What does "Green" mean?

Construction industry professionals, from owners to manufacturers, architects, designers, and builders, all owe future generations our best efforts to minimize environmental impact. We must choose sustainable products and manufacturers, but we must also take a logical, educated approach to determine which products qualify.

One must consider not only the raw materials required to create the product, but also the energy consumed to manufacture, transport and then handle the product complete through to final installation. Durability and long-life cycles are extremely important factors that are sometimes overlooked when products are being considered. Additionally both production waste and end of life disposal of products are essential criteria when considering any product.

Why DecTec IS "Green"

We take our responsibility to the Earth's resources seriously. No other deck membrane manufacturer has made the commitment to the environment that we, along with our supply partners, have...and will continue to make. Important points about DecTec's investment in lowering our environmental impact are:

• Virtually 100% of ALL production waste derived from trimming, out of spec material, start and end runs etc. is recycled back into the various membranes and accessory items we manufacture. Thus, not only saving tens of thousands of square feet of material from being deposited into landfill each year, but also reducing our raw material inputs by up to 15% annually!
• Durability and the proven long life-cycle of DecTec membranes further reduce the burden on landfills as well as the destruction of both non and renewable resources. Superior performance means our membranes significantly outlast our competitors which in turn means less energy and raw materials consumed during the buildings life due to replacement of inferior products. As your Grandparents used to say...Do it right once...the first time!
• Protection. How does a product simply doing its job make it Green? As an integral part of the building envelope, properly installed DecTec membranes protect the structure from the damaging effects of water and wind driven rain, thus reducing or eliminating the need to repair and replace other components of the building which would result in more raw materials being consumed, heavier landfill burdens and more wasted energy from production through to transportation and installation. DecTec membranes are also low maintenance, so there is no further painting or coatings to apply to maintain its appearance or life span, further reducing raw material and energy charges to the building.

What's Next?

Even though DecTec is manufactured to last decades, what happens at the end of its long-life? We, along with our supply partners, have made an investment in taking the next step of recycling our membranes at the end of their useful life by purchasing state of the art equipment to allow for large scale recycling of "experienced" membranes. The result is an exciting opportunity to divert literally tons of waste from our landfills and further reduce our consumption of raw materials. The technology exists today, however our biggest challenge is to develop the infrastructure required to make the program viable - without placing an additional burden on the environment. We know this will be a difficult task, but one we gladly accept and are meeting head on...after all don't we all owe it to our future generations?

• Vinyl Institute
• Chemical Fabrics and Film