gore fabrics and the environment

gore fabrics and the environment

The company began in 1958, when Bill and Vieve Gore set out to explore opportunities for fluorocarbon polymers, especially polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). Within the first twelve years, Gore had wire and cables on the moon and operations worldwide.

Today, our company is comprised of more than 8,000 associates in more than 45 locations around the world. Annual revenues top $2 billion. Our fluoropolymer products provide innovative solutions throughout industry.

While we may be best known for our GORE-TEX® fabrics, Gore produces thousands of products that are distinguished in their markets. Our technologies and fluoropolymer expertise are unsurpassed.

The Gore Culture Gore is committed to providing a work environment that encourages creativity and opportunity. Our organization is based on the principle of a team-based, flat lattice organization that fosters personal initiative. There are no traditional organizational charts, no chains of command, nor predetermined channels of communication.We have repeatedly been listed among the “100 Best Companies to Work For” in the U.S. by FORTUNE magazine, and by equally prestigious publications in the UK, France, Italy and Germany. Our culture is a model for contemporary organizations seeking growth by unleashing creativity and fostering teamwork. Associates play a vital role in driving the company’s environmental stewardship by acting and thinking along ecological lines. Initiatives on their part have resulted in numerous product developments and the implementation of business changes in areas such as waste management in production, purchasing of consumables and travel to work.

About Gore

At Gore, we take our reputation for product leadership seriously, continually delivering new products and better solutions to the world. And behind every product and application, you’ll find a firm commitment to performance and reliability.

We have been a pioneer in the development of high-performance laminates. Our innovative membrane technologies, proven for more than 25 years, forever changed the standard of performance outerwear, footwear, and accessories.

The focus at Gore Fabrics is protecting the people who like to enjoy the outdoors and those who need to be safe in the workplace. At the same time, we recognize the need to protect the environment and preserve nature’s resources.

Assessment (LCA) of the final consumer product as an ecological evaluation tool.

Our environmental approach rests on three key elements:

• Sound Science

• Life Cycle Assessment

• Product Durability

Product Development from Sound Science

Our environmental considerations begin at the earliest possible stage with the application of sound science in product development. Many innovations in Gore Fabrics have the goal of controlling material content while maximizing product durability and value to the end user. This often results in an improved environmental footprint.

Life Cycle Assessment

Since 1992, Gore Fabrics has been using an ecological accounting system, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), as a reference. Worldwide, LCA is the standardized method of assessing the total environmental influences of a finished product. This method involves collecting ecological data on all stages of the life cycle of the product beginning with the raw materials through the final disposal. LCA also considers supplier input.

Products That Make an Environmental Difference> > > >

Our Commitment

Gore Fabrics is committed to minimizing our environmental impact through an active and responsible approach that extends from the selection of raw materials to the disposal of our finished products.

As we design new products, we will strive to continuously minimize their total environmental impact using the Life Cycle

Gore Fabrics and the Environment

the choice may actually result in higher air and water pollution.

Product Durability – The Cornerstone of our Commitment

Our LCA results show that the most effective means of minimizing the environmental life cycle footprint is to maximize product durability. Quality, durability and performance are the cornerstones of our GORE-TEX® and WINDSTOPPER® products, our CROSSTECH® fabrics, and our GORE® CHEMPAK® fabrics. Their long life is a direct result of these features. Therefore, the life cycle footprint of Gore’s products compares quite favorably to less durable products that incur the repeated environmental impact of the cycle of product creation.

What makes our products unique?

In 1969, Bob Gore discovered that rapidly stretching polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) under the right conditions created a very strong, microporous material. The result, known as expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE), is Gore’s core technology and can be produced in multiple forms such as membranes.

Thin, lightweight, durable GORE™ membranes are the critical component of the performance of GORE® fabrics’. Using

Products That Make an Environmental Difference

We use an LCA methodology that takes into account all relevant aspects of the ecological footprint, including: resource and energy consumption; emissions to air, water, and land; health and ecosystems; and more. This is particularly important when comparing different product options or process changes side-by-side, so that unfavorable trade-offs can be avoided. An example would be where a production process could be introduced that appears to offer energy savings. But because the proposed process does not include emission controls that often consume energy,

Gore’s invention of ePTFE membrane filtration in 1973 has provided an ongoing stream of innovations in process and exhaust gas filtration. Among the outstanding benefits of GORE® Filtration Products are: low emissions, high yields, low energy consumption, high gas throughput, and reliable performance over long lifetimes. On any given day more than one million GORE® Membrane Filters are in use globally, some of them lasting more than ten years. GORE™ ePTFE gaskets are an environmentally friendly alternative to asbestos.

The scope of the LCA for GORE-TEX® garments includes all processes: From the manufacturing of the raw materials (“precursor”), the Gore internal processes through to the disposal.


Depending on the end use of a particular product, the laminate combines a variety of properties including waterproofness, breathability, windproofness, static dissipation, abrasion-resistance, and other comfort and protective functions. In some products we also apply textile treatments to produce soil- and water-repellent laminate surfaces, further extending the life of the product.

Laminates are then engineered into outer-wear, footwear, and accessories by our customers. To ensure that the finished pro-duct meets the expectations of the customer in terms of performance and use, Gore maintains and monitors stringent garment and footwear performance standards. Our manufacturing partners commit to these standards when using our brands.

Over the years, Gore Fabrics has developed a portfolio of test methods, standards, and manufacturing innovations that we use to ensure performance and durability. Rain shower tests, walking simulators for footwear, and seam sealing tests are only a few examples. We also conduct extensive field testing for new technologies or applications to assure durability and to fully understand and verify “fitness-for-use.”

our solvent-free adhesives for manufacturing garment laminates, these microporous ePTFE membranes are bonded to textile and lining materials to create finished laminates intended for diverse applications.

GORE-TEX® laminates used in consumer products are manufactured to meet the criteria set forth in the Oeko-Tex® Standard 100, the most widely accepted standard for consumer safety in textiles globally. As a company committed to sound science, we support the aim of the EU legislation called REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals) which is to “ensure a high level of protection of human health and the environment…while enhancing competitiveness and innovation.”

GORE® REMEDIA® Catalytic Filtration System captures toxic dust particles in the waste gases of incineration plants while at the same time catalytically destroying ninety-nine percent of the dioxin and furan pollutants contained in the waste gas stream.

PTFE is extremely resistant to chemicals and ultraviolet radiation. It is non-burning and thermally stable between -250°C and + 280°C and it is recyclable.

Using Recycled or Renewable-Based Materials

Using recycled or renewable-based materials may have a positive impact on the life cycle of GORE® fabric products provided that durability, final product weight, and the manufacturing process are not compromised. We are committed to fully evaluating the LCA impact of using these materials and will incorporate them if tangible improvements regarding the life cycle footprint can be realized.

Manufacturing

Gore Fabrics has a solid history of proactively looking for environmental improvements in our products and our processes.

In 1986, for example, Gore Fabrics replaced adhesives containing solvents with proprietary, solvent-free adhesives for the production of garment and footwear laminates. The result was a safer, more environmentally friendly manufacturing process. Today, our textile finishing lines are equipped with automated mix and feeding stations that minimize both

For more than twenty years, Gore has been manufacturing GORE™ Valve Stem Packing to help reduce emissions from valves. So far, more than 500,000 packings have been used to replace old, leaking packings on natural gas valves, dramatically reducing the emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

chemical consumption and waste, and we are making extensive use of process heat recovery where possible.

Product Safety

Since 1996, we have been working with the Oeko-Tex® Standard 100 for textile pro-duct safety. Today, our GORE -TEX® and WINDSTOPPER® products are certified or compliant with Oeko-Tex® Standard 100 Class 2 for Skin Contact. This standard includes specifications of limits and test criteria for a total of 100 individual substances to promote consumer safety.

In Europe, our footwear products are manufactured to meet the requirements of the SG label. Products bearing the SG label are tested for product safety by the highly reputable PFI Institute in Pirmasens, Germany, and by the TÜV Institute in Rheinland, Germany, an independent industrial and consumer safety organization.

Process Based Environmental Stewardship

Gore is committed to continuously improving environmental performance and job safety in all our production plants. As a result, our practices often exceed the provisions of government regulations.


For example, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems are managed by computer programs that adjust temperatures on non-production shifts and weekends. The result is a significant reduction in both electric and gas consumption.

In addition, production equipment and lighting systems use best available technology to reduce energy consumption and extend system life.

Since the formation of our internal Global Recycling Team in 1998, recycling volume from Gore operations globally has tripled, nearing 2,000 tons each year. In some locations, over 30 different material streams are separately collected to ensure high level recycling. For instance, more than 80% of our fluoropolymer by-products are recycled into high value products.

The achievements of the Global Recycling Team have resulted in global and local award-winning recognition. Most recently, in the state of Maryland where we operate 12 facilities, we have received several awards for recycling scrap paper, metal and plastics, and fabric.

Environmentally Beneficial Product Innovations

GORE-TEX® Heat & Flame Fabrics and CROSSTECH® Fabric, used in products for fire

fighters, police, and the military, improved flame-retardant membrane technology, eliminating the use of brominated flame retardants. Today, our technology provides the only flame-retardant barrier technology for fire fighting garments accepted under the Oeko-Tex® Standard 100.

Gore Micro Grid Backer Technology reduces laminate weight, while enhancing breathability and both abrasion and snag resistance. The reduction of material content, while simultaneously increasing the durability, considerably improves the environmental footwear of the product.

Gore Comfort Mapping Technology allows designers to develop outerwear for optimal comfort, fit, and durability by strategically placing materials exactly where they need to be, resulting in maximum effect with the least material.

GORE-TEX® Heat & Flame Garments with AIRLOCK® Spacer Technology replace thermal insulation with an air cushion without sacrificing protection. Fire fighters benefit from improved breathability, freedom of movement and reduced weight.

GORE-TEX® Technical Garments with Gore HiLite Technology have drastically increased the useful life of high visibility garments in extremely dirty environments

Since the introduction in 1994 of the GORE™ Cover System, it has become a world leading technology for composting organic waste streams. It is based on air permeable membrane laminates ensuring a safe, stable, and effective process while reducing odor, dust and pathogen emissions up to ninety-seven percent. The GORE™ Cover System provides high environmental standards comparable to other fully encapsulated facilities – but at a fraction of the cost and energy consumption. Today, there are more than 150 operational facilities in more than 20 countries, treating more than 2 million tons of waste every year.

such as railroad operation and maintenance. An innovative polymer coating allows heavy soiling to be removed in a typical washing process fully restoring high visibility properties over many cycles of use. This technology makes comfortable, high visibility protection affordable for railroad operators and significantly reduces premature garment replacement.

GORE-TEX® Gloves with Gore 2 in 1 Technology provide two levels of warmth with improved tactility in one glove. This technology eliminates the need for a second glove, along with the footprint of having to make it.

GORE-TEX® Footwear with XCR® Product Technology results in lightweight and highly breathable footwear that offers total protection from the elements and does not sacrifice durability. This technology is ideal for travel, running and mountain sport applications where climate comfort and lightweight functionality are essential.

Easy Care

Many of our products feature a water- and soil-repellent treatment, reducing the need for frequent cleaning. When garments do need to be cleaned, most can simply be washed along with laundry in ordinary household washing machines. Both the water repellency treatment and easy care during the useful

lifetime of the garment keep environmental impact at a minimum.

Extending the Life Cycle

The expectation of our products are higher than ordinary fabrics due to the demands of the end-use. Accidents can occur resulting in a tear or puncture. This is where our Gore repair patches prove useful in preserving the waterproof integrity of the garment. Wearers can either apply the patches themselves or have the garments mended professionally by one of our approved Gore-authorized Repair Centers.

When the Life Cycle Comes to a Close

There is no doubt that, from an environmental point of view, the best solution of all is to pass a used garment along to someone else for future use. That way, its useful life can be extended.

Recycling is another environmentally friendly option. In order to recover the different material components of a garment, they need to be physically separated from each other. In 1993, we initiated the GORE™ BALANCE


PROJECT™ program for high-quality recycling. We developed the techology to separate laminated fabrics into their components. Together with committed customers, garments designed to be recycled were specifically labelled. Gore remains committed to recycling these labelled products.

Today, while we continue to invest in our recycling capabilities, our focus is on expanding the recycling of our in-house laminate by-products.

If worn out beyond repair, it is safe for consumers to dispose a garment made from Gore’s high performance fabrics along with ordinary household waste.

The Big Picture

Our Fabrics associates continue to work toward further reducing the environmental footprint of products and manufacturing practices while taking a comprehensive, lifetime view focused on making great products that last.

For more information about Gore and our fabric products, please visit www.gore.com and www.gore-tex.com.

Contact us with questions about our environmental activities or technologies:

W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.

Bill Hardie 105 Vieve’s Way

Elkton, MD 21921 USA

Tel: +01 410-392-3600

Fax: +01 410-392-4452 [email protected]

W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.

Shaun Barrett Simpson Parkway, Kirkton Campus Livingston, West Lothian, EH54 7BH

Scotland

Tel: +44 1506 460123

Fax: +44 1506 420004

[email protected]

1969: Bob Gore discovers expanded poly-tetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE), a very strong, micro-porous material.

1973: Begin sales of ePTFE gaskets – an environmentally friendly alternative to asbestos.

1975: Launch of GORE-TEX® filtration technology for cleaning exhaust air that is far superior to previous versions.

1986: Pioneered solvent-free adhesives for manu-facturing garment laminates.

1989: Introduction of GUARANTEED TO KEEP YOU DRY® promise ensuring a finished garment’s fitness for use.

1992: Gore Fabrics adopts Life Cycle Assessment, an ecological accounting system that can be used as an internal instrument for planning.

1993: The GORE™ BALANCE PROJECT™ program is adopted, making Gore the first manufacturer of per-formance fabrics to introduce a high level recycling system for high-performance garments.

1993: Launch of new textile laminates which make the treatment of biological waste far more cost-effi-cient and practically odorless.

1994: Introduction of the GORE™ Cover System, a world leading technology for composting organic waste streams.

1995: Launch of GORE™ Fuel Cell Technologies sup-plying the most technologically advanced portfolio of Membrane Electrode Assemblies (MEA products) for the polymer electrolyte, or proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell industry.

1995: Gore receives the “European Outdoor Award for Innovation” for its GORE™ BALANCE PROJECT™ program.

1996: Began working with the Oeko-Tex® 100 Standard for textile product safety.

1998: Launch of the first catalytic filter which is capable of destroying dioxins.

1998: Gore Global Recycling Team formed. Recycling volumes from Gore operations has tripled, nearing 2,000 tons each year.

2005/2006: In the state of Maryland where we

operate 12 facilities, we have received several

awards for recycling scrap paper, metal and plastics,

and fabric.

A History of Doing Good Things

W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.295 Blue Ball Road, Elkton, MD 21922 Toll-Free: 1.800.431.GORE (4673)Phone: 410.392.3700 • Fax: 410.392.3849

gore.com

Rev. 3, November 2007

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gore fabrics and the environment