Evalution Flooring has embarked on the first phase of a sustainability project that will be the first of its kind in South Africa and will enable zero waste in the luxury vinyl tile (LVT) flooring arena. As part of its quest to curb its carbon footprint, the GreenTag Certified vinyl flooring supplier has teamed up with Recycle 4 Africa Waste Management (R4AWM) to recycle LVT offcuts by transforming them into eco-bricks, pavers and potentially other re-usable products in the future.
Evalution Flooring founder, Eva Kaiser, says: “Up until now there had not been a way to recycle the vinyl due to the many layers that make up the product. The first brick has been made completely out of recycled waste, including plastic that can’t currently be recycled and would have landed up in landfill. Unlike other eco-bricks, no sand or cement has been added. The brick has been tested and was found to have no leaching and no emissions. It also has a compressive strength of 15 MPa – higher than the average 5.2 MPa of concrete bricks. Plus, it is fire and rodent resistant. The product will soon be tested officially by the National Home Builders Registration Council to obtain certification for use in the building industry.
“There’s plenty of LVT all around South Africa and we are currently working on how to logistically get all this material to a central point without adding to the carbon footprint. We are also exploring how to finance this massive project. While we might not be able to supply the market with eco-blocks just yet, the most important thing is that there is now a solution for directing LVT away from landfill.”
Director of Waste Management at R4AWM, Debbie Sharp, adds: “Long-term, it would be ideal for companies to combine their feedstock, and for R4AWM to provide them with containerised waste management units which house all the necessary equipment to process LVT waste and enable them to manufacture the eco-bricks on site. By providing companies with this technology, we hope to minimise all facets of waste, and divert it from landfill sites.”
Kaiser shares that Evalution Flooring is working hard towards the sustainability of its LVT flooring over its entire life cycle. “We have the first – and currently the only – GreenTag Certified LVT flooring products in South Africa in both our Amtico and mFlor ranges. Our Amtico Spacia and Amtico Spacia Acoustic flooring products have achieved a Level B rating, while the Amtico First, mFlor 25-05 and mFlor 20-03 LVTs have achieved Level C status. What this means is that Level B Certification will achieve 85% of the points required by the Green Building Council for a Green Star Rating for internal finishes, while Level C Certification will achieve 75%. GreenTag Certification is important as the process involves the entire supply chain from the ingredients to the final product, including all sustainable practices throughout the production process.”
‘Over the past eleven years, Green Building Council South Africa has been on a sustainability journey to advance the transformation of the South African built environment and construction sectors and it is encouraging to mark this Green Star Rating for internal finishes with Evalution Flooring. It is through such thinking that the industry is inspired to think innovatively in how it uses waste differently and gainfully’ says Grahame Cruickshanks who is Managing Executive: Market Engagement at Green Building Council South Africa.
“This is a break-through! We are so excited to be introducing this new way of recycling LVTs. Although the project is in its infancy and much still needs to be done, we are confident it can be achieved,” concludes Kaiser.
For more information, visit http://evalution.co.za.
