Tandus Flooring’s flooring reclamation and recycling service has eclipsed the 215 million pound milepost. Established in 1994, the company’s FLOOR program reclaims millions of square feet of used carpet and flooring on an annual basis and recycles the waste material at Tandus Flooring’s Environmental Center – the first reclamation and recycling facility in the world to earn third-party certification.
FLOOR, like all Tandus Flooring environmental programs, is part of the company’s Infinity Initiative. The Infinity Initiative was created to develop and implement innovative solutions for the most critical environmental challenges facing our industry. These efforts began with the development and launch of the industry’s first closed-loop recycling program for flooring in 1994. Since then Tandus Flooring has recycled more than 215 million pounds of flooring and waste into ER3 backing for modular and cushion for Powerbond, which consist of 100 per cent and 98 per cent recycled content respectively. With every square yard of ER3 Modular created, 4.3 pounds of waste is diverted from landfills.
To date, Tandus Flooring has produced a total of 567 million square feet of flooring containing recycled content including 477 million square feet of flooring made with recycled carpet. On average, 75 per cent of the post-consumer carpet the company recycles is that of our competitors—Tandus Flooring recycles for the industry.
“The Infinity Initiative launched the industry’s first closed-loop recycling program and since then Tandus Technologies has been working diligently on progressive sustainability programs,” says Paul Evans, VP of Tandus Technologies, Tandus Flooring. “We are continuously looking beyond fillers for recycled content, a step toward the next advancement not just for us but for the industry.”
Tandus Flooring is always searching for feedstock for recycled products. Tandus Flooring created ethos, a high-performance polymer recycled from the film found in disposed windshields and safety glass. With this polymer, Tandus Flooring developed Powerbond ethos Cushion with 76 per cent post-consumer recycled content in the cushion and 37 per cent overall post-consumer content followed by ethos Modular, with 50 per cent recycled content in the backing and a minimum of 26 per cent overall recycled content with a minimum of 15 per cent overall post-consumer recycled content.
“The timing of this advanced development in ethos technology is a true testament of our Technologies division and innovative business practices,” says Tom Ellis, VP of Marketing, Tandus Flooring. “While others are finding less consequential alternatives for recycled content, we are going straight to the core of our promise and diverting materials destined for a landfill into products with higher recycled content eliminating the need for filler products.”
To support all environmental claims, Tandus Flooring was the first in the industry to acquire third-party certification for all Powerbond and modular products. ethos and ER3 products are all NSF-140 Platinum certified and Powerbond Cushion is certified NSF-140 Gold.
About Tandus Flooring
Tandus Flooring creates innovative floorcovering solutions through our unique product line of hybrid resilient, modular, broadloom and woven products that work in tandem to enhance spaces for learning, working, healing and living. Through inspired design and leading-edge technology, Tandus Flooring offers its customers a single-source for innovative product design and technology, comprehensive services, and environmental leadership. For more than 40 years, Tandus Flooring has been examining all the ways to be a better corporate citizen and environmental steward — and then taking actions that lead to demonstrable, meaningful, quantifiable results.
