Cycle of Life: For PVC Products, Its Time to Close the Loop on Recycling
by Glenn Ferris
Sometimes, good environmental stewardship can be as simple as removing material from the construction waste stream and landfills. Thanks to a pair of generous grants from the Vinyl Institute and the Vinyl Material Council, the Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance (FGIA) is embarking on a new plan to implement a pilot program for recycling post-consumer PVC windows in conjunction with the Polymeric Exterior Profile Association’s “Revinylize” program.
FGIA was awarded a grant through the Vinyl Institute’s Viability program, to study the feasibility of collecting and recycling post-consumer PVC fenestration. We found plenty of significance, as the research revealed that 162 million pounds of recyclable vinyl would be available in 2025. The desired end result should also prove a boon for the specification community, as architects and consumers currently have no certified fenestration options to choose from when they are looking for a product containing post-consumer recycled material. With this program, FGIA and its members are creating that stream for recyclers to process and sell back into the fenestration manufacturing process. It’s a win-win, as adding post-consumer recycled material to their Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) documents will improve manufacturers’ and distributors’ Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) scores, showing responsibility to the environment while improving business practices.
Nearly three of five replacements for windows and sliding doors (per week) are vinyl window replacements, and more than 80% of windows replaced have been used for 10-plus years. Meanwhile, businesses often recycle vinyl windows, but in large part our research found that only occurred for metal content in the frames, as well as hardware and glass. Furthermore, many contractors are not physically transporting post-consumer windows to recycling facilities, as the annual cost of recycling can be almost twice that of landfill disposal.
That said, our research revealed a majority of businesses surveyed would choose recycling over landfills, as storage space is not an issue. FGIA is embarking on a new plan for a pilot program to recycle post-consumer PVC windows.
Time to Get Started
The second part of the initial grant involved developing a plan and strategy for pilot program implementation, which FGIA has done. Thanks to a second grant, FGIA will soon launch the pilot. It will focus on the Akron and Cleveland areas of Ohio, and Pittsburgh, but lots of help from the community is needed. There’s a need for installers to salvage vinyl windows being replaced that are age-appropriate (year 2000 or newer), so that those windows can be taken to recycling bins and locations. Recyclers are also needed.
Extruders need to use the resulting post-consumer recycled material to produce profiles that meet the criteria of AAMA 303/109 for exterior profiles, and door and window fabricators need to build windows and/or doors from the post-consumer recycled profiles supplied by extruders. Installers are then once again needed to install the post-consumer recycled windows back into new construction or replacement openings. Lastly, engineers need to calculate all the benefits to the LCAs and EPDs of post-consumer recycling efforts.
There is still much work to be done, but this is an exciting time. Those interested in participating are welcome to contact me.
Glenn Ferris is the fenestration standards specialist for the Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance (FGIA). gferris@fgiaonline.org
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