Photo Credit: ALTURASOLUTIONS COMMUNICATIONS
Landfills full of used tires are becoming a thing of the past. Now, manufacturers and recyclers are finding a number of uses for discarded tires, such as horse stall and trailer mats, flooring in pet centers, backpacks, purses, wallets and much more. In fact, what is evolving as one of the most successful reuses of old tires is right under our feet. Rubber flooring, especially in heavy-use public facilities, such as those for park and recreation, is growing in momentum and popularity.
Although manufacturers are invariably changing how tires are made and what chemicals and ingredients are used, for the most part tires contain approximately 65 percent rubber, 10 percent fiber and 25 percent steel by weight. Once quite difficult to recycle, tires can now be reused for many purposes through a grinding, shredding, magnetic-separating, screening and sorting process.
Rubber--often referred to as protective flooring due to its considerable durability--was used for flooring long before the popularity of recycling tires took hold. However, it was rarely a manager’s first choice. Sure, it was durable and fairly easy to maintain. But because of its utilitarian look and a lack of design innovations and ingenuity, rubber flooring was often “back-of-the-house” flooring, used for back staircases, warehouses, docks and industrial areas.