At Pergo, we are keen to take our responsibility to produce flooring as sustainably as possible. From the production of our floors to the end of its life: we constantly innovate to minimise potential impact on our planet. As the inventors of laminate flooring, we’re proud to be the first producer to receive the Nordic Swan label and EU Ecolabel for a floor.
Trees are a renewable resource, and a valuable ally in the battle against climate change. This is because they absorb CO2 and keep it safely locked in. It remains there for the rest of their lives, even when the wood is used, for example, in a laminate floor. The CO2 is released when the wood is incinerated, which is why we avoid this for as long as possible, with a long-lasting floor and a lifelong warranty of up to 33 years.
Trees are also an important habitat for animals and essential in stimulating biodiversity. Another reason why we choose wood by-products rather than harvesting new trees. We therefore use 100% recovered wood when producing the high-density wood fibreboard in the core of our laminate. This is wood waste collected from sawmills, forest management processes, roadside maintenance … that would otherwise end up as rubbish or in the incinerator.
Our laminate floors are certified by PEFC – the most trusted certificate in sustainable sourcing together with FSC. This label guarantees that our recovered wood is sourced from sustainably managed forests or a controlled environment, thus protecting primeval forests and preventing illegal logging with a risk analysis. We can therefore be confident that our wood sourcing does not lead to deforestation.
We spend a lot of our time indoors, so air quality at home is of vital importance. Many factors can influence air quality: ventilation, cleaning agents, candles, and even your furnishing materials and flooring. By producing your flooring in-house we know exactly which materials are involved and can easily control the emissions of harmful substances. We also make sure you can install your flooring without requiring any adhesive products.
Our in-house production is also beneficial in managing and minimising the emission of VOCs – volatile organic compounds with a high vapour pressure at room temperature. Formaldehyde is one example of a VOC that can be found in flooring. The formaldehyde emission of our laminate flooring is negligible and 10 times lower than the EU restrictions, so there’s no risk at all for you or your family. As such, the emission of our floors is comparable to the emission of natural wood, which explains the M1 and A+ labels. For these labels, we managed to have the best class regarding low emissions.
Wood waste that is no longer useful in the production of our laminate flooring is still put to good use to generate green energy. For example, the wood dust created when we saw and sand our boards may be too fine to be recycled, but it’s perfect as a heat source for our tumble dryers and presses. We are currently able to satisfy 70% of the heat requirements of our laminate and vinyl production with green energy.
We don’t stop there. Unilin Group – as Pergo’s parent company – has already invested in two biomass plants to generate green energy from wood dust and non-recyclable wood waste. We use this energy to operate our own production processes – and the rest is made public. We also consume energy from windmills and solar panels. In doing so we can currently run about half of our group’s production on renewable energy.
We were the very first manufacturer of laminate flooring products to be awarded the Nordic Swan label and the EU Ecolabel. Standards in the European Union are very strict and these labels are only given to products and services that achieve the highest environmental scores during their entire lifecycle.
To maximise our efforts and minimise the environmental impact of your laminate flooring, we use the lifecycle assessment (LCA) methodology. This helps us identify where improvements can be made in each product lifecycle. Results emerge in an environmental product declaration (EPD), which then serves as a valuable guide.
The following labels are demonstration that your flooring complies with some of the strictest environmental and health standards:
Nordic Ecolabel
Highly regarded Scandinavian ecological label for products that meet high requirements for environmental standards throughout the life cycle.
EU Ecolabel
Label of environmental excellence awarded to products and services meeting high ecological standards throughout their life cycles.
M1
Proof that our flooring products do not release toxic substances and are odourless. M1 is the top category of this Finnish classification, standing for the lowest emission.
A+
Emission regulation certificate, serving as a recognition for very low emissions. A+ is the top category, standing for the lowest emission.
EPD
With our environmental product declaration we show our commitment to provide precise, reliable and comparable information on the environmental performance of our laminate and wood products.
PEFC
Globally trusted trademark for wooden products originating from sustainably managed forests.
