Modular flooring producer Interface will, going forward, produce its luxury vinyl tile (LVT) products with an exceptionally high (39%) content of recycled material, without compromising any quality.
According to the company, this achievement represents a “breakthrough” in sustainable flooring, as in the past, the thin structure of LVTs tended to influence producers to stick to virgin polyvinyl chloride materials to avoid potential losses in durability and dimensional stability that could come from the use of standard recycled content in production.
With this significant move, Interface, which is distributed locally by KBAC Flooring, has further expanded the use of recycled content across its product portfolio to further its Climate Take Back mission as part of its effort to help reduce global warming.
Interface marketing and innovation VP Lisa King says that in 2017, when Interface added LVT products to its carpet tile ranges, the company made a commitment to bring its sustainability knowledge and standards also to this flooring category.
“The new breakthrough to bring this high level of pre-consumer recycled content to our LVT offering is just one of many product actions we are taking as we pursue our goal of becoming a carbon negative enterprise by 2040.
She adds that, with the same high-performance standards, at no additional cost to the customer, LVT, with recycled content, is both impactful on the floor and on the planet. “Interface LVTs remain free of phthalates, heavy metals and added formaldehyde.”
Further, as part of Interface’s re-entry recycling programme, the company takes back its LVTs at the end of their life. Interface’s re-entry recycling programme keeps waste from landfill with the company reusing reclaimed materials on an ongoing basis.
Through this programme, reclaimed flooring from Interface can be used as flooring again, or separated into component materials to be reused for new flooring products. The aim of the programme is to create a circular economy – to keep waste from landfill and emissions from entering the atmosphere.