subject: Sustainability Top 10 Questions to ask Manufacturers [print this page] Sustainability Top 10 Questions to ask Manufacturers
Environmentally aware people care about their purchasing options regarding sustainability. The sustainability concept is also a primary driver in modern flooring design, for very practical reasons. It's worth asking a flooring manufacturer about sustainability issues with their products, because you'll soon see any areas for concern. Whatever sort of carpet you want, whether it's commercial grade carpet,industrial carpettiles or modular carpet tiles, you'll get a lot of information for their answers.
These are the questions that will give you the answers you need:
1. How are your products produced?
You need to know you're buying something which isn't made using antiquated technology and has good, clear environmental values. There should be a clear picture of the product life cycle, including emissions.
2. What are your products made of?
There's a range of answers, some of which are good, and some are terrible. Modern carpets include natural fibres, acrylics, polymers, and in some cases they're fire hazards, giving off toxic fumes through the polymers and resins used in the fabric glues.
3. Can we recycle this carpet?
This should be a Yes or No answer. The "Recycling Re entry and closing the loop" process is a signature part of top quality moderncarpets.
4. Is this carpet biodegradable?
Non-biodegradability means the carpet may contain some problematic chemistry, including types of preservative. That means under certain conditions, like when exposed to heat, it could release toxins.
5. Where was this flooring made?
Australian carpets are made to Australian standards. These are basic, clear-cut parameters for production and product specifications. If not made in Australia, where the carpet was made will also tell you a lot about production standards.
6. What's the best way to clean this flooring?
Some types of material do benefit from specific types of cleaning, which increases product life. Check out any specified cleaning methods for toxicity and waste potentials.
7. What sort of dyes are used in your carpet tiles?
Some dyes are tough, proven pigments, and some are real rubbish, unable to survive a shampoo. The natural pigments are utterly reliable, non-toxic, and the carpet designs have good durability.
8. How does this carpet respond to direct sunlight?
Sunlight can destroy some carpets. These tend to be inferior quality polymers, with low grade dyes and dubious weaves which expand and contract, and destroy themselves. Good carpet doesn't respond to either the heat or the bleaching processes of sunlight.
9. Do the carpet fibres fracture, or fray?
If carpet fibres like polymers fracture, you could be breathing them in. That's easily avoidable. Natural fibres don't fracture. They do fray, slightly, over a long period of time, but you won't be inhaling them if they do.
10. Do you have any manufacturer's specifications we can look at?
The specifications for top quality carpets are actual selling points, not a secret. All relevant information should be available at the point of sale. Sustainable carpets include plenty of information about their specifications.
