Document:

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                                                                    EXHIBIT 4.44

                       FIFTH AMENDMENT TO LOAN AGREEMENT

                  THIS FIFTH AMENDMENT TO LOAN AGREEMENT (this "Amendment"),
dated as of August 7, 2003, is by and among Steelcase SAS, a Societe par Actions
Simplifiee organized and existing under the laws of the Republic of France (the
"Borrower"), Steelcase Inc., a Michigan corporation (the "Guarantor"), and
Societe Generale, a bank organized and existing under the laws of the Republic
of France, acting through its Chicago Branch (the "Lender").

                  WHEREAS, the Borrower, the Guarantor and the Lender are
parties to that certain Loan Agreement dated as of April 9, 1999, as amended by
that certain First Amendment to Loan Agreement dated as of June 15, 2001, as
further amended by that certain Second Amendment to Loan Agreement dated as of
November 9, 2001, as further amended by that certain Third Amendment to Loan
Agreement dated as of November 5, 2002, and as further amended by that certain
Fourth Amendment to Loan Agreement and Waiver dated as of April 17, 2003 (the
"Fourth Amendment") (as such Loan Agreement is further amended hereby and as it
may be, from time to time hereafter, amended, restated, supplemented or
otherwise modified and in effect, the "Loan Agreement"), pursuant to which the
Lender has made certain loans to the Borrower;

                  WHEREAS, the Guarantor has entered into a Credit Agreement
(the "New Long Term Credit Agreement") dated as of July 29, 2003 with Bank One,
NA (Main Office Chicago), as administrative agent, Bank of America, N.A., as
syndication agent and the financial institutions (including the Lender) party
thereto;

                  WHEREAS, the Fourth Amendment contemplates that the financial
covenants in Section 10.2 of the Loan Agreement would be amended to conform with
any material replacement of the financial covenants in the Credit Agreement
(Long-Term Multicurrency Revolving Credit Facility) dated as of April 5, 2001
among the Guarantor and the banks and agents party thereto (the "Citibank
Facility");

                  WHEREAS, the Citibank Facility has terminated and certain
provisions of the New Long Term Credit Agreement replace the financial covenants
in the Citibank Facility; and

                  WHEREAS, the parties hereto wish to conform the financial
covenants in Section 10.2 of the Loan Agreement with the analogous provisions of
the New Long Term Credit Agreement and to make certain other conforming changes.

                  NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the
mutual covenants hereinafter contained, the parties hereto agree as follows:

                  1. Defined Terms. Capitalized terms used but not defined
herein shall have the meanings ascribed to such terms in the Loan Agreement.

                  2. Amendment of Loan Agreement. The Loan Agreement is hereby
amended as follows:

<PAGE>

                           (a) Section 1 - New Definitions. Section 1 of the
Loan Agreement is amended by inserting the following new definitions therein in
alphabetical order:

                  (i)      `Adjusted EBITDA' means, with respect to the
                           Guarantor and its consolidated Subsidiaries (all as
                           determined in accordance with GAAP):

                           (a) EBITDA,

         minus             (b) any extraordinary or unusual gains or
                           non-recurring gains (including any restructuring
                           gains, all such non-recurring gains to be determined
                           by the Guarantor in a manner consistent with the
                           Guarantor's consolidated financial statements for the
                           fiscal year ending February 28, 2003) to the extent
                           added in computing such EBITDA (or plus any
                           extraordinary or unusual non-cash losses or charges
                           or non-recurring non-cash losses or charges (other
                           than any such non-cash loss or charge to the extent
                           that it represents an accrual of or reserve for cash
                           expenditures in any future period), including any
                           non-cash restructuring losses or charges, all such
                           non-recurring non-cash losses or charges to be
                           determined by the Guarantor in a manner consistent
                           with the Guarantor's consolidated financial
                           statements for the fiscal year ending February 28,
                           2003) to the extent deducted in computing such
                           EBITDA, and plus (i) any ---- loss or charge on the
                           sale of the Guarantor's lease portfolio or (ii) any
                           loss or charge on the disposition of any
                           non-strategic assets divested in the fiscal year
                           ending February 27, 2004 to the extent such losses or
                           charges do not in the aggregate exceed $25,000,000),

         plus              (c) cash charges (net of cash gains) in an aggregate
                           amount not to exceed $20,000,000 to the extent
                           deducted in computing such EBITDA identified for the
                           fiscal year ending February 27, 2004 relating to
                           restructuring activities,

         plus              (d) any non-cash impairments to fixed assets or
                           goodwill or other intangible assets to the extent
                           deducted in computing such EBITDA and such fixed
                           assets or goodwill or other intangible assets are
                           identified on the Guarantor's consolidated balance
                           sheet for the fiscal quarter ending May 30, 2003,

         plus              (e) for the fiscal quarter ending May 30, 2003,
                           $13,000,000 (attributable to net nonrecurring charges
                           occurring during the fiscal quarter ended August 23,
                           2002),

         plus              (f) for the fiscal quarters ending May 30, 2003 and
                           August 29, 2003, $31,000,000 (attributable to net
                           nonrecurring charges occurring during the fiscal
                           quarter ended November 22, 2002),

         minus             (g) for the fiscal quarters ending May 30, 2003,
                           August 29, 2003 and November 28, 2003, $23,000,000
                           (attributable to net nonrecurring gains occurring
                           during the fiscal quarter ended February 28, 2003).

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                  (ii)     `Capital Expenditures' means, for any period, the
                           aggregate of all expenditures by the Guarantor and
                           its consolidated Subsidiaries during such period
                           that, in conformity with GAAP, are required to be
                           included in or reflected by the property, plant,
                           equipment or similar fixed asset accounts on the
                           consolidated balance sheet of the Guarantor and its
                           Subsidiaries; provided, however, that with respect to
                           expenditures relating to the acquisition of an asset
                           in an exchange of a like-kind asset, such
                           expenditures shall be net of any proceeds received
                           by, or amounts credited to, the Guarantor or its
                           consolidated Subsidiaries in connection with the sale
                           or exchange of the existing asset that is being
                           functionally replaced within 180 days of such sale or
                           exchange.

                  (iii)    `Consolidated Net Worth' means, at a particular date,
                           the amount reported as shareholders' equity on the
                           consolidated balance sheet for the Guarantor and its
                           consolidated Subsidiaries for the most recent fiscal
                           quarter for which financial statements are publicly
                           available determined in accordance with GAAP."

                  (iv)     `Permitted Receivables Financing' means any
                           transaction or series of transactions that may be
                           entered into by the Guarantor or any Subsidiary
                           pursuant to which the Guarantor and/or any of its
                           Subsidiaries may sell, convey or otherwise transfer,
                           directly or indirectly, to a newly-formed special
                           purpose entity (an "SPV") established solely for the
                           purpose of purchasing receivables and related assets
                           in connection with such transaction or series of
                           transactions or any other Person, any receivables and
                           related security for the purpose of obtaining
                           financing; provided that (i) the amount of
                           obligations that would be characterized as principal
                           if such transaction or series of transactions were
                           structured as a secured lending transaction rather
                           than as a purchase does not exceed $100,000,000 in
                           the aggregate and (ii) such obligations are
                           non-recourse to the Guarantor and its Subsidiaries
                           (other than an SPV) other than limited recourse
                           customary for receivables financings of the same
                           kind.

                  (b) Section 1 - "Subsidiary". The definition of "Subsidiary"
in Section 1 is hereby amended to add the following sentences at the end
thereof:

                           For purposes of the covenants in Section 10.2 of this
                           Agreement and the terms used therein, the term
                           "Subsidiary" or "Subsidiaries" shall exclude the
                           following "owned dealer affiliates" of the Guarantor:
                           (i) New Tangram, LLC, Office Environments of New
                           England, LLC and Texas Wilson Office Products, LLP
                           for so long as (x) in the case of New Tangram, LLC,
                           such entity retains the characteristics of an owned
                           dealer affiliate set forth in the immediately
                           succeeding clause (ii) (unless the Lender otherwise
                           consents) and (y) in the case of Office Environments
                           of New England, LLC and Texas Wilson Office Products,
                           LLP, each such entity retains the characteristics of
                           an owned dealer affiliate set forth in the
                           immediately succeeding clauses (ii)(A) and (ii)(B)
                           (unless the Lender

                                     - 3 -
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                           otherwise consents), and (ii) any other entity (A) of
                           which the Guarantor owns, directly or indirectly, a
                           majority of the voting interests of such entity or
                           exercises management control, (B) which was formed or
                           acquired to facilitate the restructuring,
                           consolidation or sale of an entity that is an
                           authorized Steelcase dealer, (C) the management of
                           which has the right to buy out such entity's shares
                           over time and (D) the financial results of which are
                           not incorporated in the Guarantor's consolidated
                           financial statements or, if such entity's financial
                           results are incorporated in the Guarantor's
                           consolidated financial statements, the net income
                           attributable to such entity is subtracted from the
                           Guarantor's consolidated financial results.

                  (c) Section 10.1.1 Section 10.1.1 is hereby amended by
deleting clause (vii) in its entirety and inserting the following new clause
(vii):

                           "(vii) (A) Liens on receivables and related security
                           securing a Permitted Receivables Financing and (B)
                           Liens on the capital stock of any Subsidiary securing
                           Debt of the Guarantor or any Subsidiary in favor of
                           Bank One, NA (Main Office Chicago), as administrative
                           agent (the "Administrative Agent"), with respect to
                           that certain Credit Agreement dated as of July 29,
                           2003 among Guarantor, the financial institutions
                           party thereto, the Administrative Agent, Bank of
                           America, N.A., as syndication agent, as the same may
                           be amended, restated supplemented or modified from
                           time to time; and"

                  (d) Section 10.2.1. Section 10.2.1 is hereby deleted in its
entirety and replaced with the following new Section 10.2.1:

                           "10.2.1 Minimum Net Worth. The Guarantor shall not
                           permit its Consolidated Net Worth at any time to be
                           less than the sum of (a) $1,000,000,000 plus (b) for
                           each fiscal year beginning with the fiscal year
                           ending February 27, 2004, the sum of fifty percent
                           (50%) of Net Income (if positive) for such fiscal
                           year, plus (c) fifty percent (50%) of the net cash
                           proceeds resulting from the issuance by the Guarantor
                           of any capital stock (other than sales of shares of
                           the Guarantor's Class A common stock occurring
                           substantially contemporaneously with a
                           dollar-for-dollar repurchase of shares of the
                           Guarantor's Class B common stock); provided that, if
                           representing an overall loss, charge or deduction, an
                           amount not to exceed $150,000,000 in the accumulated
                           other comprehensive income or loss accounts (or
                           similarly entitled accounts) of the Guarantor and its
                           Subsidiaries (it being understood and agreed that
                           such accounts reflect such non-cash adjustments as
                           foreign currency translation and transaction
                           adjustments, net unrealized gains/losses on all
                           investments, minimum pension liability and other
                           FASB87 and FASB133 related adjustments), shall in
                           each case be excluded in calculating the Guarantor's
                           Consolidated Net Worth. The Guarantor's compliance
                           with this covenant shall be calculated and tested as
                           of the end of each fiscal quarter of the Guarantor
                           upon relevant financial statements becoming publicly
                           available."

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<PAGE>

                  (e) Section 10.2.2. Section 10.2.2 is hereby deleted in its
entirety and replaced with the following new Section 10.2.2:

                           "10.2.2 Maximum Debt Ratio. The Guarantor shall not
                           permit the ratio (the "Debt Ratio") of (i) Debt of
                           the Guarantor and its Subsidiaries on a consolidated
                           basis to (ii) Adjusted EBITDA to be greater than (a)
                           3.00 to 1.00 as of the end of each fiscal quarter of
                           the Guarantor through the fiscal quarter ending
                           August 27, 2004 and (b) 2.75 to 1.00 as of the end of
                           each fiscal quarter of the Guarantor thereafter.

                           The Debt Ratio shall be calculated, upon relevant
                           financial statements becoming publicly available, as
                           of the last day of each fiscal quarter of the
                           Guarantor based upon (a) for Debt, Debt as of the
                           last day of each such fiscal quarter and (b) for
                           EBITDA, the actual amount for the four (4) most
                           recently completed fiscal quarters."

                  (f) Section 10.2.3. Section 10.2.3 is hereby deleted in its
entirety and replaced with the following new Section 10.2.3:

                           "10.2.3 Minimum Interest Coverage Ratio. The
                           Guarantor shall not permit the ratio (the "Interest
                           Coverage Ratio") of (i) Adjusted EBITDA minus Capital
                           Expenditures of the Guarantor and its consolidated
                           Subsidiaries to (ii) interest expense of the
                           Guarantor and its Subsidiaries on a consolidated
                           basis to be less than 2.50 to 1.00 for each four (4)
                           fiscal quarter period of the Guarantor.

                           The Interest Coverage Ratio shall be calculated, upon
                           relevant financial statements becoming publicly
                           available, as of the last day of each fiscal quarter
                           of the Guarantor based upon (a) for Adjusted EBITDA
                           and Capital Expenditures, the actual amount for the
                           last four most recently completed fiscal quarters and
                           (b) for interest expense, interest expense as of the
                           last day of such fiscal quarter."

                  3. Representations and Warranties. In order to induce the
Lender to enter into this Amendment, each of the Borrower and the Guarantor
hereby represents and warrants to the Lender that:

                           (a) Power; Authority. It is validly existing in the
jurisdiction in which it has been organized; it has the power and authority to
enter into this Amendment; and this Amendment constitutes its legal, valid and
binding obligations and is enforceable against it in accordance with its terms.

                           (b) No Default. After giving effect to this
Amendment, no Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing.

                  4. Conditions to Effectiveness. The effectiveness of this
Amendment is expressly conditioned upon the Borrower delivering to the Lender
this Amendment executed by the Borrower, the Guarantor and the Lender.

                                      - 5 -
<PAGE>

                  5. Ratification. Each of the Guaranty and, except as
specifically amended hereby, the Loan Agreement shall remain unchanged and
continue in full force and effect and the Borrower and the Guarantor hereby
ratify and confirm the Guaranty and the Loan Agreement, as amended hereby. After
the execution of this Amendment by all parties, any references to the "Loan
Agreement" or the "Agreement" in the Loan Agreement, the Note, the Guaranty, the
Participation Agreement or any other document in connection therewith shall be
to the Loan Agreement, as amended hereby.

                  6. Miscellaneous.

                           (a) Successors and Assigns. This Amendment shall be
binding upon and shall be enforceable by the Borrower, the Lender and their
respective permitted successors and assigns; provided that the Borrower shall
have no right to assign or transfer its rights or obligations hereunder without
the prior written consent of the Lender. The terms and provisions of this
Amendment are for the purpose of defining the relative rights and obligations of
Borrower and Lender with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby and
there shall be no third party beneficiaries of any of the terms and provisions
of this Amendment.

                           (b) Entire Agreement. This Amendment and all
documents referred to herein constitute the entire agreement of the parties
hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede any prior
expressions of intent or understandings with respect to this Amendment.

                           (c) Headings. Section headings in this Amendment are
included herein for convenience of reference only and shall not constitute a
part of this Amendment for any other purpose.

                           (d) Severability. Wherever possible, each provision
of this Amendment shall be interpreted in such a manner as to be effective and
valid under applicable law, but if any provision of this Amendment shall be
prohibited by or invalid under applicable law, such provision shall be
ineffective to the extent of such prohibition or invalidity, without
invalidating the remainder of such provision or the remaining provisions of this
Amendment.

                           (e) Counterparts. This Amendment may be executed in
any number of separate counterparts, each of which shall collectively and
separately constitute one agreement. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a
signature page to this Amendment by telecopy shall be effective as delivery of a
manually executed counterpart of this Amendment.

                           (f) Governing Law. This Amendment shall be governed
by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York (including
without limitation Sections 5-1401 and 5-1402 of the New York General
Obligations Law) without giving effect to the principles of conflicts of law.

                            [signature page follows]

                                     - 6 -
<PAGE>

                  IN WITNESS WHEREOF, this Fifth Amendment to Loan Agreement has
been duly executed as of the date first written above.

                                         STEELCASE SAS,
                                         as Borrower

                                         By:  /s/ Yvan Stehly
                                            ------------------------------------

                                         Name:  Yvan Stehly
                                              ----------------------------------

                                         Title:  President
                                               ---------------------------------

                                         STEELCASE INC.,
                                         as Guarantor

                                         By:  /s/ Gary P. Malburg
                                            ------------------------------------

                                         Name:  Gary P. Malburg
                                              ----------------------------------

                                         Title:  Vice President and Treasurer
                                               ---------------------------------

                                         SOCIETE GENERALE,
                                         as Lender

                                         By:  /s/ Milissa A. Goeden
                                            ------------------------------------

                                         Name:  Milissa A. Goeden
                                              ----------------------------------

                                         Title:  Vice President
                                               ---------------------------------<PAGE>
                                                                    EXHIBIT 10.2

                                2004-1 AMENDMENT
                                       TO
                      STEELCASE INC. NON-EMPLOYEE DIRECTOR
                           DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN

         This is an amendment by Steelcase Inc. (the "Company").

                               W I T N E S S E T H

         WHEREAS, the Company adopted and maintains the Steelcase Inc.
Non-Employee Director Deferred Compensation Plan, effective June 23, 1999 (the
"Plan"); and

         WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 6.8 of the Plan, the Company reserved the
right to amend the Plan at any time; and

         WHEREAS, in order to align more closely the performance of the Company
(as reflected in its common stock) with the pecuniary interests of each
non-employee director, the Company is desirous of amending the Plan to provide
that twenty-five percent (25%) of retainer fees payable to each non-employee
director shall be deferred under the Plan and deemed invested in Company
"phantom stock," unless otherwise elected by the director to be paid in Class A
Common Stock of the Company.

         NOW, THEREFORE, IN CONSIDERATION OF THE PREMISES, the Plan is hereby
amended, effective as of August 1, 2003, in the following respects:

         1. Section 1.7 (Mandatory Deferral) is amended to read as follows:

                  "1.7 `MANDATORY DEFERRAL' means the amount required to be
         deferred by a Participant pursuant to Article III of this Plan as in
         effect before this Amendment. No Mandatory Deferrals shall be made
         under this Plan after August 31, 2003."

         2. The following new Section 1.11 is added to the Plan, and all other
sections of Article I are renumbered accordingly:

                  "1.11 `PERFORMANCE DEFERRAL' means the amount of a
         Participant's quarterly retainer fees deferred, if any, pursuant to
         Section 3.1."

         3. The following new Section 1.14 is added to the Plan, and all other
sections of Article I are renumbered accordingly:

<PAGE>

                  "1.14 `SPECIAL 2003 ELECTION PERIOD' means the period
         beginning August 1, 2003, through August 29, 2003, during which
         elections under Section 3.1 must be made with respect to the remainder
         of the Plan Year beginning March 1, 2003; however, a new Participant
         may make elections pursuant to Section 3.3 notwithstanding this Special
         2003 Election Period."

         4. Article III (Deferral of Director's Fees) is hereby amended to read
as follows:

                                  "ARTICLE III
                         DIRECTOR PAYMENT AND DEFERRALS

                  3.1 Participant Election Between Deferral and Stock.
         Twenty-five percent (25%) of the Participant's quarterly retainer fees
         shall not be paid in the form of cash, but shall instead be deferred
         and distributed later to the Participant (or in the event of the
         Participant's death, to his or her Beneficiary) in accordance with the
         provisions of Article V of this Plan. Notwithstanding the preceding
         sentence, a Participant may elect during the applicable Election Period
         or Special 2003 Election Period, as the case may be, to receive such
         amount in the form of Steelcase Inc. Class A Common Stock in lieu of
         deferral.

                  3.2 Participant Election Between Cash and Deferral. During the
         applicable Election Period, a Participant may elect a percentage (in
         one percent (1%) increments, up to one hundred percent (100%)) of the
         Participant's Director's Fees remaining following application of
         Section 3.1, to be earned in the following Plan Year, that shall not be
         paid in cash, but shall instead be deferred and distributed later to
         the Participant (or in the event of the Participant's death, to his or
         her Beneficiary) in accordance with the provisions of Article V. All
         elections under this Section 3.2 shall be made separately with respect
         to the Participant's meeting fees and the portion of quarterly retainer
         fees remaining following application of Section 3.1.

                  3.3 Initial and Subsequent Election Periods. Any elections
         made pursuant to Sections 3.1 and 3.2 by a new Participant during the
         Participant's initial Election Period shall apply only to Director's
         Fees earned for the remainder of the Plan Year following the date of
         the election. Elections are irrevocable once the Plan Year for which
         they are in effect has begun. Elections shall remain in effect for all
         subsequent Plan Years unless a new election is made during a subsequent
         Election Period.

                  3.4 Special 2003 Election Rules. Notwithstanding any election
         previously made by a Participant for the Plan Year beginning March 1,
         2003, the following election rules shall apply:

                  (a)      If the Participant's elections in effect on July 31,
                           2003, direct the deferral of at least twenty-five
                           percent (25%) of quarterly retainer

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<PAGE>

                           fees and the Participant does not elect during the
                           Special 2003 Election Period to receive Steelcase
                           Inc. Class A Common Stock pursuant to Section 3.1,
                           then the percentage of the Participant's quarterly
                           retainer fees to be deferred pursuant to Section 3.2
                           during the period beginning September 1, 2003,
                           through February 27, 2004, if any, shall be equal to
                           the percentage of retainer fees to be deferred as
                           elected as of July 31, 2003, less twenty-five percent
                           (25%).

                  (b)      If the Participant's elections in effect on July 31,
                           2003, direct the deferral of less than twenty-five
                           percent (25%) of quarterly retainer fees, then the
                           Participant shall be deemed to have elected to be
                           paid in cash for the portion of quarterly retainer
                           fees remaining following application of Section 3.1.

                  The Participant's election with respect to any meeting fees in
                  effect as of July 31, 2003, shall remain intact for the
                  remaining portion of the Plan Year beginning on March 1,
                  2003."

         5. The term "Mandatory Deferral" is deleted and replaced with the term
"Mandatory Deferral and Performance Deferral, if any," (in the singular or
plural form, as the case may be) throughout Section 4.3 (Investment Media).

         IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this 2004-1 Amendment to the
Steelcase Inc. Non-Employee Director Deferred Compensation Plan to be executed
by its duly authorized representative this 30th day of June, 2003.

                                         STEELCASE INC.

                                         By:  /s/  Nancy W. Hickey
                                            ------------------------------------
                                            Its: Sr. Vice President, Global
                                                 Strategic Resources & Chief
                                                 Administrative Officer

                                       3

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