Between Us Building on a heritage of sustainability

Transcription

1 Between Us Building on a heritage of sustainability

2 Environmental leadership you can rely on. Armstrong Commercial Flooring is committed to representing the core values of our company. In all of our dealings, we re especially diligent about making sure our activities are in harmony with the natural world. More than a century ago, we ceased discarding post-industrial cork waste and began recycling it. This approach to business is anything but new for Armstrong. More than a century ago, we ceased discarding post-industrial cork waste and began recycling it first into corkboard insulation, and soon afterwards into the green product on which our modern flooring business was built: linoleum. Green operations and products aren t new for us, but they continue to be the focus of our development efforts. First, we work to systematically reduce the environmental footprint of our operations, year after year. Second, we provide you with continually better choices in products and services and share with you the knowledge you need to make those sound choices so you can steadily improve the environmental profiles of the buildings you create. In responsibility toward the environment, as in all of our business practices, we are committed to progressively raising the standards for our industry.

3 Corporate Policy in Action Armstrong s policy on the environment is: To exercise care in the selection and use of energy and raw materials. To provide for environmental safety in our workplaces and communities. To be prepared for emergencies and to act promptly and responsibly to protect people and the environment. To ensure all products conform to safety, environmental and quality standards. To reduce waste and embrace recycling in all our operations, and to dispose of waste materials in an environmentally responsible manner. We have selected four Environmental Priorities to reduce our environmental footprint: Energy, Greenhouse Gases, Water, and Responsible Forest Management. You ll find a wealth of information on our commitment and green-flooring literature, at armstrong.com/sustainability.

4 Building green begins at home. The Armstrong headquarters in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, earned the highest possible certification granted by the U.S. Green Building Council USGBC LEED EB Platinum. At our facilities worldwide, we ve long demonstrated a commitment to reducing our environmental footprint through recycling, emissions reduction, ISO environmental certifications, and many other continuousimprovement measures. Few programs demonstrate our success more clearly while serving to inspire designers, architects and builders than Building 701 at our headquarters in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. In 2007, Building 701 earned the highest possible certification granted by the U.S. Green Building Council USGBC LEED EB Platinum only the sixth building ever to do so, and the first outside California. Built in 1998 as a green building, it has always been a profitable, environmentally responsible, healthy and productive place to work. Steady design and operational improvements over the years, however, have transformed Building 701 into a model for the use of clean, renewable energy, for reduced energy and water use, for recycling and acoustics, and for green maintenance and landscaping. Building 701 showcases the environmental performance that s possible when you make a vigorous commitment to healthy, sustainable building features. Learn much more at armstrong.com/sustainability/ LEED-EB.

5 Options for achieving your green, greener and greenest building goals. Armstrong s broad portfolio of Commercial Floor products lets you choose from a wide variety of green, greener and greenest solutions. They include linoleum, LVT, commercial hardwood, sheet, VCT and specialty flooring all of which contribute to or comply with LEED credit requirements. All Armstrong resilient products are FloorScore certified and can comply with credit EQ4.3 for low emitting materials. The FloorScore program was developed by Scientific Certification Systems, a nationally recognized third-party certification company, and the Resilient Floor Covering Institute. BioBased Tile reduces reliance on petroleum and fossil fuels while it expands the affordability of green to all commercial projects. high-performance Indoor Environmental Air Quality requirement in the nation. In addition, our line of commercial floor adhesives comply with LEED credit EQ4.1 for low emitting adhesives. Among the wide and growing selection of inspiring choice and green product options that we offer our commercial customers, we now point with pride to a unique new category of tile our revolutionary BioBased Tile. Not since the introduction of linoleum in the last century, and its renaissance starting early in this decade, have we been able to share with you such an important innovation in commercial flooring. The result of an intensive research and development effort, BioBased Tile (BBT ) is truly a breakthrough product. It offers the classic look and performance of composition tile, yet its essential polymer ingredient (BioStride ) is made with a domestically grown, rapidly renewable plant source. BBT reduces reliance on petroleum and fossil fuels while it expands the affordability of green to all commercial projects. True to our heritage of sustainability, Under this program, hard surface flooring products are tested and certified for compliance with California s Section for low VOC emissions, the most stringent Armstrong makes it easy to go green. To learn more about our inspiring breakthrough, visit biobasedtile.com.

6 Green milestones for Armstrong s commercial operations Ceiling Products introduces a North American recycling program. In 2000 the program receives Pennsylvania Governor s Award For Environmental Excellence Recycling of cork scrap into Armstrong linoleum begins Commercial Flooring integrates the use of recycled content into VCT manufacture, diverting more than 7 million pounds of waste from landfills each year and sparing the use of equivalent virgin materials. More than 63 million pounds of waste are diverted during the next nine years One of the first UV-cured coatings for commercial flooring is introduced. The resulting low-maintenance flooring reduces environmental impact; requires less water, energy and chemicals. Holmsund, Sweden & and Delmenhorst, Germany: Commercial Flooring Plants Certified ISO Environmental Management Specifications Armstrong becomes a founding sponsor of the United States Green Building Council.

7 2001 Gifford Pinchot Award for environmental initiatives is awarded to Wood Products for tree planting, sustainable forest conservation, and environmental education Commercial Flooring introduces a new composition tile category BioBased Tile with BioStride polymer, made with a rapidly renewable plant source Armstrong receives FloorScore certification on all its resilient flooring. FloorScore certifies that products comply with CA for Indoor Air Quality. Compliant with LEED credit EQ4.3 for low emitting materials UV Coatings are applied to all Commercial Sheet Flooring products Armstrong becomes a founding sponsor of the Canada Green Building Council, LEED Canada CI Armstrong becomes a Corporate Sponsor at the highest level of the Tropical Forest Foundation (TFF).

8 Sharing the knowledge you need to stay in the LEED. BioBased Tile and the many other flooring solutions Armstrong offers now provide one of the largest selections of green flooring products in the industry. We continue to gather information on the environmental attributes to help you make the best choice for your commercial flooring project. When developing this information, we take into account not only the characteristics of each product, but also its entire life cycle from the sourcing and transport of its LEED and Floor Product Categories Armstrong s BioBased Tile can contribute to or comply with four LEED credits. Category LEED NC & CI Credits Description Summary Armstrong Products MR4.0 Recycled content (10% or 20%) Linoleum, BioBased Tile, VCT Materials & Resources MR5.0 Local/regional materials and sourcing BioBased Tile*, Commercial Hardwood*, VCT* MR6.0 Rapidly renewable resource Linoleum, BioBased Tile EQ4.1 Low VOC emitting adhesives All Armstrong commercial floor adhesives** Indoor Environmental Air Quality EQ4.3 Low VOC emitting materials: carpet systems 25% finished floor area is FloorScore non-carpet. Linoleum, BioBased Tile, LVT, Sheet, VCT * Depends on project location. ** Except for S-89 tile adhesive.

9 materials, through manufacture, packaging and distribution, to application and its eventual recycling or disposal. If you re designing with an Armstrong floor product, and want to know which LEED categories and credits are applicable, we provide handy references like these charts that identify Armstrong commercial floor products that can contribute to or comply with LEED credit requirements. Armstrong Products that Contribute to or Comply with LEED Credits Category Armstrong Products LEED NC & CI Credits Linoleum MARMORETTE, LINORETTE, COLORETTE, UNI WALTON, GRANETTE, LINODUR EQ4.3, MR4.0, MR6.0 BioBased Tile MIGRATIONS EQ4.3, MR4.0, MR5.0*, MR6.0 LVT NATURAL CREATIONS EQ4.3 Commercial Hardwood PREMIER PERFORMANCE, HERITAGE CLASSICS, METRO CLASSICS, BECKFORD, CENTURY FARM, HARTWOOD PARQUET, ARMSTRONG LOCKING HARDWOOD MR5.0* Sheet MEDINTECH, ROYAL, MEDINTECH Tandem, POSSIBILITIES Petit Point, Connection CORLON, TRANSLATIONS, PERSPECTIVES, TIMBERLINE, COMMISSION Plus, SAFEGUARD, SAFEGUARD Spa EQ4.3 VCT ARTEFFECTS, Standard EXCELON, EXCELON, SAFETY ZONE, SDT EQ4.3, MR4.0, MR5.0* Adhesives All Armstrong Adhesives (except S-89) EQ4.1 *Depends on project location.

10 The EcoScorecard SM Advantage: A time-saving Web-based tool for the green building industry. We are pleased to now offer the advantage of our interactive EcoScorecard a time-saving, Web-based tool for the green building industry that allows users to quickly search, evaluate and document a product s environmental contributions according to key industry rating systems: USGBC LEED Rating Systems (All balloted rating systems) Canada Green Building LEED Rating Systems EcoScorecard produces the environmental documentation necessary for submission in each rating system, and provides a project area for each user to store information for reference or sharing. Decision-making tools such as these are just a few of the ways we demonstrate Armstrong s determination to remain the industry s most trusted resource for environmental information and green products. GGHC Green Guideline for Health Care CHPS Collaborative for High Performance Schools LABS21

11 SmartSample : smarter, greener communications. SmartSample is our comprehensive commitment to reduce the impact that our marketing communications have on the environment. SmartSample includes the following measures: Reducing the use of paper through a variety of electronic communication tools The most comprehensive Web site in the industry Electronic versions of all literature pieces for viewing and downloading Armstrong Source Guide on CD Web-based EcoScorecard SM provides easy documentation for key industry rating systems Use of FSC-Certified paper in the production of all printed materials Merchandising materials are recyclable and contain recycled content Sample reuse program allows you to extend the life of your merchandising materials and return them for reuse when you are finished with them To replenish samples visit armstrong.com/ordersamples To return items for reuse visit armstrong.com/samplereuse

12 This book is printed using FSC-certified paper. F Printed in United States of America AWI Licensing Company LEED, the Armstrong logo and EXCELON are registered in the United States and Canada. ARTEFFECTS, [Between us, ideas become reality], COMMISSION, Connection CORLON, HARTWOOD, MEDINTECH, NATURAL CREATIONS, Tandem, TIMBERLINE, and POSSIBILITIES are registered in the United States only. All trademarks owned by AWI Licensing Company. FloorScore is a trademark of the Resilient Floor Covering Institute. LEED is a registered trademark of the United States Green Building Council. EcoScorecard SM is a service mark of Viridity.