A Second Chance At Life: Bringing Sustainable Flooring Into Healthcare Spaces
Today’s healthcare leaders are looking for solutions that not only improve the patient experience but also reduce waste, save money and future-proof their properties.
Flooring is one of the most overlooked, yet most impactful, opportunities in that effort. But every 5 to 10 years, healthcare facilities face the challenge of replacing millions of square feet of flooring — often sending it to landfills at a high cost, said Shaw Industries Vice President of Equity Partnerships John Bernatz.
Shaw Industries is one of the world’s largest flooring manufacturers. The company is cradle to cradle certified — a globally-acknowledged standard for creating products that benefit the environment and people. Shaw Industries designs products that are durable, recyclable and easy to maintain, he said.
“Our mission is to help healthcare real estate owners align flooring decisions with their long-term environmental, social and governance goals while cutting costs and delivering on schedule,” Bernatz said. “We’ve already recycled nearly 1 billion pounds of carpet since 2006, proving that sustainability and savings go hand in hand.”
He said that in a recent multifacility program with a national healthcare REIT, Shaw’s recycling and maintenance-friendly flooring solutions reduced life cycle flooring costs by more than 20%, which saved the client millions of dollars while aligning with its ESG reporting commitments.
Bernatz will be speaking at Bisnow’s Future of Houston Healthcare Conference on Sept. 9 and moderating The Next Frontier of Healthcare panel. The panel will explore how developers, REITs and operators are adapting design, sustainability and delivery models for the future of healthcare.
Click here to register and purchase tickets.
In a conversation with Bisnow, Bernatz discussed Shaw’s cradle-to-cradle process, the cost savings that come with sustainability and how the manufacturing partnership helps healthcare clients find the right flooring.
Recycling Old Flooring
Bernatz told Bisnow in June 2025 that flooring in healthcare spaces typically needs to be replaced every 5 to 10 years, with “high traffic zones” needing more frequent replacement.
Shaw Contract — one of Shaw’s commercial brands — created EcoWorx Resilient, a carbon-neutral luxury vinyl tile product that is fully recyclable back into itself and made without polyvinyl chloride, a plastic with harmful properties when put out into the environment.
Once the flooring has reached its lifespan, rather than throwing it away, Shaw Industries can take it back to be recycled and repurposed into new products. Each tile comes with a 1-800 number, making it easy for customers to make these returns for free.
“It’s a double win for healthcare facilities: they’re buying and installing sustainable products and diverting waste,” he said.
He said that recycling happens in Shaw’s manufacturing plant, where old products are ground up into pellets and go into an extruder, a machine that gives form to raw materials.
Seeing The Cost Savings
Aside from wasting reusable materials, trashing old flooring can also come at a cost. Healthcare facilities have to foot the bill for a professional to come in to remove the flooring and take it away to a landfill, Bernatz said.
"If you have flooring in your space that's recyclable, you're automatically saving money because it doesn't have to go to the landfill," he said.
Bernatz added that using flooring products that are easier to clean can also help with saving money on maintenance.
He said that when it comes to sustainability, facilities want to ensure that the flooring aligns with their objectives and the direction they’re going in with their “sustainability journey.”
“Healthcare is very cost-conscious, and there’s a perception that sustainable products cost more,” he said. “That may have been true five years ago, but not today. By leveraging recyclable materials, we can now deliver products that perform better, and in many cases cost less, than non-sustainable options.”
Finding Sustainable Solutions
Shaw Industries helps healthcare facilities choose their flooring based on their priorities. Bernatz said that typically, cost and safety are top priorities in the healthcare setting. Along with that, facilities are often considering ease of maintenance and how well the flooring aligns with the brand aesthetic.
“When flooring is brought into the picture of a project, we work with clients to make sure it meets their needs and criteria,” he said. “It always makes me smile to think about all of the work that Shaw does, in terms of not using virgin materials in our products and being innovative in how we use existing materials to create wonderful flooring.”
Register here for Bisnow's Future Of Houston Healthcare Conference on Sept. 9.
This article was produced in collaboration between Studio B and Shaw Industries Group, Inc. Bisnow’s editorial staff was not involved in its creation.
Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.
