Vinyl takeback scheme Recofloor has announced the collection of 533 tonnes of vinyl flooring in 2024, besting its annual target by 6% and reaching the equivalent of 2,550,000m2 of vinyl flooring recycled throughout the lifetime of the scheme.
More than 7,650 tonnes of waste vinyl flooring have been collected and recycled through Recofloor since the scheme was founded by Altro and Polyflor in 2009. This has produced 8,974 tonnes of carbon savings – equivalent to taking 2,342 cars off the road for a year (this carbon savings estimate is based on displacing concrete in traffic management products, the main application for the recycled flooring).
Recofloor is widely regarded as a great example of circularity in the flooring sector: through the sustainable collection service for commercial waste vinyl flooring, material is recycled back into new flooring, as well as traffic management products.
Carla Eslava, scheme manager at Recofloor, said: “A highlight this year was seeing a greater number of scheme participants, with 531 requests for Recofloor collections – up 19% compared to 2023. This has been helped by the increasing deployment of Recofloor on more major project sites and a rise in engagement with main contractors.”
Of the 533 tonnes collected through Recofloor in 2024, almost half (47%) came from flooring contractors and their projects. Distribution drop-off points accounted for 38% of materials collected, with a remaining 15% coming from industry partners.
“It has been great to see more main contractors promoting the scheme as a result of our awareness generation activities,” said Carla. “Having main contractors engaged opens the door for when the flooring contractor is on site, making deploying Recofloor on a project a lot easier.”
While 2024 had been a resounding success for the takeback scheme, Recofloor is keen to ensure that it continues to expand its reach and increase the amount of material it diverts from landfill.
Carla said: “In 2025, we will focus on further collaboration with the industry about take-back schemes, look to increase awareness of vinyl flooring recycling and engage with scheme participants to ensure we are collecting higher quality material.”
