The first biodegradable carpet product on the market meets the industry leader’s goal of environmental sustainability.
As investors and consumers exert pressure on corporations to improve their social and environmental performance, many companies have readjusted their goals to include corporate responsibility issues. A stunning example of this is Interface, one of the world’s largest commercial interior furnishings companies, which recently upped the ante with the introduction of a flooring product made from renewable resources, namely corn.
Interface, a global corporation with more than $1 billion in sales in over 110 countries last year, introduced the new commercially viable, biodegradable carpet product at the recent NeoCon industry trade show in Chicago. The product of more than a year’s research, the new carpet tiles are manufactured from poly lactic acid (PLA), a renewable, natural resource derived from corn.
“As a renewable resource that is completely recyclable and biodegradable, PLA is a major step forward in Interface’s goal to develop sustainable business practices that are as good for the company’s bottom line as they are for the Earth,” said John Wells, president of Interface Americas.
PLA was developed through a joint venture between Dow, a leading chemical company, and Cargill, the largest agricultural products company in the world. Although the plant-derived polymer has diverse potential applications, Interface has exclusive rights to develop floor-covering products with PLA.
“We have just completed initial trials for the product which indicate that the quality, performance and aesthetics are at least equal to that of our traditional products,” said Wells.
The new carpet tile products will be produced at the company’s manufacturing facilities in LaGrange, Ga., and will be available to customers by the end of the year. Interface predicts that plant-derived products could make up as much as 10 percent of Interface’s business over the next three years.
Biodegradable, renewable carpet tiles are just the most recent effort of Interface to transform an environmentally unfriendly industry into one that benefits both commercial interiors and the Earth. Although the company is over 25 years old, the last five years have been characterized by a proactive approach to environmental and social issues.
Interface has pioneered new methods of efficiency in manufacturing, recycling, reducing waste, and the use of alternative energy sources, with the goal of sustainability. The company has already become 26 percent more efficient in their use of resources, a reduction in their raw materials and waste that is reflected in their bottom line.
“I believe we must have a new Industrial Revolution, and we must get it right this time,” said Interface founder and CEO Ray Anderson. “The new course we’re on at Interface, since our mid-course correction five years ago, is to pioneer the next Industrial Revolution, one that is kinder and gentler to the Earth.”
Anderson was named co-chair of the President’s Council on Sustainable Development in 1997, and in 1999 he was ranked among the top 15 American innovators by US News and World Report. Interface was named one of “America’s 100 Best Companies to Work For” by Fortune magazine in 1997 and 1998, and is a sponsor of the Envirosense Consortium, a group of companies addressing workplace environmental issues.
The introduction of PLA carpet products may be a small part of Interface’s overall corporate responsibility, but it represents an important link to the company’s vision of a sustainable future. Corn-based polymer products provide a kernel of hope for consumers and investors concerned about the environmental impact of today’s industries.