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Mosa, the First Ceramic Tile manufacturer to Achieve Certification for Its Products

Mosa, the First Ceramic Tile manufacturer to Achieve Certification for Its Products
"No waste shapes" -Core Collection. Courtesy of Mosa.

Dutch company Mosa has achieved Cradle to Cradle Certified® Gold for its ceramic floor and wall tiles.

Over a decade ago, Mosa had adopted Cradle to Cradle principles which led it to become the first ceramic tile manufacturer to achieve certification for its products. Mosa could already boast of having 99% of its products certified at the Silver level, but now they’ve obtained Gold certification according to version 3.1 of the Cradle to Cradle Certified Product Standard. Reaching Gold is a milestone on Mosa’s journey to create healthy living environments that have a positive impact on people and the planet. 

READ: Eco-house Highlights Ceramic Tiles for Ecological Building

>> Skip to the end of the article to learn about the ever-expanding Core tile collection by Mosa.

“Reaching Cradle to Cradle Certified Gold is a milestone that demonstrates the importance of continually pushing the boundaries of sustainability for our products, our processes and our industry,” said Mosa CEO Frank Spikker in a press release. “This achievement is the culmination of years of investment, innovation and commitment from everyone within our organization and from valued partners across our supply chain.” 

Mosa had to consider the most significant sustainability concerns of the ceramic tile industry in order to develop solutions for today and pave the way for future technology and innovation. Here are the main steps Mosa implemented in order to achieve Gold:

  • Renewable Energy and Carbon Management: During the firing stage of production, kilns are heated up to 1200C. Typically, the energy used to heat the kilns is not recaptured. As part of the journey to Gold certification, Mosa was already sourcing renewable energy for the kilns and other processes. The company had also implemented a process for channeling and reusing heat from the kilns as energy to power some of the earlier stages of tile production. As a final step to Gold, the carbon impact of non-renewable energy used in the tile production process is now off-set using carbon certificates.
     
  • Material Reutilization: Mosa has replaced more than 30% of its wall tiles’ body mass through the use of secondary materials. For example, raw chalk used as the primary material in ceramic tiles has been replaced by calcite, a by-product from the production of drinking water, sourced from local water companies. Indistinguishable from raw chalk, the renewable material does not compromise product performance or design.

    In addition, the company has launched a circular economy strategy focused on three core activities:
    – Increasing the volume of post-consumer recycled content in Mosa products.
    – Making circular products designed for reuse and recycling.
    – Building circular partnerships for product recycling and upcycling.
     
  • Social Fairness: Current and future Mosa suppliers are screened for conflict minerals and to ensure ethical labor sourcing practices.

“Mosa’s journey to Cradle to Cradle Certified Gold is a strong example of how companies can use the principles of the Cradle to Cradle Certified Product Standard to turn their sustainability commitments into meaningful practices,” said Dr. Christina Raab, president and CEO of the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, in a press release “This achievement reflects Mosa’s dedication to our shared vision of a healthy, equitable and sustainable world powered by-products that have a positive impact on people and our planet.”

Core, an Ever-expanding Responsible Tile Collection

In 2020, Mosa expanded its range of unglazed porcelain tiles when it released the Core tile collection. Within the Core collection, Mosa connected its tile series Solids, Terra and Quartz with the addition of new colors and innovative modular shapes. The tiles’ colors, textures, shapes and sizes can easily be combined into patterns. 

READ: Our article from 2020 entitled [Interior Design] Mosa’s Core Collection and Théodore Batiment’s Therma Mix

By the end of last year, the Core collection earned the first UPEC-certified for triangular shapes in France. The collection, which makes it possible to create innovative and modular shapes, was awarded by MUUUZ International Award France in 2021 for bringing a new dimension to the design of surfaces. 

This is the first time in France that such shapes have been recognized by this certification, which classifies tiles according to different categories, taking into account their resistance. This standard was created to determine the resistance of tiles and their possible uses.

“No waste shapes” – Core Collection. Courtesy of Mosa.

Mosa presented an additional seven innovative new shapes during the Architect@Work fair in Paris last September. Besides the traditional squares and rectangles, the Core Collection Shapes also features circles, triangles and shapes to achieve endless combinations. All tile sizes and shapes are modular, so architects and designers can easily combine them with each other for a stunning and imposing result.

In tune with nature, the Core collection respects its Cradle to Cradle certification, meaning zero waste, zero shortages and zero limitations. It is a design concept based on the unlimited reuse of raw materials (“waste can be transformed”), the use of renewable energies and the stimulation of diversity. In addition, the modular and intelligent design of the tile shapes ensures that all materials are used and there is no cutting loss during the production process.

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