Formica Corporation Repurposes Industrial Waste

As a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of innovative surfacing products, Formica Corporation is committed to our role as an environmental steward in the building, architecture and design communities developing environmentally responsible products that have raised the bar for the entire surfacing industry.

Design Inspiration Under the Surface

Inspired by insulation made from reclaimed denim, the design team developed an all new concept for laminate surfacing.  This was the beginning of a series of events that led to a 2017 Red Dot Award winning product, Reclaimed Denim Fiber laminate.

Denim is comprised of cotton that is indigo dyed. Since cotton is a vital component of paper making, it became a natural fit for creating laminate.

Collaboration with paper makers, designers, and remnants from blue jean manufacturing, led to the creation of this design with 60% recycled content in the overlay.  Since the offcuts from the blue jean manufacturers vary in shade, the results of each batch also fluctuate. The design of this product, created a very real and honest material—a design that isn’t printed which was a new turn in creating laminate surfacing. 

Smart Organics

Following the launch of Reclaimed Denim Fiber in 2015, the Formica Group design team identified a movement  to repurpose materials and reuse them in new ways. The Smart Organics palette from SurfaceSet^® 2018 highlights a scientific approach to environmental consciousness.

At Formica Corporation, designers asked the printers to utilize remnants from manufacturing.  They decided to recycle the offcuts of solid color laminates. The leftover scraps were once reprocessed into pulp to be used in creating another solid.  Now, the remnants are celebrated, chopped up into tiny fragments and directly placed on top of a solid to create a terrazzo look laminate.  The two new Paper Terrazzo laminate patterns are both comprised of neutrals and include 30% reclaimed material. 

Paper Terrazzo is created in small-batch craft production so that each sheet is unique and natural.  Paired with a unique Paper finish, the Paper Terrazzo patterns offer a low sheen-in register finish.  The Paper texture enhances the real paper effect with synchronized texture.  The production pressing process results in a low sheen finish with slightly raised areas that result from the individual embedded paper fragments.

Along with these innovative and unique market developments, Formica Corporation is committed to sustainability. Learn more about our efforts here.