Unilin is to invest €20m in recycling facilities that will see laminate floors recycled.
The group says it will licence the technology behind the investment so other producers can boost their recycling eforts.
The development builds on Unilin’s 2021 investment which saw the first recycling technology for MDF and HDF on an industrial scale. Since then it has improved the technology at its Bazeilles, France plant so that laminate floors with a HDF core can be recycled.
‘We know that today the recyclability of MDF, HDF and laminate floors is sometimes called into question. After two years of testing on our industrial pilot line, we have been able to ascertain the efficiency and quality of the new technology. This investment proves that MDF and HDF are fully recyclable. An absolute milestone for the industry,’ says Veronique Hoflack, Unilin Panels president.
‘The new investment will have a capacity of 70,000tonnes of wood fibres per year, or almost 30% recycled fibres on the production line where the technology is deployed. The next step consists of collecting sufficient MDF waste to drive our recycling installation. To collect this waste, we are setting up several take-back programmes with our customers and partners. We also hope to find an ally in the government by recognising the recyclability of MDF, HDF and laminate floors in order to motivate the general public to sort their waste. This way we hope to avoid the unnecessary incineration of valuable waste streams.’
‘Innovation is central at Unilin. And we are definitely not keeping that innovation just to ourselves. As with our invention of the click system in the 1990s, we believe our recycling technology will drive the industry forward so that everyone benefits. The breakthrough in the recycling of MDF and HDF is a crucial step in the ongoing process of making panel and laminate floors more sustainable, on the one hand because the wood retains the CO2 longer but also because the technology will lower the energy consumption for the production of MDF and HDF. Unilin is continuously looking for ways to further reduce the carbon footprint of its products,’ says Wim Messiaen, Unilin ceo.
The new installation at Bazeilles is expected to be operational next September.
