BRAUNGART EPEA and CLASSEN aim to further establish^{CERAMIN® and} other healthy building materials

Kaisersesch/Hamburg, August 9, 2023. “PVC is not a material of the future, and PVC production and use should be phased out sooner rather than later.” With this clear statement, Cradle-to-Cradle pioneer Prof. Dr. Michael Braungart introduces his interim report on the collaboration between BRAUNGART EPEA – Internationale Umweltforschung GmbH and the CLASSEN . Against the backdrop of the impending PVC ban under the Green Deal and the European Union’s REACH Regulation, the focus is shifting to materials, products, and processes that are suitable for the circular economy and pose no harm to either people or the environment. According to Braungart, the PVC-free material^CERAMIN®, developed by the CLASSEN , is of outstanding interest to the entire flooring industry due to its recyclability and health benefits—an industry that, to date, still supplies the construction sector and the market at large with PVC in design and vinyl flooring on a massive scale. As part of a broad alliance—which will in the future include additional companies that also refrain from using PVC—the goal is to further establish polypropylene (PP) as an equivalent, but above all, healthier alternative to PVC. The Cradle-to-Cradle certification of^CERAMIN®, which has already been initiated, is a first step in this direction.

Prof. Dr. Michael Braungart was awarded the Honorary Prize of the German Sustainability Award just last fall and has long been regarded as a pioneer in the fields of eco-design, waste prevention, and the circular economy. Through the Environmental Protection Encouragement Agency (EPEA), which he founded more than 30 years ago, he and William McDonough established the Cradle to Cradle concept. The concept involves a continuous and consistent cycle of materials. It describes the safe and, in principle, infinite circulation of materials and nutrients within cycles. What the biological decomposition of individual product components returned to nature—such as through complete composting—means for the biosphere, complete recycling into new products means for industry and the technosphere. As a result, products and production processes should not only be less harmful to people and nature but also have a positive impact.

The impending ban on PVC is fueling the search for alternatives

Braungart has long been concerned about the harmful effects of PVC. In a preliminary interim assessment of the collaboration with the CLASSEN , he highlights all the well-known facts regarding the toxicity to humans and the environment during the production, use, and disposal of PVC, as well as its enormous energy and resource consumption and the near-impossibility of recycling it. At the EU level, a ban on PVC in indoor spaces has been under discussion since at least the publication of the Ramboll study in 2022. This is not the only reason why the search for alternatives that are not only free of harmful substances but also fully recyclable is in full swing. The flooring industry is particularly affected by this. In Europe alone, approximately 190 million square meters of PVC-containing vinyl flooring were produced in 2022. That is equivalent to about 32,000 soccer fields—year after year. About half of the roughly 1.2 million tons of material comes from China. Material whose eventual disposal poses a multitude of risks to the environment and human health. This underscores the urgency of establishing alternative materials.

For this reason, Braungart is promoting collaboration with the CLASSEN , whose polypropylene-based^CERAMIN® material meets all the requirements for establishing a suitable alternative to harmful PVC floor and wall coverings. Not only are products made from^CERAMIN® at least equivalent in terms of material properties such as durability, moisture resistance, design versatility, and ease of processing, but unlike PVC, they are completely safe for health and the environment, fully recyclable, and consist to a high degree of PP recyclates even during production. For this reason, the products also have a significantly smaller carbon footprint and reduce energy consumption by a factor of many through the use of recycled materials in production.

Broad alliance aims to phase out PVC use and open up new markets

However, from the perspective of those involved, the goal of this strategic collaboration is not merely to establish health-conscious^{CERAMIN® flooring} in the construction and flooring industry. To this end, the CLASSEN will work to expand its network with additional market partners, with the support of Braungart EPEA. Furthermore, a broad alliance is to be forged, which other companies that have consciously decided against or are deciding against the use of PVC applications are encouraged to join. Braungart asserts, “A shift in thinking regarding the use of PVC is necessary. The issues must be communicated, and insights must be shared widely. Innovative solutions and alternatives, such as CLASSEN products, CLASSEN an important benchmark in this regard.” In his view, this requires “a coalition of stakeholders willing to eliminate PVC from their products, services, and processes.” The focus is primarily on companies in the construction, electronics, and packaging sectors. “Since supply chains and the use of PVC are global in scope, it seems beneficial to incorporate global perspectives as well. With CLASSEN the initiator of such a network, opportunities for new markets will open up,” concludes Braungart.

“By developing^CERAMIN® flooring, we have not only created a sustainable future for our family business, but—thanks to our licensing business—we have also opened up an alternative and entirely new perspective for the entire flooring industry,” says Céline Quervel, Head of Marketing at the CLASSEN , outlining the future possibilities. “Collaboration with Braungart EPEA, other market partners, and environmental and consumer protection organizations is therefore a very high priority for us.”

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About BRAUNGART EPEA – International Environmental Research GmbH:

Since its founding in Hamburg in 1987 by Prof. Dr. Michael Braungart, EPEA GmbH has evolved into an international innovation partner for environmentally sustainable products, processes, buildings, and urban neighborhoods. Our goal is to establish the Cradle to Cradle® design principle for the circular economy across all industrial sectors. This enables us to support companies in getting on the right track and becoming part of the transformation: from the molecular to the modular level, from chemicals to the city.