Hicksville, N.Y.—Last issue, we discussed how the changing face of carpet design is driving dynamic changes for what is under the patterns. This has forced backing suppliers, manufacturers and associations to rethink how their products are made and the marketing efforts used to promote them to mill customers and end users. From associations and suppliers that produce raw materials and license technology to the backings manufacturers and carpet mills, marketing is getting more aggressive to educate end users about backings and to generate brand preference.

As a way to better understand what is taking place in the world of carpet backings, here is a roundup of notable changes and trends in industry products. In this issue, we will focus on the main associations and suppliers, while the next edition will feature some of the major backings manufacturers. Associations, Material Suppliers In this area, there are primarily three major players—two organizations and one supplier—with each having its own unique function within the industry.

• Alliance for Flexible Polyurethane Foam (AFPF): AFPF is a joint program of the Alliance for the Polyurethane Industry and the Polyurethane Foam Association, and claims newer foam properties overcome negative impressions.AFPF claims recent improvements in commercial polyurethane foam cushioning create a padding that is thick, has a high density, and is flat and resilient. These qualities overcome objections to earlier generations of cushions that impeded wheeled traffic and made office reconfigurations difficult. In contrast, today’s commercial polyurethane foam has a positive impact on carpet performance in office environments. According to the AFPF’s Helen Sullivan, the benefits that carpet cushions bring to the office workspace include an increase in carpet lifespan of up to 50%, improved appearance retention, better acoustics for open and modular office spaces and enhanced worker comfort and ergonomics.

With this in mind, the organization has a new program targeted at office facility managers to promote the use of carpet cushions. AFPF has zoned in on the office market because although 34% of commercial carpet sales are installed in offices, only 25% to 30% of those installations use carpet cushions. Because there is increasing accountability for designers and facility managers to specify carpets that look good and perform well upon initial installation as well as years down the road, Sullivan said the group sees an opportunity to educate customers about the benefits today’s polyurethane foam cushioning brings to commercial carpet installations. To make its case, AFPF has a brochure for office designers and end users that cites tests and quotes experts to demonstrate the superior performance carpet cushions provide in all stages of an office carpet’s life.

Beginning with the initial installation, the cushions are installer-friendly because they’re allergen-free, lightweight, easy to cut to size and require no adhesive. Benefits versus direct glue-down installations include longer lifetime and fewer replacements, which translates into time and money savings. For office occupants, AFPF claims cushioned carpet offers more than twice the noise reduction coefficient of carpet alone. Most polyurethane carpet cushions have an R-value of 1.0 or higher and, although worker comfort can only be measured in subjective terms, AFPF notes cushioned carpet is more ergonomic for workers because it’s more comfortable to walk on, and causes less stress on the lower legs and feet. Maintenance benefits are also cited for using unattached cushions. The space between the floor, the cushion and the carpet allows air circulation through the carpet backing, lifting 15% to 58% more dirt. At the end of the cushion’s service life, it is recyclable, and may well end up in a newly manufactured cushion.

There is also a positive cost/value relationship, Sullivan said. The up front costs of using cushion are rationalized to facility managers with positive costing studies that demonstrate longer appearance retention and longer service life versus direct glue-down installations. Even moderately priced carpets look better longer, justifying the investment. For more information on AFPF, call 800/696-2373.

• Dow: The company is responsible for much of the chemistry behind cushion-backed products, and licenses the technology to multiple manufacturers. Dow introduced its Enhancer polyurethane cushioned carpet backing in 1985, so the product category is not new. What is new, as in so many other overnight success stories that take 10 or 20 years, is the increasing role attached cushions like Enhancer are playing in assuring tuftability for intricate patterns, contributing to appearance retention, improving longer term performance, enhancing maintenance characteristics, and providing better ergonomics.

Along with AFPF, Dow is riding the popularity crest polyurethane cushions are now enjoying in a number of end use commercial markets. The original Enhancer product now has many iterations, all variations and/or upgrades on a basic set of properties. The product consists of a polyurethane moisture resistant layer applied to the carpet primary backing, encapsulating and locking yarn tufts. That is bonded to a non-plasticized, microcellular cushion, which in turn is bonded to a woven or non-woven fabric on the exposed undersurface. The backing is said to provide better long-term appearance retention characteristics and more dimensional stability to reduce rippling and buckling, plus better bonding characteristics. “The high-density cushion flexes imperceptibly to reduce crushing and matting,” said a spokesman. “It extends the appearance and performance characteristics of commercial carpets.

Combined with a low-pile carpet, the cushioning also reduces lower leg muscle fatigue.” Polyurethane cushions also create a thermoplastic moisture barrier between the carpet surface and the backing. This reduces the likelihood that moisture from spills, humidity and wet cleaning will penetrate the broadloom backing and promote deterioration, appearance problems and odors. The Enhancer’s newer value added characteristics include optional additives that inhibit the growth of bacteria, mold and mildew. Lifespan polyurethane carpet backing was developed as the next generation for the non-cushion commercial broadloom industry.

Introduced in 2000, it is a woven composite fabric backing with a unique terra-cotta color. The company claims Life- span is a cost-effective, high-performance product that capitalizes on the four key attributes of polyurethane: high polymer strength and elasticity; excellent adhesion to fibers; mois ture resistance, and retention of properties over time and in a wide variety of indoor site conditions. “The polyurethane chemistry used in the backing creates a molecular bond between the primary and secondary backings, reducing the occurrence of product failure from delamination,” the Dow spokesman explained. The backing also includes a tough elastomeric film precoat applied directly to the primary carpet backing, which provides moisture resistance over the life of the carpet, and reduces the potential for mold, mildew and resulting product delamination. The bond also allows Lifespan backing to be cut lengthwise, crosswise or at any angle without predisposing yard to dropout or edge ravel. It is available by individual carpet specifications to offer performance assurance for the life of the installation and is geared for professionals who have tight budgets and scheduling issues. For more information on Dow, call 800/847-4212.

• SB Latex Council (SBLC): Styrene Butadiene Latex (SB Latex) is used in over 90% of carpets made in the U.S., primarily to attach face fibers to a backing material. Although there are no product or technology breakthroughs from this alliance of industry members, Bob Fensterheim, SBLC’s executive director, said two current issues surrounding carpets continues to validate the product’s popularity—maintenance and indoor air quality. The inherent quality of SB Latex to resist moisture enables broadloom backings made with it more resistant to the negative effects of thorough maintenance.

Today’s carpets are expected to last longer, so they’ll undergo more routine maintenance and occasional deep cleaning cycles before being replaced. Fensterheim says the more SB Latex content in the backing, and the less calcium carbonate filler, the more moisture resistant and less water permeable the carpet becomes. “These qualities make it easier for the carpet to maintain its structural strength and original shape after repeated cleanings with liquid cleaning and disinfectant solutions.” With mills facing so much pressure for longer lasting carpets, the binders are being made with less and less filling and a higher percentage of SB Latex.

The other issue driving the continued popularity of SB Latex is human allergy reactions to natural latex. Ironically, the chemicals used to make synthetic SB Latex are not associated with the sensitivity some people show to latex products made with natural materials. “As awareness to natural latex reactions and allergies grows, so does the desirability of products made with SB Latex, including backing adhesives and coatings,” he said. To learn more about the SBLC, call 202/637-9040.