Flooring manufacturer Tarkett believes that a sustainable circular transition is needed to cope with the resource and climate challenges of today and tomorrow. As the company progresses with its Cradle to Cradle journey, it continues in its commitment to create a virtuous cycle by using sustainable materials that can become ingredients for new products when the floor reaches end of use.
Tarkett’s new generation iQ Natural is a ground-breaking collection - a highly durable homogeneous floor designed to respect nature by using vinyl made with renewable biomass. Made through a carbon-neutral manufacturing process at one of Tarkett’s factories in Sweden, iQ Natural is 100% recyclable and offers a 60% greenhouse gas emissions reduction compared to other equivalent flooring solutions* – iQ Natural next generation is a world first.
iQ Natural contributes to the transition from fossil to renewable raw materials – taking us one step further to a circular, carbon-neutral society. It pushes the boundaries of eco-design to enable customers to proactively reduce the environmental impacts of their projects.
Paving the way for eco-design
Tarkett has been using bio-based plasticiser in iQ Natural for years. The next generation of iQ Natural is the world’s first floor made with bio-attributed vinyl - BIOVYN - substituting 100% of the fossil feedstock with renewable biomass, made under the principals of mass-balance. This biomass comes from wood residue not competing with food production and performs to the same high standards as Tarkett’s conventional vinyl.
The biomass used for Biovyn is sourced under the principles of mass balance, which is a viable, affordable approach to promoting the ecological transition. In practical terms, this means a certain volume of forestry waste is used for Biovyn, which is then mixed with conventional fossil fuel feedstock during production. That’s why Biovyn is bio-attributed, meaning that the bio-based component is ‘attributed’ to the final product. Tarkett ensures that the right amount biomass is used to produce the equivalent amount of vinyl used in iQ Natural. The whole supply chain is certified by a third party, the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB)** to ensure the sustainability and credibility of the final product.
Accelerating the shift to a circular economy
iQ Natural is also fully recyclable post use. Recycling flooring means energy is saved, carbon emissions reduced and natural resources conserved. Through its Europe-wide ReStart take-back and recycling programme, Tarkett can recapture both post-installation vinyl off-cuts and post-consumer flooring, returning them to its Ronneby plant for cleaning and recycling into high quality vinyl granules for new iQ Natural.
Framing interior landscapes
The iQ Natural collection consists of 35 colours with a subtle blend of tone-on-tone hues and neutrals, selected to create indoor areas inspired by outdoor atmospheres. The collection is divided into five colour families, each triggering different emotions. The new flecked pattern of Natural Flakes is designed to highlight architectural sections, enabling smooth transitions or accentuating design or architectural features within spaces.
https://professionals.tarkett.co.uk/en_GB
*Based on the comparison with the generic Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) of homogeneous floors from the European Resilient Flooring Manufacturers’ Institute (ERFMI).
**International sustainability standard for the sustainable production of bio-based materials, biomass and biofuels.
