Simulated Carpet Samples Save Resources

It is not unusual for an interior designer to review dozens of samples in the course of a project. Each sample costs the manufacturer about $50, for a stock or running-line sample, or $150 for a custom sample. Shaw Industries spends about $14 million annually providing samples, according to Steve Bradfield, vice president for environmental development at Shaw. Industry-wide, about 700,000 samples are produced each year.

The resources consumed in the process are significant. Tricycle estimates that it takes nearly a quart (0.9 liter) of oil just to produce the nylon fiber in a typical carpet sample. Manufacturing carpet also consumes water at a rate of over 2 gallons (9 liters) per sample, and most of the samples produced end up in a landfill or incinerator. Designers often order a wide selection of samples, in part because getting them takes time—at least a week and sometimes as long as three weeks for custom designs.