Carpet Maker's Recycling Program Turns 10
Commercial carpet and modular tile maker C&A Floorcoverings announced it hit the 100 million mark—100 million pounds, that is.
The Dalton, Ga.–based company has recycled more than 100 million pounds of reclaimed vinyl and vinyl-based carpet since launching its recycling program 10 years ago.
The 35-year-old company, a division of the Tandus company, launched its Infinity Initiative to address growing concern over the carpet industry’s contribution to the nation’s landfills.
At the Tandus Center for Environmental Innovation, also located in Dalton, C&A recycles any post-consumer vinyl-backed carpet, including products manufactured by other carpet makers. The old carpet is recycled into the backings for C&A’s new ER3 floor coverings, which is made up of at least 25 percent recycled carpet. Other materials used for the backings include post-industrial waste created during the carpet manufacturing process, as well as industrial waste from the automotive industry.
The company’s buy-back program, called Floore, provides financial incentives for customers returning old vinyl-back carpet, and the company’s “sustainable warranty” stipulates that all returned carpet will be entirely recycled and will not end up in a landfill or incinerator.
C&A’s other sustainable products include its Ethos backing, a non-chlorinated, thermoplastic terpolymer, made from reclaimed PVB thermoplastic resin film used on laminated safety glass. According to C&A, Ethos backings can be used as a structured backing, as an alternative to other backings such as EVA, polyurethane polyolefin and PVC.
Ethos backings contain between 30 and 62 percent recycled content, with a minimum of 30 percent made from post-consumer content.
The company will accept any nylon-backed carpet and can assist in recycling old broadloom carpets, as well. C&A’s recycled products can help a company earn green building credits in accordance with the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system.
The company employs a host of recycling measures aimed at the reduction of energy, water consumption, emissions, greenhouse gases and VOCs. According to Tandus CEO Mac Bridger, the company has had virtually no manufacturing waste for the past 12 years.
More information about C&A’s Floore program, as well as its recycled products is available on its Web site, www.cafloorcoverings.com. —Alison A. Nieder
