herman Miller sets goals for the number of employee volunteer hours we contribute annually to our communities. Our three-year goal is 45,000 hours, and we are well on our way to reaching our goal with 11,500 hours after the first year. We report our progress in meeting these goals to the CEO.

A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller

2.1 | Dimensions of our Better World program

We Care
In its fourteenth year, Herman Miller and the architecture and design community volunteered in We Carea day of creativity and craft-making for underprivileged children in 25 cities across the U.S. and Canada. At a local West Michigan event, nearly 100 local youth gathered to create gifts for family and friends. We are lucky to have a fabulous team of firms that help make this event possible by donating time, craft materials, and food.

Bath Rugby Community Foundation

Herman Miller in the U.K. supports the Bath Rugby Community Foundations Business Enterprise Project, which offers local school children the chance to improve their learning skills and to find out more about how businesses work. In addition to funding the program, Herman Miller employees also support this program as volunteers who act as classroom assistants in one of the organized teaching sessions or discuss different aspects of Herman Millers business with the kids. Herman Miller in the U.K. also supports the Girls Development Squad and the Inclusion after Schools Club, which works with children with disabilities and learning difficulties.

Women for Women International

Nearly 20 women at Herman Miller volunteered for a fourth year with Women for Women International, an organization that mobilizes women to change their lives by bringing a holistic approach to addressing the unique needs of women in conflict and post-conflict environments. Meeting monthly in small groups by facility, these women write letters to their sisters in Kosovo to support them in the rebuilding of their lives.

A few additional organizations and causes we supported this past year:

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Employees in Bangalore, India planted 140 trees across three streets in one day Adopt-a-Highway Learning Enrichment through Adult Participation (LEAP) program United Way (Greater Ottawa County) Day of Caring Charity Co-ed Softball event Throughout the year, hundreds of employees assisted a variety of local organizations through food, clothing, personal hygiene and toy drives. Chattahoochee River cleanup Ride for Kids to benefit children with brain cancer Corporate Challenge 5K walk/run to benefit the Atlanta Food Bank The Strong Legs Run 5K for Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta Rebuilding Together Eighth annual sponsorship of a needy home repaired and rehabilitated with the goal of leaving the home warm, safe, and dry.

Habitat for Humanity

Over the past six years, Herman Miller volunteers have helped build homes for Habitat for Humanity. This years LEED-rated home for a family of three has reported gas and electric bills totaling $30 per month. The house includes an energy-efficient furnace, double-paned windows, energy-efficient light fixtures, light bulbs, and much more. Even the driveway and foundation were mixed with a waste byproduct, fly ash. The house was built in record time 8 business days!

Japan Relief
In response to the Japan Earthquake, 134 employees throughout the company contributed nearly $16,000. This was matched with $15,000 from the Herman Miller Foundation. When combined with an initial gift of $10,000, as well as $9,000 in proceeds from the sale of product on our eCommerce site, the total amount available to assist victims of this disaster was approximately $50,000. In addition, colleagues throughout Asia auctioned off crafts by designers to raise funds for victims of the earthquake.

A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller

2.2 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Education Always Comes First In an initiative called Talent 2014, Herman Millers Inclusiveness Resource Teams formed an alliance with Holland New Tech, a brand-new school in the Holland, Michigan Public School System. We plan to follow 100 eighth and ninth graders through to graduation in 2014, teach them about continuous improvement, teamwork, and collaboration skills at Herman Miller, and in general show them the kinds of careers open to high school grads. We hosted them for their first day at Herman Millers design and production facilities in March. Who knows, there may be a future CEO in that group.

Inclusiveness & Diversity

We value the whole person and everything each of us has to offer, obvious and not so obvious. I believe that every person should have the chance to realize his or her potential, regardless of color, gender, age, sexual orientation, educational background, family status, skill levelthe list goes on and on. When we are truly inclusive, I believe we go beyond toleration to really understanding what makes us unique and what unites us as human beings.
Brian Walker, President and Chief Executive Officer

Inclusiveness & Diversity (I&D) is much more than a social program at Herman Miller. Working to become an inclusive community is both the right thing to do and a business imperative that directly affects our ability to grow as a company. To effectively compete in the global marketplace, we recognize the need to attract and retain the best talent available. An inclusive environment allows our employees to be more innovative and create products that best meet the needs of our customers around the world. And a diverse supplier base ensures we have the best suppliers to choose from.

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2.2 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Eight Inclusiveness Resource Teams (IRTs) organize our grass-roots efforts: Asian; Black; disAbility Advocacy; Womens Initiatives Network; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT); Hispanic; Male; and Generational Outreach. Two additional IRTs (disability and remote workers) organize our efforts in the UK. Each IRT is charged with implementing initiatives that not only benefit our employees and communities, but also help Herman Miller to meet our business objectives. In the past year, IRTs grew to 170 members. Our I&D scorecard measures our efforts in several critical areas including Who We Sell to (customers), Who Does the Work (Talent), Where We Work (Employee Engagement), and Who We Sell to (Supplier Diversity). Scorecard results are reviewed regularly by the companys senior-level leadership and the Board of Directors. This past year, we improved our results by 15 points, a 32% increase over the previous fiscal year. We have always worked to build a strong and diverse supplier network. Supplier sourcing and qualification, Tier 2 reporting, mentoring, community and business outreach, and training and education are among the strategies we use to strengthen our supplier diversity efforts.
Millions of Dollars

Business Contracted with Minority and Woman Owned Suppliers

Minority Owned Woman Owned

120

100

80

A few achievements by our Inclusiveness and Diversity teams last year:

- 100 percent rating on Corporate Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign (fourth consecutive year) Chicago Pride Celebration, co-hosted by LGBT IRT and Chicago sales team Fifth annual $2,500 community scholarship Addition of three new Inclusiveness Resource Teams (Generational Outreach IRT in U.S. and Disability and Remote Worker IRTs in U.K.) Spring Fashion Show and Fundraiser for local Womens Resource Center hosted by Womens Initiatives Network (WIN) IRT Distribution of backpacks filled with school supplies for 1,200 west Michigan children Provided instructor-led and online diversity training for all employees Total spending with women and minority-owned businesses reached 16.4 percent Nominated for the Corporation of the Year award by the Michigan Minority Supplier Development Council (MMSDC) Launch of Supplier Diversity Advisory Council, with CFO serving as executive sponsor Attended national conferences, including National Urban League (Black IRT), Out & Equal Workplace Summit (LGBT IRT), U.S. Business Leaders Network (disAbility Advocacy IRT), and National Hispanic Corporate Council (Hispanic IRT)

60

40

20

0 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

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2.3 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Roving Leadership Alive and Well at Herman Miller Dan Bos and Terry Lopez saw a problemtoo few safety suggestions and too many safety incidents at GreenHouse Operations. They asked Kirsten Barkel to do something about it, and Kirsten took charge. She and a team talked to people, created communication tools, and generally made safety more visible and more fun. Safety suggestions from employees are up 78%; incidents are down 27%. Kirsten has become the complaint department with a smile noting that employee ideas have been crucial to their success. Her Safety Liaison job is now a development position for anyone interested in learning about Herman Millers safety culture. We have leaders with all sorts of titles at Herman Miller

Health & Well-being

We believe the health and well-being of our community is a goal for all employees, is integral to our aspiration to create a better world, and is consistent with the way we value the potential of each and every person. As a company committed to ergonomic design, we want to make every employee and every customer comfortable, safe, and productive at work by applying these principles: fit the user; fit the task; and allow for posture change and activity variety. Our expertise and leadership in ergonomics puts us in a position not only to help our customers, but also to help ourselves. We strongly believe in a healthy and health-positive workplace. Many programslike our bike purchase reimbursement programintegrate with environmental efforts.

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2.3 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Fuel Savings Update

Carpooling/Bike Pooling Programs

Several programs help us reduce the amount of fuel we consume, thereby reducing the impact on our wallets as well as the environment. Employees can create either a carpool or bike pool profile including their address, hours, and whether or not they are willing to drive or are just looking for a ride. Then they log their hours to be entered into a monthly drawing for a $50 gift certificate.

Employees receive the following one-time reimbursements:

- $100 when purchasing a bike for personal use (or $25 for a bike tune-up) - $500 when purchasing a hybrid or fuel-efficient car - $50 toward an approved helmet for use when riding a motorcycle or scooter

437,225
miles saved by car/bike pooling

91
fuel-efficient vehicle reimbursements

Health Management
We continue to invest in tools that will help employees understand and improve their health. The Herman Miller Health Management Program helps employees and their partners become more aware of their health and more involved in improving their overall health habitsand provides the opportunity to earn financial rewards for participating.

WebMD
WebMD remains our partner to facilitate health awareness and education. WebMD has created a personalized site for Herman Miller employees to take their HealthQuotient and manage their health. Employees who completed the Health Management Program received $150 incentive again this year to help offset the cost of medical premiums.

bicycle reimbursements

602

111,375
total dollars reimbursed to employees

On The Move Walking Program

Employees are encouraged to participate in this walking program including setting a daily goal of number of steps. Walking maps are provided for several sites. Employees can then log their daily steps and be enrolled in a drawing for prizes.

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2.3 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Safety
From the production floor to the workstation, from stacking products to adjusting seats ergonomically, we focus on safety in everything that we do. Our Corporate Safety Vision is that Herman Miller will establish a culture where safety expectations are driven by all employees with the understanding that all injuries are preventable. There is a consistent, verifiable, and ongoing identification and correction of problems and hazards.

Injury Incident Rate per 100 Employees

Our Safety Policy

Herman Miller is committed to the highest standards in health and safety management. Our corporate safety goals are key to our business success.
5
Injury Incident Rate per 100 Employees

To drive continual improvement in OH&S management and performance, we will: Go beyond compliance with occupational safety and health regulations and other requirements Pursue prevention of injury and ill health and elimination of any risk. Promote employee well-being Demonstrate and implement best health and safety practices Promote health and safety knowledge and awareness

Our Ongoing Goals: - Zero injuries - Excellence in safety performance - Elimination of unsafe behavior
Four of our facilities are recognized by the Michigan Voluntary Protection Program: Zeeland Mainsite, GreenHouse, Midwest Distribution Center, 171st Avenue facility. In addition to our participation in the Michigan OSHA Voluntary Protection Program, our Behavioral Based Safety program helped us work toward our goals.

0 Herman Miller Industry Average

Behavior Based Safety

We launched a corporate-wide behavior based safety program in 2006. This innovative workplace strategy reduced on-the-job injuries by 40 percent in the first year. The program relies on interactions and coaching between team members to reduce the kinds of accidents that we believe account for 94 percent of all injuries. Six manufacturing sites have implemented the behavior based safety program.

2010/2011

12

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2.4 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Spreading the Word In March, 2011, Steve Jackson, Commercial Environmental Manager, represented Herman Miller at the Social Innovation Awards in London. The audience included executives from well-known companies like Coca Cola, Cisco, Nokia, and Nestle. Steve was glad that in 2010 we reached 91% of our goal to have a zero operational footprint by 2020. He was surprised that Herman Miller was the only nominee in the Sustainability Performance category that night in Londons financial district. The judges said in introducing Steve and Herman Miller that we were the clear winner. Now lets go after that remaining bit.

Environmental Advocacy
Like community service, inclusiveness and diversity, and health and well-being, environmental advocacy at Herman Miller began with corporate values first put into words by the founder of our company, DJ De Pree. In 1953, DJ said that Herman Miller will be a good corporate neighbor by being a good steward of the environment. We have been working toward that goal ever since. DJ also had other ideas ahead of their timewindows in all company buildings, including manufacturing facilities, and requiring that 50 percent of any Herman Miller corporate site be set aside as green space. Today, living with integrity and respecting the environment are two ways we work to build a better world. We believe the environment is a cause every corporation should put high on its agenda. As part of our annual Earth Day events, employees can bring in their own recyclable waste from home (newspapers, paper, burnables, etc.) Employees have taken it upon themselves to make a better world for all of us.

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2.4 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Energy Use

2008/2009

90 million k Wh

Our Environmental Policy

Herman Miller is committed to sustainable business practices in everything we do. Our corporate environmental goals are a key metric of our business success.

2009/2010

85 million k Wh
2010/2011

82 million k Wh

On the journey toward sustainable business practices, through continuous improvement, we will:
Go beyond compliance with environmental regulations and other requirements Pursue prevention of pollution and elimination of waste of any kind Implement technologies to efficiently use energy resources Design our products, processes, and buildings for the environment Promote environmental knowledge and awareness
Electric

Environmental Quality Action Team (EQAT)

In 1989 a group of our employees launched the Environmental Quality Action Team (EQAT) and persuaded senior management to elevate environmental advocacy in Herman Millers corporate agenda. This grass-roots effort, typical of our belief in employee engagement, has ensured that being mindful of the environment extends to all groups and all parts of Herman Miller. One important component of the EQAT initiative is our ISO 14001 Team, which includes Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) Specialists at all of our major office and manufacturing locations. The EHS Specialists meet regularly to share information and to ensure that Herman Millers EHS requirements are maintained company wide. Fiscal year 2011 brought about some challenges with regard to our sustainability goals. As we reach closer towards our zero footprint goals, we face the challenge that on the path to zero, the final 10% reduction will be the most difficult to achieve. Additionally, the sales volume for this past year was very strong, driving up material usage and energy consumption. Still, we believe that we have the programs in place to meet our fiscal 2013 milestones and 2020 goals launched in 2004.
2008/2009

353,500 mmbtu
2009/2010

340,500 mmbtu
2010/2011

301,310 mmbtu

Gas

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2.4 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Perfect Vision Goals

VOC air emissions

Hazardous waste

81%
Operational Footprint
Operational Footprint: We experienced an 88% reduction against our goal of 91% (last years actual). With the 25.1% increase in sales over fiscal 2010, we experienced these increases: - Air emissions increased by six tons from fiscal 2010. - Hazardous waste increased by three tons. - Landfill waste increased 260 tons. - Process water use increased by eight million gallons.

PROGRESS TOWARD 2020 GOAL

95% 0
TONS 2020 GOAL

PROGRESS TOWARD 2020 GOAL

TONS 2020 GOAL

320.30 53.83 59.98 50.83

tons (1993/1994) tons (2009/2010) tons (2010/2011) tons (2011/2012 goal)

320.93 12.05 15.37 10.90

tons (1993/1994) tons (2009/2010)

tons (2010/2011) tons (2011/2012 goal)

Solid waste to landfill

Process water use

VOC Emissions to Air

Between 1994 and 2011 Herman Miller recorded more than an 81 percent decline in VOC emissions. We also track our nitrogen oxide (NOx) and sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions at our Energy Center, where we burn scrap wood to create energy. Nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur oxides (SOx) emissions from our Energy Center operations were 29.1 tons and 16.6 tons, respectively. Our UV water-based finishing system for Zeeland Operations has been up and running since 2008, resulting in lower air emissions and hazardous wastes.

90% 0
TONS 2020 GOAL

PROGRESS TOWARD 2020 GOAL

75% 0
GALLONS 2020 GOAL

PROGRESS TOWARD 2020 GOAL

13,171.80 tons 1064.11 tons 1327.91 tons 768.59 tons

(1993/1994) (2009/2010) (2010/2011) (2011/2012 goal)

114.80 million gallons 20.60 million gallons 28.80 million gallons 20.80 million gallons

(1993/1994) (2009/2010) (2010/2011) (2011/2012 goal)

Since we have recently grown through acquisition, we continue working hard to improve several acquired sites that manufacture wood products. With their emissions, our reduction to baseline slipped from 83 percent to 81 percent.
Renewable energy Operational footprint reduction

Hazardous Waste
To achieve our goal of zero hazardous waste generation by 2020, we have reduced the use of hazardous materials in every aspect of the manufacturing processfrom raw materials to building and equipment maintenance. The number of our facilities that release toxic chemicals, defined by the EPAs Toxic Release Inventory, has been reduced from seven to one and the number of toxic chemicals that we use in our facilities from twelve to two. The reduction to the 1993/94 baseline year decreased from a 96 percent reduction to 95 percent.

100% 100
PERCENT 2020 GOAL

PROGRESS TOWARD 2020 GOAL

88% 0
TOTAL OPERATIONAL FOOTPRINT 2020 GOAL

PROGRESS TOWARD 2020 GOAL

0.0 percent 71.6 percent 100.0 percent 100.0 percent

(1993/1994) (2009/2010) (2010/2011) (2011/2012 goal)

0.00 percent 90.68 percent 88.29 percent 91.35 percent

(1993/1994) (2009/2010) (2010/2011) (2011/2012 goal)

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2.4 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Non-Hazardous Solid Waste

60

Recycled Waste to Energy (on-site) Waste to Energy (including off-site) Sent to landfill

50

Composted

40

Solid Waste to Landfill

Our goal is to deposit no solid waste in landfills by 2020. Although landfill increased by 260 tons, in mid-2010, we started composting the bottom ash from Herman Millers onsite Energy Center. Since this bottom ash had been one of the largest contributors to landfill, we expect to see a sizeable reduction in landfill during the coming year. We are also pursuing additional reuses of the waste powder resulting from the powder-coat painting of our metal parts for filing and storage products. Our Geiger, Georgia site sends nothing to landfills; what they cant recycle they send to Huntsville, Alabama to generate power for the NASA operations there. Our Ningbo, China site also sends all non-recyclable solid wastes to a waste-to-energy facility.
Millions of Pounds

30

20

Process Water Use and Quality

We look for every opportunity to upgrade and improve the ways in which we use water, from installing low-flush toilets and waterless urinals to reducing the amount of water used for lawn care.

10

None of our facilities discharge waste water directly to the environment. All process water is either discharged to local waste water treatment facilities or hauled away for treatment.
Meeting our 2020 goal for process water consumption in manufacturing is among our greatest environmental challenges, and we are determined to get there. Although our reduction to baseline slipped from 82 percent to 75 percent last year, we maximize the reuse of process water throughout various manufacturing operations. We continue to investigate the most current technologies to help us meet our goal of zero process water use.

0 2007 / 2008 2008 / 2009 2009 / 2010 2010 / 2011

Fiscal Year

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2.4 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Total Greenhouse Gas Emissions

75000

65000

6%
2008 2009 2010

LESS

Climate Change and Carbon Footprint

Last year, we reported that, as of May 1, 2010, we were using 100 percent renewable electrical energy in all our facilities world-wide by purchasing certified Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) and continuing a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with our local electric provider. This continued for fiscal year 2011. The RECs retired for 2011, along with the PPA, represented 12 percent wind and 88 percent biomass projects. Savings from energy efficiency suggestions from our employees covered the additional expenses we incurred in purchasing the RECs. New in 2010, we added a goal of being carbon neutral by 2020 (Scopes 1 and 2) to our Perfect Vision goals. For fiscal 2011, we achieved a 72% reduction in our carbon footprint against our goal of a 65% reduction, based on the purchase and retirement of RECs and the PPA. We have purchased over 72,000 Mwh of RECs and over 10,000 Mwh of 100 percent wind power from the Harvest Wind Farm located in Huron County, Michigan, one of the largest commercial operating wind projects in Michigan. Our renewable energy certificates (RECs) are purchased with savings achieved from energy efficiency projects such as Energy Star projects, lighting upgrades, LEED projects, and manufacturing-related projects. The Herman Miller Energy Center generates 100 percent of the steam needed by Zeeland Main Sites manufacturing operations, of which 92 percent comes from the incineration of wood waste.
55000

69 %

MORE

2010

CO2-eq (metric tons)

45000

35000

22 %
2008 2009

3%
2008 2009 2010

2008

2009

LESS

LESS

25000
2010

15000

Scope 1
direct

Scope 2
indirect - electricity consumed

Scope 3
other indirect

RECs

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2.4 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Calendar 2009 metric tons*

Calendar 2010 metric tons*

Total Scope One Emissions

Stationary Combustion owned and leased

23,135
19,169 2,340 996 22,505 630

21,799
17,262 2,739 1,119 21,120 679

Local Fleet north america Company Vehicles Subtotal Combustion Emissions north america Combustion Emissions outside north america

Total Scope Two Emissions

Purchased Electricity owned and leased

60,113
58,339 58,339 1,774

60,260
58,183 58,183 2,077

Energy Conservation
Energy reduction projects resulted in a net decrease in electrical energy and natural gas use last year. Included in the energy numbers are all leased facilities and facilities included in our organizational carbon footprint calculations. The EPAs Energy Star program, purchasing renewable energy, and implementing company-wide energy efficiency programs allowed us to achieve significant savings in energy use and dollars during fiscal 2011, including an annual cost avoidance of over $640,000. Our most successful energy efficiency projects have focused on the updating of our factory lighting systems and LEED projects. By converting HID lighting to T8 fluorescent lighting and adding control technology, we cut our lighting bills in half. General system upgrades as a result of our continuing improvements through the LEED certification process has netted a 10% reduction in building energy costs where LEED is implemented. Our energy reduction efforts are equivalent to not driving 5.5 million miles, or planting 695 acres of trees, or saving enough energy to power 350 averaged size homes for one year. We continue to reduce our energy use, increase our use of renewable energy, decrease our transportation, and design our products to be energy efficient. Herman Miller is publicly reporting our GHG emissions and strategy to allow investors and other interested parties to view this data. This is our second year of publicly reporting our emissions through the

Subtotal Emissions from Purchased Electricity north america Emissions from Purchased Electricity outside north america

Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs)

41,489

59,154

Total Scope Three Emissions

Product Delivery north america Business Travel north america

34,339
30,280 4,059

33,467
28,221 5,246

Biomass
CO2 from Biomass** north america

13,118
13,118

16,265
16,265

* Metric tons of CO2e [CO2 equivalent] ** Wood waste at Energy Center and biodiesel Third-party verified Note: 63 percent of our greenhouse gas emissions from electricity were offset by RECs Note: The purchase and retirement of 59,386,614 kwh of RECs was third-party verified Note: Our 2009 worldwide Scope 1, Scope 2, and Biomass emissions have been third-party verified

Carbon Disclosure Project , the only international climate change reporting system.

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2.4 | Dimensions of our Better World program

Greenhouse Gas Emissions: reducing our carbon footprint

In 2007 we began the process of documenting our carbon footprint using the World Resources Institute and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WRI/WBCSD) Greenhouse Gas Protocol: A Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard (Revised Edition), The Climate Registry General Reporting Protocol (version 1.1, May 2008); and The Climate Registry General Reporting Protocol 1.1 Updates and Clarifications (31 December 2010). We have used emission factors provided by the Climate Registrys General Reporting Protocol to calculate our Scope 1 direct greenhouse gas emissions that are under our controlour natural gas usage and local fleet emissions. Scope 2 indirect emissions are calculated from our purchased electricity. We have also included a limited amount of our Scope 3 (optional) indirect emissions from our product distribution process and our corporate business travel. We believe it is important to report a portion of our optional emissions because shipping goods to our customers is a big part of our business. We will continue to track and include optional emissions from product delivery miles and business travel (Scope 3). We believe it is important to report a portion of our optional emissions because shipping goods to our customers is a big part of our business. We will continue to track and include optional emissions from product delivery miles and business travel (Scope 3).

Habitat Restoration and Protection

Several of our West Michigan building sites feature native flowers and grasses, as well as retaining ponds that support a diversity of plant and animal life. We use Integrated Pest Management (IPM) at all facilities to reduce pesticide use and minimize our impact on biodiversity and human health. For facilities that require regular groundskeeping, we use a phosphorus-free fertilizer to prevent harmful runoff into surrounding natural areas. None of Herman Millers operations directly affects the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red List threatened species habitats.

The rePurpose Program: helping the community and the environment

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Our rePurpose program provides new life for no-longer-needed office furniture and other items in a socially responsible, economically viable way. We take used office furniture from our customers and match it with non-profit groups. The customer realizes tax advantages; the non-profits get the furniture they need; we prevent tons from going into landfills. Were continuously expanding the rePurpose program, and our customers are enthusiastic about it. In 2010 rePurpose diverted 2500 tons of assets from landfill. This equals*: 255,114 gallons of gasoline NOT being consumed 58,153 tree seedlings grown for 10 years

Our Buildings
Architecture and architects are important to us and to our business. We helped found the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and our 1995 GreenHouse building won LEED Pioneer status in light of its environmentally sound, aesthetically pleasing, and financially beneficial qualities.

Today, we are committed to building or renovating our facilities to achieve at least Silver LEED criteria. We are among the top tier of Michigan-based companies with the most LEED-certified buildings. We have 14 LEED-rated projects in the U.S. and U.K., including Herman Millers 18,000-square-foot Los Angeles showroom, the first LEED-CI Platinum project in Los Angeles.

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DfE Goals

Design for the Environment Initiative (DfE)

Designing our products with consideration for their environmental impact is a central corporate strategy. Were focused on incorporating environmentally sustainable materials, features, and manufacturing processes into our new product designs. Working with McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC), our DfE Team evaluates new product designs in the key areas of material chemistry and safety of inputs, disassembly, recyclability, and carbon. Today, all new Herman Miller products are designed using the DfE protocol and all pre-existing products are held to these standards as well. In fiscal 2011, we saw a shift in our product mix to those products that have not yet been approved against our DfE protocol. We also added the sales from the recent acquisition of Nemschoff. This is reflected in our fiscal 2011 result of 54% to our goal of 55% of all of our product sales coming from DfEapproved products. Our goal for 2012 is 58%. All Herman Miller engineers and purchasing agents go through DfE training, including product development teams in the U.K. as well as in China. We have also trained our design staff at Brandrud and Nemschoff. Along with DfE, full life cycle assessments (LCA) have been conducted for major product categories/product lines representing 79 percent of revenues. LCA is a tool that, from raw material extraction through end of life management, identifies the full range of environmental impacts assignable to products and services. LCAs help to quantify how much energy and raw materials are used, and how much solid, liquid and gaseous waste is generated, at each stage of the products life.

54%

PROGRESS TOWARD 2020 GOAL

58%

2011/2012 GOAL

100%

2020 GOAL

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Recycled Content
Since we try to incorporate recycled materials into all of our products, we carefully monitor each products weight and the percentage of recycled content used. We work to balance a high percentage of recycled content with our desire to provide the most environmentally safe materials.

Sustainable Wood
We acquired Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) chain of custody certification at our Zeeland, Michigan, Main Site manufacturing facility in 2007. In 2011, we expanded the scope of our certification to include our Spring Lake, Michigan, facilities making filing and storage products. We can offer FSC-certified products in a variety of laminate and veneer work surfaces and tables, as well as certain filing and storage products with wood tops/fronts. Geiger Internationals Fulton manufacturing facility in Atlanta, Georgia was granted FSC Chain of Custody Certification in 2009. Geiger can contribute to LEED projects by offering FSC-certified products manufactured at the Atlanta facility.

Energy-Efficient Products
As part of our environmental advocacy, we try to create products that reduce energy use for our consumers. LED technology in the Flute TM personal light uses 30 to 50 percent less energy than traditional task lights. The Twist LED Task Light uses 45%-60% less energy than traditional under cabinet fluorescent task lights.

ecoScorecard
In 2010, Herman Miller became the first large contract furniture manufacturer to incorporate ecoScorecard into its product catalog. Herman Miller ecoScorecard is a free, web-based technology platform providing environmental information and sustainability documentation about products for all major green building rating systems. We continue to work to expand our product catalogue on ecoScorecard in order to make pursuing LEED certification easier. These efforts contributed to our eighth consecutive listing on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. The Sustainable Asset Management (SAM) group selected Herman Miller, Inc., for inclusion in The Sustainability Yearbook 2011 and awarded Herman Miller both the SAM Sector Leader and SAM Sector Mover distinctions. The Sustainability Yearbook provides an overview of the results of the 12th SAM Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA). Only the top-scoring 15% of participating companies, with a minimum score of at least 60% of the score of the SAM Sector Leader in each of the 58 sectors assessed, are eligible for inclusion in The Sustainability Yearbook. And this past year we were given the Best Sustainability Performance Award at the 2011 Just Means Social Innovations Awards.

level Certification
level is the certification program for the BIFMA e3-2008: Business and Institutional Furniture Sustainability Standard (BIFMA e3). It has been created to deliver the most open and transparent means of evaluating and communicating the environmental and social impacts of furniture products in the built environment. Currently, 61 percent of our product lines are level certified.

GREENGUARD Certification
Herman Millers major lines of systems furniture, office seating products, and filing and storage, including Meridian products, have earned GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certification and GREENGUARD Children and Schools Certification for low-emitting products.

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Log onto hermanmiller.com to learn more about what we are doing for a better world around you. Visit us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HermanMiller Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/hermanmiller Illustrations done by: Ben Goss

Were the types that think that the only way to reach audacious results is to set audacious goals. Were very proud to share our accomplishments with you, but we know were not perfect and can always do better. Were committed to doing our part and excited to share what weve learned with you. We hope our Better World Report will give you some idea of the scope of our efforts to make the world a better place. We update this report annually. We make every effort to respond to all GRI disclosures; we report additional GRI data on hermanmiller.com. We welcome your feedback on this Report. Send your comments to the EnvironmentalAffairsGroup@HermanMiller.com.

For more information about our products and services or to see a list of dealers, please visit us at hermanmiller.com or call (800) 851 1196.
2010 Herman Miller, Inc. Zeeland, Michigan. Aeron, Meridian, , are among the registered trademarks of Herman Miller, Inc. TM Flute is among the trademarks of Herman Miller, Inc. SM rePurpose is among the service marks of Herman Miller, Inc. GREENGUARD is a registered trademark of the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute. TM level is a trademark of BIFMA International SM ecoScorecard is a registered service mark of ecoScorecard, LLC.

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A BETTER WORLD REPORT 2011 Herman Miller