So, what does sustainability mean? As Ray approached it in the mid-90s, it’s a holistic approach to making the present world less wasteful, less polluting, and less harmful so that future generations can benefit—that’s the sustainable part. Manufacturers do that by making the process, the products, and the lifecycles of those products less harmful to people and to the environment. For it to work, everybody must do their part. Whether it’s recycling, conserving electricity, consolidating trips, or simply avoiding wasteful habits.
Taylor Adhesives discovered long ago that making a sustainable way to install flooring was good for business as well as the planet. In the late 80s, Taylor R&D was already at work to create the first solvent-free flooring adhesive in the U.S. Taylor has not only led the industry with product performance, but with sustainable formulations that are not only good for the environment, but safe for consumers and flooring professionals. Many of Taylor’s products contribute to LEED v4 and have extremely low odor with low Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) off-gassing that contributes to poor Indoor Air Quality. Taylor was the first adhesive in the flooring industry to earn the CRI Green Label Plus® certification from the Carpet & Rug Institute for Indoor Air Quality. Taylor was the first adhesive in the flooring industry to earn the GREENGUARD® certification from the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute for Indoor Air Quality and chemical exposure. The same is true for Taylor firsts with FloorScore® and for Cradle to Cradle™ certifications.
All these certifications provide assurance that the Taylor products that display these are made with the health and safety of our customers, our installers, and our end-users in mind. The result has been that our competitors have followed suit and made their products more responsibly, and that’s ok with us. We all need to do our part.
With all the focus on sustainability, how can you, if you are a dealer or a flooring contractor, adopt a sustainable approach to your business that will resonate with your customers? You need not be a multi-million or billion-dollar corporation to operate as a sustainable brand. You do need a plan, determine what initiatives to tackle, make social responsibility initiatives part of your plan, and communicate your stance and your activities to everyone. For an in-depth look at a 10-step plan, see How to Create a Sustainability Program: A 10 Step Guide to Creating a Purpose-Driven Business.
Ray would be proud.
Before you start any project, you need to know the age and history of the substrate. For existing substrates this includes what previous flooring products had been installed and what types of adhesives had been applied. You need to ask about adhesive removers or abatement chemicals that may have been used since residual contamination in the substrate can attack the new flooring and adhesive. Find out if the building has a history of moisture related issues including floods. This information will help you to determine the best course of action to get the substrate ready for new flooring. It essential that you keep records of all the information gathered in the event of a failure. 
It is up to the flooring contractor/installer to know the necessary steps for a successful installation. Doing your homework by researching, moisture testing and pH testing, as part of the site evaluation is essential. Using the information gathered to help your customer make an informed decision on what their next step should be. As a flooring professional, it is your responsibility to protect your customer. This may require you to turn down the job if the customer will not let you do it correctly. The customer may refuse to budget a sufficient amount of money for proper substrate preparation and moisture mitigation if needed. I cannot tell you how many times I have been on sites where the customer was dissatisfied with their flooring because of uncorrected substrate irregularities. In most cases the flooring installer’s defense was “they wouldn’t pay for the needed grinding or patch”. I have also been on moisture related failures where the customer was advised that mitigation was needed but elected to go without it. In most cases the flooring contractor/installer was intimately held responsible since they are the professionals and should have known better. As I was told many years ago if you cannot do it right don’t take the job.
