New eco-paint shows value of green innovation

Green innovation can save companies money and open up new business opportunities, according to a report released today to coincide with the launch of a new range of eco-paint.

Dulux Ecosense has half the carbon and water footprint of the standard paint the company was selling two years ago, the range has cut waste by 40 per cent and volatile organic compounds have been virtually eliminated, meaning no lingering odour.

It’s just one of a range of green, money-saving and money-making innovations to come out of a three-year project which studied how to improve the sustainability of paint across its whole lifecycle. They are detailed in Paint the Town Green, which explains how businesses in other areas can profit by applying the same sustainable innovation methods.

David Brunt, Global Environment and Sustainability Director, ICI Paints AkzoNobel, which owns Dulux, said: “By studying the entire life cycle of paint we’ve found many ways to make it more sustainable and gain competitive advantage. We are seizing these opportunities by launching eco-friendly paints, lighter packaging, new recycling services and other innovations.”

Peter Madden, Chief Executive of Forum for the Future, the independent sustainability experts, which collaborated on the three-year project with AkzoNobel, said: “If such great things can be achieved by applying sustainable innovation to paint, imagine what we can do with other products and services like cars, mobile phones, holidays and homes.”

Paint the Town Green explains how to carry out sustainable innovation and the business benefits it can achieve. It is illustrated with examples of the new products and services ICI Paints AkzoNobel has launched, saving energy, resources and reducing waste. They include:

• Improved cans which use less plastic and are easier to clean and recycle.
• A recycling scheme in which vehicles delivering paint to Dulux Decorator Centres bring back used cans.
• A mobile brush and roller cleaning station for building sites: instead of pouring contaminated water down the drains it is captured for reuse with the paint residue filtered out.
• Manufacturing improvements which save millions of litres of water used in cleaning production equipment by using it to make new paint.

The key to creating Ecosense was a tool Forum for the Future developed for the project. The Environmental Impact Analyser was used to measure and minimise the impact of the paint at every stage of its lifecycle from raw materials to final use.

ICI Paints AkzoNobel is using the Analyser to develop more sustainable paints throughout its Dulux business. It won the “Green Product” category at the 2009 Green Business Awards with its Dulux Trade Ecosure Matt Light & Space. It has also launched new eco-paints in France and the Netherlands.

Dulux Ecosense Matt is a long-lasting, durable paint which comes in 20 colours and will be available from leading DIY stories from March 2010.

Paint the Town Green, Forum for the Future’s report on sustainable innovation, can be downloaded here:

Download standard version [5MB]

Download low-res version [3MB]

For more information and to arrange interviews contact:

Forum for the Future

Alex Johnson, Media and Publications Officer, a.johnson@forumforthefuture.org or +44 (0) 20 7324 3624

David Mason, Head of Communications, d.mason@forumforthefuture.org or +44 (0) 20 7324 3631

Dulux/AkzoNobel

Laura Blake or Laura Milne at Grayling on 020 7478 7830 or email homeandgarden.pressdesk@grayling.com

ENDS

Notes to Editors

Dulux Ecosense Matt is available in 20 colours. It has 50% less embodied carbon and water and 40% less waste than the Dulux Matt 2008 formulation. It has no added solvent and uses 20% recycled packaging.

Dulux Ecosense Satinwood is available in five colours. It has 35% less embodied carbon, 75% less water, 15% less waste and 90% less solvent than the Dulux solvent-based Satinwood 2008 formulation. It uses 20% recycled packaging.

For more details visit www.dulux.co.uk/environment (site live from 1st March 2010)

About Forum for the Future
Forum for the Future, the sustainable development charity, works in partnership with leading businesses and public service providers, helping them devise more sustainable strategies and deliver new products and services which enhance people’s lives and are better for the environment. www.forumforthefuture.org