Sustainable Success

The Mohawk Group Writes New Chapter of Sustainability Story with 2007 GSA Evergreen Award For Environmental Stewardship

KENNESAW, Ga., Dec. 17, 2007 – Propelling forward its commitment to ensuring a more sustainable future, The Mohawk Group announces that the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) National Furniture Center (NFC) honored the global flooring manufacturer for the second time in four years with the coveted 2007 Evergreen Award during a recent reception in Washington, DC. The prestigious environmental accolade affirms The Mohawk Group's ongoing and steadfast dedication to reducing waste by improving energy and resource efficiencies through innovative products, processes and services — marking a significant milestone in the sustainability story of the company, the architecture and design industry, and the environment.

"Receiving the GSA Evergreen Award is a shining achievement in The Mohawk Group's history," said Al Kabus, president of The Mohawk Group. "Environmental responsibility is a cornerstone of our corporate character, and this honor only reinforces our dedication to vigilantly seeking new ways to elevate the sustainability bar."

Developed to recognize environmental stewards across all industries, the annual GSA Evergreen Award program selects organizations that proactively initiate programs, such as recycling, affirmative procurement and waste reduction, in order to reduce the environmental footprint of its company and its industry. Applicants are evaluated in five areas including waste prevention, recycling, affirmative procurement, environmental preferability and model facility.

Smart and Sustainable
The GSA Evergreen Award announcement comes just one month after The Mohawk Group and parent company Mohawk Industries unveiled its GreenWorks Center. An innovative, flexible recycling facility, GreenWorks Center is the first-of-its kind to not only process all major types of synthetic carpet fiber — accounting for 90 percent of the nation's post-consumer carpet waste — but also the only recycling program to recover 90 percent of those materials into useable products.

Mohawk Industries, which was honored with a GSA Evergreen Award in 2003, is the industry's largest recycler — diverting more than three billion pounds of various waste materials from landfills in 2006 alone. And since 2006, The Mohawk Group has also introduced a vast array of state-of-the-art technologies that continue to enable the creation of life-enhancing, eco-friendly products and processes, including:

Encycle™ — the only PVC-free (polyvinyl chloride) modular carpet backing system that is 100 percent thermoplastic and can be completely recycled back into itself without the need to separate the face fiber from the backing.

SMART book — an environmentally responsible sampling program that uses 63 percent less virgin raw materials than traditional carpet samples with fully accurate digital photography reproductions. In fact, each SMART book conserves enough energy to power up to four U.S. households for an entire year.

ReCover — regardless of yardage, yarn, backing or manufacturer, Mohawk will recycle carpet using dedicated reclamation centers throughout North America, ensuring that reclaimed carpet is disposed of responsibly to reduce the burden on landfills and minimize the total environmental impact of carpet.

GSA is a centralized federal procurement and property management agency created by Congress to improve government efficiency and help federal agencies better serve the public. GSA provides federal agencies with office space, equipment, telecommunications, information technology, supplies and services.

A long-standing industry leader in sustainability, The Mohawk Group pioneers a strong focus on driving environmentally sound practices inside and outside of its facilities. The global flooring manufacturer continues to make significant investments in state-of-the-art technologies to enable the creation of life enhancing, eco-friendly products and processes. For more information about Mohawk's sustainable initiatives, visit www.MohawkGreenWorks.com.