ECO LABEL Criteria for Wood, Cork and Bamboo Based Floor Coverings

The wooden floor coverings product group consists of wood and plant-based coatings. Materials such as wood veneers, laminate flooring, cork veneers and bamboo flooring, which are produced from more than 90 percent wood by mass in the final product, fall into this group.

The main ECO LABEL criteria determined for wood, cork and bamboo based floor coverings are collected under the following headings:

• Product description
• Wood, cork and bamboo based materials
• General requirements for dangerous substances and mixtures
• Special item requirements
• Energy consumption in the production process
• Volatile organic compound emissions from floor coverings
• Formaldehyde emissions from floor coverings and main board
• Suitability for use
• Repairability and extended warranty
• Consumer information

For example, according to the criteria of the product description, a technical description of the floor covering, including drawings showing the parts or materials that make up the final flooring product, its dimensions and a description of the manufacturing process must be provided to the competent authority that will make the certification. These descriptions should be accompanied by a product bill of materials containing the total weight of the product and how it is distributed among the different materials used.

This criterion is applied to wood, wood-based, cork, cork-based, bamboo and bamboo-based materials. All these materials must not originate from genetically modified organisms and must be certified by an independent third-party certification program.

Floor coverings other than ECO LABEL criteria are as follows:

• PVC, vinyl flooring and other flooring containing PVC (for example PVC backed textile flooring)
• Rubber floor covering
• Ceramic tiles
• Flooring as part of the building's load-bearing structure
• Flooring integrated with underfloor heating systems
• Flooring that is laid in liquid form and then hardened

The following guidance on these criteria is also provided:

• Guidelines for calculating the amount of volatile organic compound applied
• Guidance for calculating energy consumption during the manufacturing process
• List of standards

Our organization has a strong staff that closely follows the developments in the world in the field of science and technology and constantly improves itself. At the same time, it uses modern test equipment and applies test methods accepted all over the world. Within this framework, it provides ECO LABEL certification services to manufacturers for wood, cork and bamboo-based floor coverings.