GREEN FLOORING
by big tasks, as becomes apparent throughout our chat.
Along with sustainability, innovative is another word that is bandied around quite a bit, but Interface have proven their right to it by now. For example, the company’s European manufacturing facility in Scherpenzeel, in the Netherlands, recently switched to green gases, created by the anaerobic digestion of fish waste. As Ramon says: “We are happy to utilise waste from any other industry that is going unused.” This has to be innovation working at its finest for the flooring industry.
We go on to broach the presence of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). EPDs reveal the impact that the product in question has on the environment, what its composition is, plus a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Interface provide an EPD with every carpet tile range. Back in August 2012, Tomorrow’s Flooring published a piece by Ramon on the presence of environmental credentials, and back then, he said: “There is little scope for hiding the nasties if you publish an EPD. From a customer’s point of view, this makes it the most reliable way of comparing different products on the market.” He continued: “I look forward to the day when people across every industry ask: cut the fluff and send me an EPD.” 19 months on, that
day still hasn’t arrived, but we seem to be getting there. To my suggestion that perhaps companies are still struggling to consider the entire life cycle of a product, Ramon is positive: “Companies are starting to care,” he comments, “and EPDs are starting to become more prevalent.”
All of this isn’t to say that Interface’s sole aim is on sustainability; they’re also incredibly designed focused, and their resolve to keep developing stretches in this direction also. Last summer they developed plank-shaped carpet tiles, reflective of the shape of laminate. “The design hides seams better that square tiles. They can be used alone, or with our other carpet tiles,” Ramon suggests. Indeed, the floors on the stand at EcoBuild are a mixture of laminate shapes and square tiles, and it makes for a unique appearance. I’m intrigued to know if there is any dilemma between finding the perfect balance between design and sustainability, but Ramon insists that: “No confrontation is caused; we’ve got an equal focus on design and sustainability. In fact, sustainability can influence the design.”
This is something that many of us will have seen for ourselves at last year’s Flooring Show. The Trends Hub featured Interface’s Net Effect carpet tiles in varying shades of blue, demonstrative
twitter.com/TomoFlooring
of water. It was described in the August 2013 issue of Tomorrow’s Flooring as being ‘inspired both by the ocean’s life- giving power and its plight.’ Interface believes that great design has the potential to provoke powerful questions, and through its concept, the Net Effect collection encourages us to really consider the net effect of the products we make and buy, throughout their entire lifecycle.
So the proof is in the pudding that sustainability truly does exist at Interface, and that it influences the companies design choices positively. So what can we take away from this? Attaining green credentials and functioning sustainably can be incredibly challenging, so what’s the alternative? Perhaps it’s just for companies to be honest about what they are really producing, what they are really achieving and how exactly their products, services and practices benefit the environment. As Ramon says: “we should just give clients and customers the facts and let them judge for themselves.” He concludes, “It’s not a time to be complacent.” Instead, then, it must be time for companies to be honest.
www.interfacecutthefluff.com
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Ramon Arratia
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