INITIATIVE | 083 At Shaw, we're vertically integrating our operations and investing in innovative technology so we can control what goes into – and what comes out of – our manufacturing processes. It's the best way to ensure we meet our own high standards of practice, and those of our customers.
Shaw Industries SI plant located in Chickamauga, GA manufactures the synthetic woven primary and secondary backing used in the tufted carpet manufacturing process. The primary backing material is made of 100% recyclable polypropylene. In order to capture and reuse all raw materials, the SI facility has its very own, in-house post-industrial recycling operation. The Polypropylene material is collected in-house, ground into small pieces, melted, and extruded into pellets for the creation of new polypropylene. Today, we're able to collect and process over 40,000 lbs. of material per day. Over 40% of the recycled material is re-used in the SI facility. And what about the material that we're not able to recycle just yet? We're collecting it in rail car quantities for use in injection molded products.
All that's old is new again at Shaw! We're finding innovative ways to reuse and recycle technical nutrients which would otherwise be lost to a landfill. By investing in ourselves, and in the latest technologies, we're continually pushing our Green Edge further and further.
