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How laminate evolved from a sustainable to a circular product
October 6, 2025 • 4 minutes reading
Laminate flooring has been around for almost fifty years. From day one, laminate was a sustainable product. Over the next half-century, it has not only become more attractive and high-performing; it has also grown into a paragon of innovation and circularity. “Unilin’s technologies set the standard in the sector today,” says CEO Wim Messiaen.
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Laminate is inherently a sustainable product because its base is wood, a renewable resource. But Unilin takes things one step further. “We have been manufacturing our laminate floors using recovered wood for decades, such as offcuts from sawmills and prunings from sustainably managed forests,” says Wim. But it doesn’t stop there. “We recently added recycled MDF and laminate to our arsenal. Laminate floors that have already had a life are now recycled into new laminate flooring.”
“This means that the EPD value of our laminate is lower than that of other floors,” says Wim. This value makes it possible to compare the full environmental impact of products – from the extraction of raw materials to the end of their life cycle.
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Smart installation and reuse
It is not just the raw materials that make laminate more sustainable, but also the installation with the groundbreaking Uniclic system. “This glueless installation makes our floors easy to disassemble, even after years of use. As a result, they can be perfectly recycled or reused.” Together with other developments, laminate also contributes to sustainable living. “Our floors are extremely scratch- and water-resistant, giving them exceptional durability. This reduces the need for replacement and helps cut down on waste.”
Constant innovation
Innovation is firmly embedded in Unilin’s DNA. One of the most recent breakthroughs is Osiris: a technology developed in-house making Unilin the first in the world to recycle MDF and HDF boards – the wooden core of every laminate floor. “This world first helps us keep the wood in the production cycle for as long as possible,” says Wim. “And when reuse is no longer an option, it is converted into renewable energy. Nothing goes to waste.”
Unilin also aims higher when it comes to innovation. “We want to make the industry as a whole more sustainable,” says Wim. “Through Unilin Technologies, (the department that manages intellectual property, ed.), other companies can also use our patented technology by taking out a licence.” In addition, Unilin joins forces with other players to promote the circular economy across the industry. “For example, we entered into a global partnership with machine manufacturer Dieffenbacher to seamlessly integrate the Osiris technology into the production processes of licensees, paving the way for a circular future.”
One Home
In addition to making its products more sustainable, Unilin has even broader environmental ambitions. The company has set out a clear long-term sustainability strategy called One Home. “At the moment, 64% of our global energy consumption is generated via renewable sources,” says Wim. “By 2030, we aim to reduce CO₂ emissions from our production sites by 42% compared with 2020.”
Unilin takes the circular economy to the next level with recycling line for MDF, HDF and laminate
Unilin has achieved a world first in Bazeilles, France: for the first time, MDF and HDF boards – the core of laminate floors – can be recycled on an industrial scale. . Thanks to a €20 million investment, the company is now able to make the wood fibres from these boards reusable for the production of new decorative panels and laminate floors.
How a Swedish brainstorming session in 1977 turned the flooring market upside down
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Circularity in Unilin’s DNA: our approach through the R-strategies
At Unilin we believe that a circular approach is the only way for an industrial company to be truly future-proof. Circularity is not only part of our sustainability strategy One Home, it is firmly embedded in our DNA. Since our foundation in 1960, we have turned residual flows from other industries into new products. Back then we produced chipboards from flax shives, a by-product of the flax industry. In the 1980s we switched to residual flows from the wood industry. Today we build on that with a clear ambition: to make our products fully circular, step by step and without compromising on design, quality or cost.