The result is a high-quality product range that is helping customers and Freudenberg Nonwovens achieve sustainable, "green" operations and design. Demand for Lutradur ECO has been growing so steadily that Freudenberg Nonwovens will restart an idled spunbond line to increase production of the recycled fiber by the end of the year. The move will result in the creation of 16 new jobs at the Durham plant. The plant is the Freudenberg Spunweb Company factory in Durham, NC. A spunbond production line was idled in the second half of 2008.
"We are proud to offer Lutradur ECO, a unique green product produced through a sustainable, ecologically-sensitive process," said John McNabb, North American general manager of Freudenberg Nonwovens. "We have invested years of time and resources to commercialize this product. In most applications, Lutradur ECO performs as well as our existing Lutradur product."
Development of Lutradur ECO has evolved over the past 10 years as Freudenberg sought ways to help its construction, landscape and filtration customers achieve coveted LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) credits for their use of sustainable products. Material and manufacturing engineers pushed to increase the amount of post industrial recycled (PIR) material used to produce Freudenberg's traditional Lutradur material from 15% to 90%. When the company migrated to 100% PCR, Lutradur ECO material was born.
Lutradur and Lutradur ECO are used to produce building and construction substrates; landscaping and weed block materials; residential and commercial wallpaper and carpet backings; automotive floor mats and carpeting; and specialized filtration devices.