Page 2 - 2018-04-CFR Volume 115 - Recycled Content in Flooring Material - April 2018

Today we have a
flood of hard sur-
face products on
the market that eve-
ryone sells and
most don’t produce
because someone
else is making them The experts at LGM
and much of it con-
tains recycled con- Cupped and Edge Lift specialize in consultation,
correction and resolution for
tent. As much as flooring complaints, claims,
82% of these products are not made in the US. Many of these prod- installation and performance
ucts contain recycled content which can cause the product to be un-
stable, weak or vary from run to run. The materials that are not con- issues.
trolled can shrink, expand, curl, cup and dome; the locking system can
be weak and break or come apart or be compromised by traffic. If the No issue is too big, too small
vinyl is not compounded properly the material can emit an odor which or too far away for us to
is plasticizer or other component that can create all kinds of concerns
for the health of those occupying the space the flooring is installed in handle.
whether real or perceived. We had this issue with carpet tile for quite
some time as well. There was no threat to anyone’s health but the All ads are interactive. Just
click on the ad to enter their

website.

perception of occupants of the affected space thought so and percep-
tion is reality for people. As for anyone telling you their product is
100% pure vinyl that just isn’t so. All vinyl flooring materials contain
other components not just vinyl and the hard surface products have to
have a denser component such as calcium carbonate (limestone) filler,
PVC polymer and plasticizer. Recycled post consumer materials used
in flooring is inherently inconsistent and undependable and causes
one to make adjustments on the run during manufacturing. When a
product gets “chased” like this, problems and inconsistencies are inev-
itable. With the demand for LVP, LVT and derivatives of it and every-
body and his brother wanting a piece of the pie, there could be all
kinds of issues with these products. And, as is common practice in the
flooring industry, there will be a race to the bottom with lowered pricing
which can only be achieved by making the product cheaper which
means taking out the good stuff and we’re back to gambling again.

Domed Tile

Page Layout By: Anita S. Drennon

2 Commercial Flooring Report April