Global carpet tile maker Interface plans to expand carpet collections in the U.S. so it can dramatically boost the amount of nylon it recycles.
Since 1995, the LaGrange, Ga.-based company has reclaimed more than 148,000 tons of carpet through its carpet-to-carpet recycling program, called ReEntry. EnvironmentalLeader.com reports the company will expand its collection network by establishing regional partners.
Interface will partner with Oakland, Calif.-based ReThink Green, which has recycled more than 10,000 tons of carpet since its 2011 founding. ReThink Green acquires carpet from job sites across much of the West Coast.
The move could boost the amount of carpet Interface recycles by up to 50 percent.
In 2012, Interface announced an expansion of the ReEntry program by partnering with The Carpet Recyclers, a Los Angeles-area company. It was Interface’s first partnership in California.
Through Interface’s carpet-to-carpet recycling program, carpet tiles are separated into their face cloth and backing. Face materials are sent to other companies for recycling, but nylon backing, using a proprietary process, is recycled in-house in LaGrange into new carpet tile backing.
ReThink Green recently acquired the technology to separate backing from carpet tile.
Interface has also developed a program for recycling nylon from retrieved fishing nets into carpet tiles.
Interface’s goal for North America is to use 100 percent recycled or bio-based materials by 2020.
