Last month’s Greenbuild International conference hosted by the U.S. Green Building Council in Phoenix attracted more than 27,000 attendees. It was a tremendous event for both the commercial and residential building segments.

USGBC president, CEO and founding chair Rick Fedrizzi said in his opening remarks, “Green building is about the families who must weigh their power bill against their grocery bill; it’s about workers who labor in buildings that take a toll on their bodies and spirits; and it’s about kids who spend their entire childhoods in toxic classrooms.” 

Added Fedrizzi, “We have the power to make choices that will fundamentally change the environment, and people’s lives, for the better.”

Here are some products/programs that I found interesting. You’ll see them soon and be able to fill the needs of your customers desiring sustainable products. Tandus unveiled ethos modular backing for its modular carpet products. Tandus reclaims the film layer of shatterproof car windshields and safety glass, grinds it into pellets and incorporates it into ethos. 

Shaw showcased its Green Edge program and the theme Waste is Beautiful to focus on waste as a solution. Key to the program is choosing products that can be deconstructed into their original materials and then back into new product. The company has a fully operational recycling plant; a new Re2E energy reclamation facility; Cradle to Cradle certification for Shaw’s Epic Hardwood; and an investment in ClearPath Recycling LLC, the largest PET recycling facility in North America.

Bentley Prince Street has moved a few steps closer to closing the loop on its products through the introduction of new backing technologies for its broadloom and carpet tile products. High PerformancePC and SelectRC incorporate recycled and reprocessed carpet backing into the company’s new standard broadloom backing and standard hard-back carpet tile backing, respectively. Also introduced was the first product in the Easy Street Collection using post-consumer recycled content yarn.

Mohawk Industries has expanded its agreement to use The Dow Chemical Company’s LOMAX Technology latex backings on commercial carpet products from Bigelow, a brand of The Mohawk Group.

The EcoDomo M+E Collection blends stones, glass, and recycled leather. The decorative tile collection is made with recycled materials diverted from landfills. 

The recycled leather is then shredded and bound with latex and tree bark. It can be used on staircases, backsplashes and floors, and the product is designed with unique abrasion and wear resistance properties, according to the company.

Crossville rolled out its Tile Take-Back Program for recycling all ceramic and porcelain tile products at its Crossville, TN plant.

 Invista, manufacturer of Stainmaster and Antron carpet fibers, showed its first Antron Bio Legacy carpet fiber style: New Gotham from Bentley Prince Street, which uses 10% recycled content. Invista is also the first company to obtain Environmentally Preferable Product (EPP) certification for its carpet fibers under a new, expanded standard by Scientific Certification Systems (SCS).