UPM will supply Artigo with UPM BioMotion™ renewable functional fillers for next-generation rubber floors

May 30, 2024Reviewed by Lexie Corner

Artigo, an international manufacturer of rubber flooring, will produce next-generation flooring collections using UPM BioMotion technology from 2025^™ Renewable functional fillers (RFF). By including UPM Biochemicals’ RFF, Artigo achieved CO emissions₂ space saving up to 0.5 kg CO₂e/q meter and managed to reduce the weight by as much as 5% per square meter of floor.

UPM BioMotion^™ RFF to CO₂-a negative solution for a variety of applications in rubber and plastics, containing 100% renewable carbon, certified by DIN CERTCO, coming from sustainably managed forests. Supports improving carbon footprint by enabling flooring manufacturers to increase the share of renewable materials in their products and reduce the use of traditional materials with high CO2 content₂-intensive fillers such as precipitated silica and other fossil carbon-based raw materials. RFF provides the same technical parameters as precipitated silica, increasing the durability and flexibility of floors, and the additional advantage is that they are up to one third lighter.

Michele Andolfo, Artigo’s Chief Operating Officer, commented: “Innovative BioMotion by UPM^™ Renewable functional fillers expand the possibilities of improving the durability and technical parameters of Artigo and Mondo floors by reducing CO emissions_₂ footprint and achieving weight reduction. Both are key benefits in creating products tailored to the needs of contemporary architecture.”

With the addition of UPM BioMotion, Artigo will achieve a renewable content share of up to 30% of the total weight of new products^™ RFF. Its flooring collections feature post-industrial and post-consumer recycled materials, as well as other renewable components, as well as RFF from UPM, making Artigo a clear leader in sustainability.

“Collaborating with a global partner like Artigo highlights the exciting potential of renewable carbon solutions like our UPM BioMotion^™ RFF to help product manufacturers reduce CO emissions₂ presence in major industries such as construction. This key milestone in the commercialization of our RFF devices to the market highlights the opportunities to leverage their unique combination of technical and sustainability benefits for many more applications.” said Christian Hübsch, Sales Director at UPM Biochemicals.

BioMotion by UPM^™ RFFs belong to several COs₂-negative solutions² to be produced at the UPM plant in Leuna. The company is investing EUR 1,180 million to build the world’s first industrial-scale biorefinery in Leuna, which will convert certified sustainable hardwood into next-generation biochemicals, enabling a significant shift from fossil fuel-based to renewable materials across many industries. The Leuna biorefinery is part of a broader growth area, UPM Biorefining, which is developing refineries to produce a variety of renewable fuels and chemicals made from sustainable biomass.

Samples of the new generation flooring will be presented at the following conferences:

• Renewable materials conference in Siegburg/Cologne, Germany, June 11-13 at stand 31 and 32
• German Rubber Industry Conference DKT 2024 in Nuremberg, Germany, July 1-4 at stand 527 in hall 9

Source: https://www.artigo.com/