Mannington Incorporates Recycled Drywall into Floo

Salem, NJ, November 7, 2006--In its ongoing quest to be a net user of waste, Mannington has developed resilient tile flooring containing gypsum from a unique source - recycled post-consumer drywall. The gypsum replaces a portion of the limestone in the resilient tile; and Mannington is the first flooring company to utilize this “waste stream” rather than add it to landfills. The product is the result of extensive research and development at both Mannington and Construction Waste Management (CWM), the supplier of the recycled drywall. “It isn’t as simple as just replacing the limestone with gypsum,” said Dave Kitts, vice president, Environment, at Mannington. “Our manufacturing team worked hard to incorporate the gypsum and still retain our products’ performance and aesthetics standards. CWM was a big help in this; they were able to supply us with recycled gypsum without any paper or other materials remaining from its previous life as drywall.” Mannington now uses the gypsum in all their Solid Point, Color Point and Brushwork premium tile lines. The company continues to research the possibility of increasing the percentage of gypsum added, and introducing the recycled material into other flooring products manufactured in its Salem, N.J. facility. Initially, Mannington will reclaim several tons of gypsum every month, and anticipates that to increase as production and research continue. “We go out and dig up gypsum to make drywall, then take all the scrap and put it right back in the ground at the landfill. It makes absolutely no sense to me,” says Avi Golen, president of CWM. “That’s why I was thrilled to work with Mannington on developing this new use for the recycled gypsum. We use it as a soil additive, but this is a new consumer product use right here in our own neighborhood.” Incorporating drywall into flooring is one more step Mannington is taking in its ongoing efforts to be a net user of waste. Being a net user means taking in and reusing more waste than is generated; and Mannington is reaching this goal by both increasing the amount of recycled content in its products and decreasing the amount of waste it generates. For more information on Mannington’s other product innovations, visit the environmental section of Mannington.com; or visit the Mannington booth at the Greenbuild conference in Denver.

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