Corporate Commitment
As the inventor of high pressure laminate, Formica Corporation has always offered innovative, high quality products. Efficient use of resources is at our core, and throughout our history we have taken many steps to improve our environmental footprint — from reusing the water in our presses to incorporating recycled materials into our surfacing products.
As part of its sustainability approach, Formica Corporation has published its environmental impact data annually since 2021, as well as targets and initiatives for the coming year. This year is no different, but the way we report the information has changed. We invite you to learn more in this important document.
Download The Report
Formica Group has been working diligently toward more sustainable business practices for years. This Group Position Paper focuses on our company’s broader environmental impact, which prioritizes reduction of carbon emissions. In addition to providing the carbon footprint data from our manufacturing plants, the paper also showcases key initiatives and provides concrete examples that illustrate our efforts and progress.
We continue focusing on our goal of reducing carbon emissions in every way possible. This includes changes in our manufacturing processes and use of raw materials. One notable success has been our shift to relying on 100% renewable energy to power our North American plants in Cincinnati, Ohio, and St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada.
Adopting More Stringent Sustainability Reporting at a Global Level
For the first time, we are presenting our sustainability philosophy, approach and results from a global perspective. By consolidating information from our worldwide operations and brands, we aim to emphasize the collective efforts of the entire organization and showcase how we work together as a unified team toward our shared goals. This holistic view required us to evaluate sustainability reporting regulations that vary by geography and standardize our approach. Changing laws in Europe no longer allow carbon offsets to be considered in percentages of total carbon emissions reduced. Although other areas of the world still permit these offsets to be counted, we have decided to align our reporting with Europe’s stringent new guidelines on a global scale. As part of our commitment to transparency and pursuit of the most stringent sustainability assessment, we will still purchase carbon offsets but will no longer include them in our reported percentages of carbon emissions reduced.
Improving Our Life Cycle Analysis Model
We recognize the importance of assessing the full life cycle of our products. We have adopted a cradle-to-gate approach for quantifying our footprint, taking into consideration the life cycle stages from the extraction of raw materials to the manufacture of our products. This represents the part of the life cycle over which we have full control and will be our primary focus for sustainability improvement efforts. We also recognize, however, the importance of the end-of-life of our products. As of this year, we have decided to report on our cradle-to-grave footprint in addition to cradle-to-gate. We will rely on data collected from the market and industry stakeholders to assess this impact and integrate it into our life cycle analysis as accurately as possible. At the same time, we will separately report the biogenic carbon uptake of our products to clearly highlight the biogenic carbon they store.
The Goal of This Paper
This Group Position Paper highlights the collective efforts of the Broadview Materials group of companies to mitigate the environmental impact of our manufacturing plants. Every day, we collaborate as a unified team towards our shared goal: minimizing our impact on climate change. We will continue to publish annual updates on the progress we make toward our environmental impact goals and the initiatives we pursue in our ongoing efforts to reduce carbon emissions.
Green Buildings and Infrastructure
Formica Corporation continuously develops new technologies, processes and products to deliver operational efficiencies and to fulfill emerging customer and stakeholder expectations. Formica Corporation recognizes sustainability and climate change as important drivers of new product development.
Formica Corporation memberships include:
- U.S. Green Building Council
- ASID Industry Partner
- Composite Panel Association
- Mindful Materials
More on Sustainability
At Formica Corporation, we continually strive to create innovative products that promote a healthier environment to support sustainable design.