We have passed the tipping point. The market has shifted so that sustainable flooring materials are readily available for clients at every budget level. Though there’s still room for improvement, we no longer have to compromise goals for performance, aesthetics or cost when specifying environmentally friendly flooring materials.

The nine types of sustainable flooring materials that we most commonly specify in our projects are: carpet tile, sealed concrete, linoleum, rubber flooring and base, cork, bamboo, recycled porcelain, locally quarried stone and reclaimed wood.

Enlarge this picture Matrix courtesy of HOK.

To help us make the best choices for each project, we have developed a matrix of sustainable flooring options (see previous page).

Though by now most of HOK’s designers know these sustainable attributes by heart, this matrix streamlines our decision-making process. It helps to have one consolidated summary of the benefits, challenges, special notes related to LEED points and cost information of each.

Guiding Decisions for Showroom

Allsteel/Gunlocke Resource Center in Chicago. Photo by Scott McDonald of Hedrich Blessing.

Our design team used the matrix to guide our decisions about the flooring for the new 20,000-square-foot Allsteel/Gunlocke Resource Center at Chicago’s Merchandise Mart. The flooring is a combination of carpet tiles and resilient flooring.

For acoustic and cost reasons, most of the space uses C&A carpet tile that is certified as Green Label Plus by the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI).

To make the showroom’s entry lobby a feature space, we used wood reclaimed from the timber structures of barns in Indiana. In addition to being a local and 100 percent recycled material, this end-grain flooring is extremely durable and long-lasting, while providing a rich, warm finish.

The showroom’s back-of-house business center and pantry required durable, hard surfaces. Capri Cork’s Cor-Terra rubber cork floor tiles, which use recycled cork, were specified.

Material Selection

Allsteel/Gunlocke Resource Center in Chicago. Photo by Scott McDonald of Hedrich Blessing.

Earlier this year, HOK’s Chicago office moved into a new space on the 14th floor of downtown’s CNA building. When we moved, we purged our existing materials library. We then started over by requiring every manufacturer that wanted to submit a product to our new library to complete a product evaluation form. On this form, which we share with the world at hok.com/sustainable/resources, we asked questions to manufacturers about everything ranging from third-party certifications and standards to LEED applicability and product availability. A product was not accepted into our library until we had assessed each submitted form to ensure that it met our sustainability requirements. We were pleasantly surprised to receive 100 percent compliance on this request.

As our firm’s designers specify various sustainable flooring materials, we are sharing our experiences and exchanging information on an online portal and using what we learn to continuously update the sustainable flooring matrix.