Dalton—Shaw Industries has announced that all the mill’s Anso nylon, including the Anso Nylon, Anso Crush-Resister and Anso Caress brands, will contain post-consumer nylon fiber recycled through the company’s Evergreen Nylon Recycling facility in Augusta, Ga. Reopened in February of this year, Evergreen recycles post-consumer carpets of nylon 6 into the raw material used to make new nylon fiber, and several of Shaw’s latest Anso nylon introductions already contain this recycled content.

“Production at Evergreen has met our expectations,” said Mike Leary, director of sales and marketing, Shaw Fibers. “While Shaw’s nationwide collection system is still growing, the Evergreen plant has been providing a steady stream of the raw material to make nylon fiber. We’re delighted to be able to so quickly expand our collection of products with recycled content to include all Anso styles.”

David Harless, plant manager of the Evergreen facility, noted startup operations went forward more quickly than anticipated. “We’ve demonstrated we’re able to meet the goals we set for ourselves.” He mentioned the plant supplies the recycled raw material for Shaw’s commercial Eco Solution Q nylon as well as Anso residential fibers.

Leary said the ability to offer consumers carpet that is both recyclable and contains recycled content is important in today’s world of environmental awareness. “Research clearly indicates that consumers are increasingly interested in eco-friendly products, and products that can avoid the landfill are at the top of the green list.” Broadloom constructed of nylon 6 are the only carpets today that can be recycled into carpet again—without the loss of any aesthetic or performance properties, he noted.

“There is today no standard for recycled content, and the percentage contained in Anso nylon carpets will vary,” Leary explained. “Because of the complexity of the distribution of Evergreen’s recycled content, it’s not currently practical for us to assign a specific percentage to our Anso nylon products.”

Leary continued, noting it is, at the same time, important to recognize that the amount of recycled content in individual products makes little difference in regard to the environmental benefit realized. “All of Evergreen’s production capacity will be utilized, so whether a few products contain a high percentage of recycled content or a broad array use a small percentage is secondary to the overall environmental impact of being able to divert post-consumer carpet from the landfill.”

The company’s objective is permanent landfill avoidance, and all post-industrial fiber that can be reclaimed is also fully utilized. Shaw has already diverted millions of pounds of carpet from landfills this year through its Evergreen facility.

“The real story behind our efforts is ‘cradle-to-cradle’ manufacturing,” Leary concluded. “Only this closed-loop, cradle-to-cradle process returns nylon 6 carpet back to its original building block to make new carpet over and over again.” He noted, while the company’s production of recycled content may or may not reach 100% as its recycling operations mature, Shaw is committed to cradle-to-cradle processes that yield eco-friendly, performance-driven and stylish products. “Evergreen, nylon 6 and Anso nylon products are a big part of our environmental commitment.”

For more on Shaw’s Anso nylon, call 706.275.1792.