lets be clear brochure oct2011

8/3/2019 Lets Be Clear Brochure Oct2011

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Go beyond labels and claims.

Its time to be clear about carpet tiles,environmental impact, product

transparency and real progress towardssustainability.

www.interfaceflor.eu/letsbeclear


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a rich

History of innovation& sustainabilityInterfaceFLOR Milestones

Invented theworlds veryfirst carpet tile

1950s 1994 1995 1998 1999 2000 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011

IntroducedLife Cycle

Assesment(LCA) asa decisionmaking tool.

Createdfirst randomdesigns basedon Biomimicry

Launched firstsuccessfulmicrotuftcarpet tileswith reduced

yarn weight

Announcednew company

vision: Tobecomesustainable by2020

First to launchClimareneutral carpetCool Carpet

IntroducedReEntry takeback schemefor carpet tiles

First to achieveUS GreenBuildingCouncils LEEDPlatinumRatingforCommercialInteriors

FirstEnvironmentalProductDeclarationsfor carpet tilesin USA

LaunchedTacTilesglue-freeinstallation inEurope

Launchedfirstsustainabilityreport

Invented andlaunched

TacTilesglue-freeinstallation inUSA

FirstEnvironmentalProductDeclarationsfor carpet tilesin Europe

Introducedfirst carpet tilewith recycledcontent inthe yarn andbacking

IntroducedFairWorksconcept basedon sustainablematerialsand socialinnovation

First toseparate topcloth frombacking withReEntry 2.0

Firstpostconsumerrecycledcontent nylon6,6 collection

First collectionlaunched with100% recyclednylon

EnvironmentalProductDeclarationsfor all carpettiles in Europe

IntroducedReEntry2.0 recyclingprocess inEurope toseparate yarnand backing


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When Ray Anderson challenged hisemployees in 1994, to create a fullysustainable company, the goal was morethan ambitious. The magnitude of that vision,Mission Zero, would literally transform ourphilosophy and business model.

Some people say it was nave to think thisis achievable. But it has inspired us to makefundamental changes in the way we workbecause whatever you do, you can always dobetter. At InterfaceFLOR, we are continuallystriving to come up with innovativeprocesses that contribute to achieving thelong-term vision, rather than making smalladjustments to existing processes to meetless demanding targets. Ray summarised it:

There has to be a better way.There has to be a better way has helpedus to come up with innovations such asmicrotuft, TacTiles, Biosfera I and ReEntry2.0. And the journey doesnt stop there.

The power ofan outrageouslyambitious

mission

Ray Anderson, founder of Interface.


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For most physical products the main

environmental impacts happenoutside the companys own directscope. The Life Cycle Assessment(LCA) studies all the impactsthroughout the life of a carpettile from extraction, productionand manufacturing to transport,customer use, maintenance anddisposal. In other words, it tellsthe entire story, revealing theenvironmental impacts at everyphase. This clarifi es where the

biggest improvements can be made,and it prevents companies fromcherry-picking only the good stuff.

According to the EuropeanCommission the key aim of lifecycle thinking is to avoid burdenshifting. This means minimisingimpacts at one stage of the lifecycle, or in a geographic region, or

in a particular impact category, whilehelping to avoid increases elsewhere

measuringeveryphase of the

Yarn is the single largest contributorto environmental impacts amongstall raw materials in a carpet tile.For a standard product, as shownin the example below, virgin nylon

yarn contributes to around 50% ofthe total lifecycle Global WarmingPotential of the carpet.

So, while many focus their attentionon the backing, the biggestenvironmental impact of a carpettile is actually the yarn. In fact, it hasaround four times more impactthan the backing compound.

Facing our biggest impact:The Yarn

1% Raw materials

1% Packaging

1% Precoat bonding layer

6% Glass eece and turng carrier

11% Backing compound

45% Nylon yarn has 4times more impactthan the backing

Customer use End of life

The calculations are based on a

700g carpet tile made with PA6.6and InterfaceFLORs Graphlex

backing with the following

assumptions: landlling at

end-of-life, no green energy use

in the life-cycle, and a product

lifetime (use) of 10 years.

9%

68%

8% 8% 7%

Raw materials

http://lct.jrc.ec.europa.eu/

For a typical carpet tile forcommercial use, this is whatan LCA looks like; the mainenvironmental impact is relatedto the raw materials needed tomanufacture it.


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obvious ways todecrease the impact of

yarnKnowing that yarn is the biggest obstacle toproducing a sustainable carpet tile, there arethree key things do about it...

Can you create a carpetwith less yarn persquare metre?

Minimising use of virginyarn can save embodiedenergy at multiple levels

Current alternatives donot meet customersdemands for heavycommercial installations.

The challenge is to findinnovative solutionsas alternative to virgin

nylon, that have lowerenvironmental impactcombined with nocompromise on qualityor performance.

Reduce theamount ofyarn used

Develop ayarn with morerecycled content

Invent anew yarn

3


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In 2000, InterfaceFLOR introduced aunique carpet-construction processto the market, which would spawn an

innovative new product line. This newprocess, called microtuft, challengedthe old perception that high yarn weightequals high quality. It proved that awell-constructed dense surface can be

just as durable and hard wearing.

A typical carpet tile can contain around700 grams of yarn per square metre.

With our new microtuft process wehave cut that weight in half withoutcompromising performance.

While reducing the environmentalimpact signifi cantly, microtuft products

also deliver great customer benefi ts,

with an easy-to-clean surface,improved acoustics when compared tohard-fi oor surfaces, and sophisticated

aesthetics with great appeal to thosewho traditionally wouldnt use carpet.

Microtuft has become one of themost popular product categories

with around 9 million square metresalready sold in the EMEAI region.

Microtuft carpet on the tufting line

lessyarn

Microtuft carpet tiles:Style and performance

Up to

50


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Years ago, when we first pushedfor recycled nylon, we were told bythe inventors of nylon that it wasimpossible.

Yet, we have gone beyond what wasconsidered possible. Since 2000,through close cooperation with oursuppliers, we have pioneered theuse of recycled yarn, from our ownand other industries. Today, themajority of our carpet tiles containrecycled yarn.

Pioneeringyarnrecycling

In 2007 we were the first companyto launch a carpet tile with post-consumer recycled content nylon,recovered from used carpets andtransformed into new yarn. In2011 we were the first company tolaunch a carpet with 100% recyclednylon, taking another importantstep towards our Mission Zero goal.

We aim to extend the use of onlyrecycled or renewable yarn to ourentire portfolio by 2020.

And thanks to green buildingcertification schemes such asLEED, BREEAM, DGNB and HQE,the demand is increasing.


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Biosfera I100% reycled nylon - and less yarn

a double innovation

To create the most sustainablecarpet tile possible, we havecombined the best of what wehave learned in one collection.Biosfera I uses 100% recyclednylon, with pre- and post-consumer recycled content.Some of the post-consumermaterial comes from the yarn wehave recovered from used carpetsand some of it comes fromfishnets that are no longer useful.In addition we have reduced the

yarn weight to a minimum.

The result: Three high-performancestyles in three known constructions;Boucl, Velour and Micro And aproduct with much lessenvironmental impact than atypical carpet tile.

Fishing nets waiting to be recycled into100% nylon at our yarn supplier Aquafil.

Reducing the biggest impact of a carpet tile

25.00

20.00

15.00

10.00

5.00

0.00

Visions(product from 1996)

Typical carpettile with 700g

virgin nylon

Biosfera Micro

Yarn

Other

OtherOther

Yarn

Yarn

kgCO2e

q.-

Rawmaterials&Production


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waron waste

were waging a

At InterfaceFLOR we are waging awar on waste; the waste that weand other flooring manufacturersproduce.

The truth is that waste happens whenyou manufacture, when you install,and when you replace products.

We have initiatives to deal withthese three elements: factorywaste, installation waste and wasteat the end of a carpets useful life.

Lets change this! The price ofsending used carpet to landfill

varies greatly across Europe. Inmany countries, its much cheaper

than recycling it. Furthermore,a lack of extended producerresponsibility in the constructionsector means that flooringmanufacturers have no duty todispose of old products responsibly.

We want a future where it is illegalto send carpet waste to landfill inall countries, and where all flooringproducers operate closed loopmanufacturing processes, similarto our ReEntry 2.0. To achievethis we need the right legislativeframework. You can help us pushfor real change by signing up andspreading the word on

http://waronwaste.interfaceflor.eu/

But the paradox is that:Throwing awayis cheaper than recycling.

9 9


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isnt rocketscience

eliminating factory waste

Our products may be fi oor-based,

but our ambitions are sky-high! In2008 we developed an inventivenew way of cutting carpet tilesbased on ultrasonic technology,used in the aeronautic sector by thelikes of NASA. This new approachreduces manufacturing waste by80% and eliminates 310 tonnes ofwaste material each year.

This is just one example of how we

tackle factory waste since 1994,weve reduced waste sent to landfi ll

by 82% globally, and the initiativeshave added up to US $438 incumulative avoided-waste costsince 1995.

Ultra-reduced window waste withour ultrasonic cutting machine.

or is it?Window waste with die cutting

Window waste with ultrasonic cutting


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randomdesign

reducing installationwaste with

Inevitably, cutting carpet to fit theshape of a room results in waste.

When installing traditional carpetrolls, around 12% is wasted inoff-cuts and trimmings. But whenbenefiting from the versatilityof carpet tiles, that figure dropsradically to around 3% or 4%.

And when tile patterns are flexibleenough to be placed in anyposition, the waste level can be cutby more than half that! Such is thebeauty behind random design.

By studying the science ofBiomimicry with Janine Benyus,we developed our random designproducts to be installed in anon-directional pattern. This canreduce waste to as low as 1%or 2%, depending on the roomssize and shape. Random designmakes installation quick and easy,as there is no need to worry aboutmatching patterns at tile edges orfollowing directional arrows. Thereis also the benefit of being able toreplace individual tiles without theconstraints of colour compatibility.

At InterfaceFLOR, we introducedthe first random-design products in2001, and have since sold around10 million square metres in Europe.

Nature-inspired random design floorreduces installation waste to 1-2%.

Janine Benyus, founder of

the Biomimicry Institute


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ReEntry A new generationof carpet recycling

Our approach to sustainabilitycovers the full life cycle of ourcarpet tiles, also beyond the end oftheir useful life. Our ultimate goalfor all carpet tiles is a closed loopsystem where carpet tiles are madefrom fully recycled materials andused carpet tiles are converted intoraw materials for new products,leaving no waste at end of life.Recently we have achieved a

ReEntry 2.0 recycling line at Scherpenzeel2.0

True recycling; yarn to yarnand backing to backing.

breakthrough for the carpet industrywith our ReEntry 2.0 recyclingprocess, based at our plant inthe Netherlands. This processmakes true recycling of carpettiles possible, both our own andcompetitors. ReEntry 2.0 usesa highly effective technology,recycling yarn to yarn and backingto backing. This means each of themain components are recoveredand can be used in new productsof similar value. This is especiallyimportant for recycling nylon yarn the most carbon intensive partof carpet.

ReEntry 2.0 offers by far thehighest combined CO2 , energy andmaterial savings compared to allother end of life options. And mostimportantly it has a high capacity of600,000 square metres, and hasbeen designed so it is scalable forthe future.

In cooperation with our supplierswe are directly making more post-consumer recycled yarn availablefor new products, decreasing thedependence of virgin raw materials.

And the reclaimed backing materialcan be fed straight into ourmanufacturing process on site.


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Like any business, our operationsdepend on a reliable transportnetwork to get our people, products

and resources wherever they needto go. Taking radical measures in thisarea can generate significant gains insustainability. And thats exactly whatweve been doing.

For starters, avoiding intercontinentalshipping helps reduce the impactdramatically. Around 99% of theproducts we sell in Europe aremanufactured in Europe. Additionally,we work with all our suppliers toincrease the use of low-emission

vehicles. And by grouping our deliverieswith other merchandise, were able toavoid partial loads, which reduces bothemissions and costs.

We are also making a progressivetransition from road transport to trainand boat. In Italy, For example, fortransport to Italy, we have transferred98% of our shipments from road to

rail, reducing CO emissions associatedwith the journey from Scherpenzeel toItaly by 69%.. In the Netherlands ourinland container transport has switchedfrom road to barge as well, cutting CO2emissions by 35%.

We will continue to pioneer radicalideas to make our transport greener.

We will test new technologies as theybecome available and partner withthe most ambitious innovators ongreen transportation. As an exampleof upcoming initiatives, we havecommitted ourselves to introduce

vehicles using alternative fuel orelectricity for our London and Parisdeliveries in the near future, as partof an innovative trial project.

Container being shifted from a truck to a trainin the Netherlands for shipment to Italy

www.interfaceflor.eu/transport


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No space for greenwash:Its time to be clear about

Sustainability has entered themainstream business agenda, andthats great news. However, with ithave come a lot of unsubstantiated

marketing claims, exaggerationsand half truths. Many companiesput more effort into what they say,not what they do.

To help people navigate through allthe noise and assist our customersin making informed fact-baseddecisions, we are thoroughlycommitted to full transparency atproduct level.

Heres a look at some of the mostpopular claims in the buildingsector and why they can rarelystand their ground

factsEnvironmentally friendlyKind to the environmentIn tune with nature

What do they all have in common?Theyre vague and virtually allmisleading if not backed up withan explanation. In other words, itcould look like a flower but smelllike a rat!

Produced locallyMade in [country X]

This is supposed to suggest supportfor the local economy and lowtransport impact. It often justmeans re-packaged nearby.

Recyclable

One of the most misused termstoday! Many materials aretechnically able to be recycledbut its not always economically

feasible to do so. The real questionis, will the material actually berecycled? Likewise, energy fromwaste is sometimes describedas recycling but in fact meansburning where some of the energyis recovered.

Natural

Sounds nice enough, right? Butactually, not everything natural is

good or sustainable.`E Coli bacteria are natural. Soare hurricanes. It may seemcounterintuitive, but some naturalproducts actually have a higherenvironmental impact than theirsynthetic counterparts.

Downcycling

This is where the materialssecond life is of lower value.For example, like when glass isrecycled into aggregate for roads,instead of new glass

Label x or y

There are so many labels todaythat customers get confused.Some labels are exclusive, some

are paid for, some have a verynarrow scope. You need to lookbeyond the label.


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Solid fact:InterfaceFLORs Graphlexbacking has

Easy claim:Free from...?

We use comparative LCA in our

design process to make fact baseddecisions about materials. Thegraph shows the full environmentalimpacts of alternativebacking types.

Being void of a specific materialis only interesting if the product isexpected to contain that materialin the first place or if the materialis actually environmentally harmful.But in many cases, the materialbeing eliminated ends up beingreplaced by something that causesother environmental problems,such as wood-free tissues madefrom cotton.

In recent years, somemanufacturers have advertisedbitumen-free carpet tiles,suggesting they offer a betteralternative to bitumen. This is anarrow, unsubstantiated claimthat simply asserts the product isharmful, yet without comparing thefull impact of alternatives.Graphlex backed carpet ready

for ultra light boxing process

Even though yarn has a bigger

environmental impact, wevemade key advancements toreduce the impact of our backingsas well. Through comparativeLife Cycle Assessments (LCAs),were able to identify and developmore sustainable materials. Ourbitumen-based Graphlex backingremains the most utilised due toits superior functional benefits,and because the LCA showsthat current alternative backingmaterials offer no improvement.Despite its visual appearance,the bitumen we use for Graphlexbackings has no chemicalconnection to tar, as suggestedby some. The fact is, Graphlexhas very low emissions of VolatileOrganic Compounds (VOCs),allows for a very high proportionof recycled material, and is madewith inert filler, accounting for 70%of the its weight. Graphlex backingis also optimised for use with

TacTiles glue-free installation,and it can be recycled at end of life.

The graph shows the

environmental impactsof material and processenergy for alternativebacking types.

less impact

Smog Ozonedepletion

Global

warmingEmbodied energy

EutrophicationHuman health

Acidication

80%

60%

40%

20%

Polyolen GlasBac ReCushion Graphlex


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00

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

TVOCsg/m

Days

08 1602 10 1804 12 20 2506 14 22 2701 09 1703 11 19 2405 13 21 2607 15 23 28

Typical VOC curves for Carpet andAdhesives based upon standard limits

Easy claim:Our carpet improvesindoor air quality

Solid fact:

EC1 very low emissions adhesive

GUT standard for carpet

Adhesive

Carpet

TacTiles glue lessinstallation has virtually

At InterfaceFLOR, weve invented asmarter, more sustainable way toinstall carpet tiles. Without glue!

TacTiles are connectors placed atthe intersection of four tiles to createa floating floor, making replacementand uplifting of individual tiles eveneasier. And best of all, compared totraditional glue installation, TacTilesreduce environmental impact byaround 90%, and they virtuallyeliminate VOCs.

TacTiles are installed at thecorner between four tiles

ZeroVOCs

Some manufacturers claim thattheir carpet tile backing has lowerVolatile Organic Compund (VOCs)and is better for the indoor airquality. But they are not telling thefull story

A typical carpet tile installationrequires a certain amount of

adhesive to keep the tiles in placeduring heavy traffic. Even the lowestemission adhesives often emitmore VOCs than the actual carpet.So comparing VOCs between twocarpet types is totally meaninglessunless you also address the issuessurrounding the adhesives.

TacTiles


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Easy Claim:

Recycled

Solid Fact:

Recyclable is a promise. Almostanything can be recyclable. Butwhat would be the point, forexample, of recycling a diamond ora mobile phone into cement?

Recyclable is one of the mostmisused environmental terms. It isused to describe many things, suchas reuse, like for like,downcyclingand incineration. Many materialsare technically able to be recycledbut it is not always economicallyfeasible to do so. So the keyquestion is: WILL the materialactually be recycled and HOW?

In a waste management hierarchy,some ways of recycling are betterthan others from an environmentalperspective. Reuse and like forlike recycling are the best optionsfor carpet tiles made with energyintensive materials.

Recycled is performance delivered.By using recycled materials both inthe yarn and in the backing of ourcarpet tiles, their environmentalimpact is reduced significantly.

We introduced our ReEntry takeback programme for used carpetsin 1995 with the primary goal todivert carpet from ending up inlandfill, in countries where thisis still allowed. Since its launch,ReEntry has diverted more than100,000 tonnes of used carpetfrom landfill globally.

But our bigger ambition is fullyclosing the loop and like-for-like

recycling.

With our new ReEntry 2.0recycling line and in partnershipwith one of Europes leading wastemanagement companies, SITA,we are taking important steps tofurther increase the amount ofused carpet tiles that go through areal like for like recycling process.

And thereby also making morepost-consumer recycled materialavailable, for yarn as well as backing.

And we are making recyclingeasier, with the use of our glue-free installation system, TacTiles,leaving no sub floor residues on theback of the carpet. After all, whatsthe point of a recyclable carpet if

its stuck to the floor?

High purity yarn fluff recovered byour ReEntry 2.0 recycling line


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Carbon offsetting is verycontroversial. The phrase carbonneutral is almost universallymisused. Some have eventaken it to the extreme by callingthemselves carbon negative orcarbon positive. This hasnt helpedthe reputation of carbon offsets.

One of our concerns is the scopeof the offsets. For example, it wouldbe too easy for a car manufacturerto be carbon neutral based solelyon its direct manufacturing energyfootprint, when the majority ofthe emissions happen in the use

phase. Only products accounting forthe full life cycle, should be carbonneutral, not companies.

Every organisation and individual has,like it or not, a carbon footprint. AtInterfaceFLOR we have reduced ourabsolute emissions by 35% since1995 despite increase of sales. Thisis quite an achievement, but wehavent come to zero emissions yet.

Thats why we have Cool Carpet.

Cool Carpet offsets all theemissions for the full life cycle of thecarpet. It follows the Voluntary CarbonStandard (VCS) as a minimum andthe programme is audited annually bya third party.

Since the programme began in 2003,more than 119 million square metresof Cool Carpet have been sold, andmore than 2 million tonnes of verifiedemission reduction credits have beenpurchased and retired in apublic registry.

Cool Carpet project - Fuel switch programme ina ceramic factory in Brazil, using biomass energysources instead of wood from local ecosystems.

Carbon NeutralOffsetting can be part of aclimate change strategy

Solid Fact:

Easy Claim:My company is

And carbon neutral claims only makesense when you are addressing yourbiggest issue. It is ridiculous for apublic affairs or law firm to claim tobe carbon neutral while lobbying onbehalf of the coal industry.

Finally offsets should follow properstandards to ensure that the creditsare real, additional, measurable,permanent, not subject to double-counting, and retired in apublic registry.


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We believe this is also the casewhen it comes to making decisionsaround sustainability. The manylabels available can be confusingand dont always tell you thefull story.

InterfaceFLOR was the first carpettile manufacturer in Europe toachieve a third-party-verifiedEnvironmental Product Declaration(EPD). An EPD is not a label, buta declaration based on the coreprinciples of objectivityand comparability.

EPDs will be the Europeanstandard soon. The EuropeanUnion is encouraging all theconstruction products to have anEPD. By the end of 2011, the newEuropean Norm EN 15804 will bea harmonised standard leading tomutual recognition of EPDs acrossnational borders.

The harmonisation means thatgreen building certificationschemes used in Europe, suchas DGNB, BRE, LEED and HQEwill have to take into accountharmonised EPDs.

An EPD provides comprehensive,uniform details about a productscomposition and environmentalimpact throughout its life cycle.It also provides customers withthe tools they need to review and

compare alternatives similar tocomparing calories and ingredientsbetween food products.

We believe in full transparencyat product level, and we havemade a commitment to have allInterfaceFLOR products covered byan EPD by the year 2012.

The new norm will prevail on allthe national norms. InterfaceFLORhas anticipated this developmentand our new EPDs will be inconformance to EN 15804 andthe ECO format.

Our EPDs can be downloaded fromthe IBU web site (Institut Bau undUmwelt)

http://bau-umwelt.de/hp481/

Environmental-Product-

Declarations-EPD.htm

wisedecisionsare based on facts

than we thought, EPDswill be standard

Sooner


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* The Green Building Councildeclares us SustainableManufacturer of the Year

* We win Product of the Year forthe Versaflex system, awardedby Mixology North

* Winners of Germanys mostSustainable Recycling 2009prize at the GermanSustainability Awards

* Winners of the Platinum awardin the ARENA EnvironmentalSurvey

* Winners of the Lean and GreenAward for Sustainable LogisticsInnovation in the Netherlands

* We receive a commendationin the Best Contribution toSustainability category at theHome Office Supplier Value

Awards

* Finalist in the MakingSustainable DevelopmentHappen category at theSustainability Awards

* Named as the National Exampleof Excellence by BITC (Businessin the Community), in the Bankof America Merrill Lynch ClimateChange Award in associationwith the Mayday Journey

* Awarded the BITC Big Tickaward for Climate Change

* Shelf Mills wins the bronzeaward in the BITC EnvironmentalBenchmark

* Awarded CFJ Best Carpet TileRange by the Contract Flooring

Association and CFJ Magazine

* Ray Anderson receives theLifetime Achievement awardfrom the Ethical Corporation

* We win the AIT Innovation awardfor Collection Q, designed incollaboration with Daniel Kas

2009 2010

* Winners of a Red Dot Designaward in the category ofProduct Design

* We win the Sustain magazineaward for EnvironmentalManufacturing

* We receive a MajorCommendation at the BusinessCommitment to theEnvironment (BCEEnvironmental Leadership

Awards

* Business Green won Companyof the Year for Mission Zero

* BITC Reaccredited forNational Example for Excellencefor Climate Change

* InterfaceFLOR picked upthe Award for Best MarketingCampaign of the Year in theMixology 11 Award Ceremony inLondon on the 8th June.

* InterfaceFLOR - winner of theGuardian Sustainable Businesswaste and recycling award.(May 26th 2011)

* Ethical Corporation shortlistedfor Authentic Communicationsand Best Private Company

* In addition we sponsored TheYorkshire Post EnvironmentAwards Climate Changecategory.

2011


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lets be clear brochure oct2011

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