Coatings manufacturer Adler receives "Cradle to Cradle" sustainability certificate

Created by OM PaintingAdler
Adler Certificate Cradle to Cradle
In the R&D laboratory of the Adler plant, a 110-strong team works on the development of innovative and sustainable products (Image: Adler-Lacke)

In a sense, Cradle to Cradle is the gold standard among sustainability certificates - and Adler is the first coatings manufacturer in the whole of Europe whose products have received this award.

Already 16 coatings from the Adler range now bear the coveted Cradle to Cradle sustainability seal - including the new all-rounder in the Bluefin Unistar water-based paint range and the high-end wood window coating Aquawood Diamond- Cradle to Cradle brings the philosophy of a sustainable circular economy to the world of products. The claim is that there is no waste, only nutrients. When a product reaches the end of its service life, it does not end up in the garbage but is returned to the cycle: through recycling or biological recovery, its resources are preserved and become raw materials for something new. For this closed-loop concept to become a reality, products are needed that are perfectly tailored to it, like Adler's paints and coatings - from furniture varnish to window coatings, from wall paint to wood preservative varnish.

It is a long way until a paint, a varnish or a wood protection product receives the "Cradle to Cradle" certificate, and until then, numerous requirements have to be met. These include an environmentally friendly manufacturing process using energy from renewable sources such as wind or water power. In addition, Cradle to Cradle products have a high proportion of renewable raw materials. "There is a lot of potential in this regard for paint binders that are made from biomass instead of petroleum," explains Dr. Albert Rössler, Business Manager Research & Development at Adler. This applies, for example, to the all-round sustainable furniture coating Bluefin Terra-Diamond, which is made from 85 percent natural raw materials. Similar top values are also achieved by the ecological wood oil Pullex Aqua-Terra for interior and exterior use. In addition, of course, the closed-loop concept also plays a central role. Adler, as a specialist in coating wood, is virtually predestined for the circular economy. "We talk about cascade utilization here," explains Dr. Rössler: the tree trunk is processed into boards or beams from which facades, windows or furniture are made. When these components have reached the end of their service life, instead of being thermally recycled, the wood can be processed into fiberboard or particleboard in the next step.

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