We are proud to announce that four of our product grades have now achieved C2C Silver certification! This upgrade from C2C Bronze to C2C Silver is an important step in our ongoing commitment to sustainability and creating products that are not only of top quality, but also contribute to a circular economy.
What is cradle to cradle?
Cradle to Cradle (C2C) is a globally recognised label that assesses the sustainability of products based on reusability, health and environmental impact. The C2C Silver certification underlines our commitment to providing innovative flooring solutions that both minimise environmental impact and meet the highest standards for quality and design.
Within C2C certification, there are four levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum. The higher the level, the stricter the criteria become. Our products were assessed within five domains: Health of materials, Circularity of products, Air and climate protection, Water and soil management and finally Social justice. We were awarded the C2C Silver certificate, meaning that our lowest score achieved within the five domains was Silver.
How is the Silver certificate different from the Bronze certificate?
Material health: Whereas previously we checked 75% of the materials, it is now 95%. Almost everything in our products is now thoroughly analysed for safety and sustainability. We completely avoid risky substances such as certain chemical compounds.
Product circularity: For Bronze certification, only 35% of our materials had to be reusable or recyclable, now it is at least 50% but for this component our products already achieved Gold certification. This means that at least 65% of our products are reusable or recyclable. We work with partners to ensure that our products are reused or recycled after use. We have also set up a clear strategy to make our products even more circular. For instance, we offer a full-circle service, from production and installation to disposal and recycling. We even reprocess some of the recycled carpet in our processes. Did you know that in the right circumstances, we also take used carpet back for recycling free of charge?
Clean air & climate protection: Whereas previously we only quantified electricity consumption and direct emissions from the final production phase, we now get at least 5% of our energy from renewable sources or offset it through renewable energy projects. For example, we have our own wind turbines that power the entire site when there is enough wind! We also measure CO₂ emissions from our materials and processes accurately and actively work to reduce them further.
Water & soil stewardship: For Bronze certification, we conducted a comprehensive study of our water use across the facility. Meanwhile, we are actively implementing improvements that show measurable positive effects. We not only monitor water use and quality, but also work with our key suppliers to reduce polluting wastewater. For example, we are working on a completely new production process that will use up to 40% less water throughout the production chain.
Social fairness: While we had a risk assessment and policy for Bronze, we now collect specific data from tier 1 suppliers in high-risk countries and follow up corrective actions more closely. In addition, we now support a social impact project and ensure that the materials we use are certified to prevent risks such as child labour and forced labour. This is how we make our supply chain even more responsible.
We are proud to take this step and look forward to continuing to build a circular world together with our customers!
Did you know?
Our products lose the C2C certificate after 2 years, unless we achieve a better certification. So this label not only stands for the sustainability of our products and production processes, but is also a commitment to keep innovating and improving. In the case of our Expocare collection, we must be ready to achieve C2C Gold by 2026, otherwise we will no longer be allowed to mention the label.
Expocare Collection
The Expocare collection consists of our four main products (all with fire certification):
- Expostyle:
- The classic exhibition carpet, flat needle felt with a protective film.
- Available in rolls of 2m x 50m, 3m x 50m, and 4m x 50m. Additionally, this quality can be custom-cut to size.
- Expoluxe:
- Luxurious event carpet, velour needle felt with a protective film.
- Available in rolls of 2m x 30m and can be custom-cut to size.
- Expoline:
- Exhibition carpet, similar to Expostyle, but ribbed and without film.
- Available in rolls of 2m x 50m (4m x 50m available on order for a minimum of 1000m²).
- Expocord
- Very similar to Expoline, but slightly lighter.
- Only available on order for a minimum of 4000m².