Victor Group, Canadian contract and interior textile specialist has achieved a new sustainable textiles rating system, Facts (For Association Contract Textiles) standard which recognizes contract textiles that conform to standard NSF/ANSI 336.

They are very pleased to be among the first to offer Facts certified products to the commercial interiors market as they have supported this initiative from the beginning, said Alain Duval, president and CEO of Victor Group. Their company has been committed to sustainable design, development, and manufacturing for many years, and this new certification program aligns well with their products, processes, and practices as well as their strategic direction for the future.

Victor Group has a history of sustainable practices dating back to its beginnings when it recycled wool scraps. In order to carry the Facts mark, a textile must be assessed and approved by an independent third-party certification body authorised by trade body, Association Contract Textiles. For the assessment and certification of their products and processes, Victor Group chose to work with certification company, SCS Global Services. SCS examined sustainability attributes related to the composition of Victor Group’s products, as well as their manufacturing processes.

The project included the assessment of eight sustainability attributes: Fiber Sourcing, Safety of Materials, Water Conservation, Water Quality, Energy, Air Quality, Recycling Practices, and Social Accountability.

The recently created third-party certification indicates that a product has been assessed for environmental, economic and social aspects across its life cycle. A wide range of Victor Group products were included in the testing process, including all of its polyester platforms that fall underneath the Eco Intelligence brand. These included including antimony-free, post-consumer recycled, and post-industrial recycled polyesters as well as the Victor Group’s Eco Intelligent recycled nylon platform which will be launched in 2014.

Victor Group operates state-of-the-art mills in several Canadian locations, a design studio in New York City, and utilises service-and-warehouse facilities in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Standard NSF/ANSI 336 is owned by the Association for Contract Textiles, and applies to contract fabrics used in the office, hospitality, healthcare, and institutional market segments.