Vinyl’s Sustainability

One of my earliest jobs in publishing was for a magazine dedicated to green building materials and practices. Green building was still a trend. Sustainability was a hot buzzword that would grab an editor’s attention.

Today, sustainability and environmental responsibility have long since moved from being a “trend” to being just part of how business is done. The 2024 Top Manufacturers Report reflects that. Energy efficiency is still a top-requested product feature. Not only are customers interested in making their homes energy efficient, but many are also environmentally conscious themselves and value companies and products that demonstrate sustainable practices. 

The Top Manufacturers Report also shows, once again, that vinyl products are the bread and butter for most companies. So, it stands to reason that the vinyl industry is taking a hard look at sustainability. Several efforts are underway to amplify vinyl’s sustainable attributes. 

First, six Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance members are working to create an industry-wide Life Cycle Assessment for the vinyl industry. Any producer of certified vinyl products will be able to use the LCA as an input for vinyl window and door product Environmental Product Declaration generation. Sixteen facilities are undergoing a four-week, 32-week process in which nine tasks will yield deliverables for a published EPD. These member companies represent more than 30% of the vinyl windows market, providing a good view of the whole, writes Janice Yglesias, FGIA executive director, on windowanddoor.com.

Second, is a post-consumer window recycling pilot program underway with the Vinyl Institute of Canada and its Window Profile Recycling Task Group. While post-consumer vinyl recycling is commonplace in Europe, it has yet to reach North America. “We already, as an industry in North America, recycle about 1.1 billion pounds of post-industrial vinyl annually,” explains Tony Vella, board chair of the Vinyl Institute of Canada. “The technology exists to take scrap vinyl, grind it up and reuse it in new products. We’re not creating any infrastructure at this point; we’re just connecting the dots of what’s already there.” 

Of course, sustainability doesn’t come from a single material. Glass, aluminum, wood, composites, components, other materials and the processes that go into creating windows and doors all contribute to the holistic process necessary to being truly sustainable. Visit WindowandDoor.com/sustainability for full coverage about sustainability in the industry.