Futuris scoops US innovation awards

AUTOMOTIVE carpet made from recycled soft drink bottles has won two awards for Australia’s biggest parts supplier, Futuris Automotive, at the top US supplier industry awards night.

The Futuris EnviroTuf carpet was recognised as a breakthrough because it realised a long-held ambition to recycle PET bottles into useful products.

Futuris considered it a major achievement just to make the final list of 25 contenders for the PACE awards, marketing director David Chuter said yesterday after hearing the news.

But the company went on to lift two of the 13 awards, one for the Envirotuf carpet and one for the partnership with General Motors which brought the carpet to production-ready status.

The PACE awards (Premier Automotive suppliers' Contribution to Excellence) are organised by the Society of Automotive Engineers in the US and are regarded as the Academy Awards of the US supplier industry.

The judges were impressed because Futuris disproved conventional wisdom that PET – recycled or new – had to be used in heavier carpet weights to match nylon’s wear and resilience standards.

“Futuris is able to offer PET carpet at a lower cost than nylon, but with better appearance and feel and improved stain resistance. And it is 100 per cent recyclable,” the judges said.

Mr Chuter said the carpet and the awards fitted well within the government’s car industry plan, which was designed to promote innovation and better environmental outcomes.

“We have already received between 30 and 40 requests for quotes to supply the carpet from 12 manufacturers,” Mr Chuter said.

“Hopefully, this will now convert those into genuine orders and we can see our carpet in a whole range of vehicles in a couple of years.” The citation from the PACE judges read: “Futuris was able to disprove prevailing conventional thinking. They were able to meet automotive carpet specifications at the same carpet face weight as nylon, by developing innovative fiber, tufting, and carpet construction technologies "As a result, Futuris is able to offer PET carpet at lower cost than nylon, but with better appearance and feel, and improved stain resistance.” “And, unlike nylon products, the all-polyester carpet is completely recyclable.

Futuris further developed the process so its vehicle carpeting contains 20 to 80 percent post-consumer PET carpet fibres.

“Even at 20 per cent, that's the equivalent of recycling 100 soda bottles per car.”

Read more:

Futuris feels the pinch