Category Archives: Environment

Advancing Sustainable Products at Leggett & Platt Automotive

At L&P, our products are increasingly important in helping customers achieve their sustainability goals. We strive to minimize the environmental impacts of our products across their lifecycle. Our businesses are building sustainability into product development processes and designing products for improved durability, recovery, and recycling at end of life.

Our Automotive business has implemented several sustainable product development activities including the use of recycled and alternative materials and a reduction in raw material usage. Here are a few examples:

♻ Recycled polypropylene or nylons are used in some of our components, such as basket comfort shields, actuator housings, and overmolded suspensions.

⤴ Evolution in product design has resulted in the use of ferrite magnets instead of rare earth magnets, thereby reducing the use of rare earth minerals.

💡 Innovation in product design has led to the reduction of raw materials and weight. The weight of our mechanical lumbar support product has been reduced by 70%, to less than 1.5 pounds (600 grams) over time. 

As a leading designer and manufacturer of automotive seating support and comfort systems, these product stewardship examples demonstrate how our business is partnering to support automotive manufacturers in achieving their environmental goals.

Small Changes Can Make a Big Impact

The very first Earth Day was celebrated in the United States on this day in 1970. In 1990, Earth Day became a global event and continues to be celebrated by millions of people around the world. It’s a day for us to come together to encourage conservation, recycling, and volunteering for the good of our planet.

Today, we invite you to explore ways you can make a difference at home, at work, or within your community. Even the smallest changes can make a big impact.

Here are a few ideas:

  • Before you throw something away, think about whether it can be recycled or repurposed. Did you know that a plastic bottle can take over 450 years to break down in a landfill?
  • Plant a tree. Trees provide shelter and food for animals, and they can provide much-needed shade during hotter months.
  • Turn off the lights and limit your water usage. Try to conserve energy and water by using only what you need.
  • Take a walk! For every mile walked instead of driven, nearly one pound of pollution is kept out of the air.

Happy Earth Day!

2022 Sustainability Report

We share an aligned vision for the future of Leggett & Platt. Our mission is to build businesses and a culture that are sustainable for generations to come.

We recently published our 2022 Sustainability Report. The report provides information about our approach to and performance on the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) matters that are most important to our business.

As we move through 2022, our key ESG initiatives include:

  • Conducting an ESG materiality assessment to further define the ESG opportunities that provide greatest value to our stakeholders and are the most meaningful to L&P
  • Measuring and reporting our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data
  • Advancing our inclusion, diversity, and equity efforts
  • Evaluating opportunities for establishing key management systems to improve data collection and contribute to broader companywide sustainability advancements
  • Enhancing our supplier assessment process, including a heightened emphasis on labor and social standards and cybersecurity controls

We invite you to read the full report here. Thank you for your support as we continue to build and report on our sustainable practices.

L&P Sustainability Efforts: Chemical Safety

L&P is a relatively low-volume user of chemicals, with the largest use in our Specialty Foam business. These chemicals have low environmental impact as the manufacturing process yields a small amount of emissions by employing clean manufacturing technologies such as the use of MDI-based foams, as well as reactive and low-emission catalysts and surfactants.

Products meeting CertiPUR-US requirements meet strict clean limits for materials such as:

  • Ozone Depleting Compounds
  • PBDEs, TDCPP, or TCEP (“Tris”) flame retardants
  • Mercury, lead, and other heavy metals
  • Formaldehyde
  • Phthalates

Read more about L&P’s sustainability efforts here: https://leggett.com/sustainability-report

L&P Sustainability Efforts: Flooring Products

Because of the investments we have made to reduce the environmental impact of our Flooring Products business, when our customers install L&P carpet underlayment products, they make a direct contribution toward their LEED green building certification.

Green attributes of our carpet cushion products include:

  • Recyclable: all products can be 100% recycled at the end of their useful life
  • Chemical Safety: all products exceed the CRI Green Label Plus test program
  • Recycled Content:
    • Bonded / Bonded Plus carpet cushion consists of 100% recycled foam
    • Rubber XD / Rubber Plus carpet cushions contain not less than 20% pre-consumer recycled material
    • Fiber carpet cushion comprised from a high percentage of industry-derived recycled fibers
  • Renewable Technology: Bonded / Bonded Plus carpet cushion replaces petroleum-based polyol with BioBasic® renewable seed oil

Read more about L&P’s sustainability efforts here: https://leggett.com/sustainability-report

L&P Sustainability Efforts: Responsible Forestry

Our facilities are actively working to reduce the environmental impact associated with our production methods, including using responsible sourcing methods.

We use wood in various bedding products, including static foundations. Every year, approximately half of the wood we use in our U.S. bedding products comes from Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®)-certified sources*. We’re also increasing the use of FSC-certified wood products in our Work Furniture business to help our customers achieve their sustainability goals.

Read more about L&P’s sustainability efforts here: https://leggett.com/sustainability-report

*FSC-C023291

L&P Sustainability Efforts: Recycled Steel

Our facilities are actively working to reduce the environmental impact associated with our production methods, including through the use of recycled materials.

Steel is our principal raw material. The wire we produce from steel is used in various products, including mattress innersprings. The majority of the scrap steel we use is shipped from less than 120 miles away — and 15% is shipped from within 5 miles.

Read more about L&P’s sustainability efforts here: https://leggett.com/sustainability-report

Photo Gallery: Energy Treasure Hunt at the Carthage Wire Mill

We recently began a very exciting partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) called the Better Buildings, Better Plants Program. This voluntary partnership initiative will help us drive significant energy efficiency improvements, and we’re among 195 other leading manufacturers and public utilities partnering with DOE.

As part of the partnership, a large team of L&P employees recently participated in an Energy Treasure Hunt at the Carthage Wire Mill. They divided up into four smaller teams and then focused their attention on energy use, such as building lighting and equipment efficiency. They walked around the plant looking for areas of improvement and ultimately found 33 unique opportunities (14 of significant status) to conserve or reduce energy.

Theresa Block, Staff VP in Environmental Affairs, was excited to see the energy of the participants. “It was amazing to see everyone smile throughout the day and get so involved. I think everyone saw the value of their efforts.”

Activities like the Treasure Hunt are important because they help spur interactions and shared ideas. “We must continue to move forward and recognize the need for efficiency of our processes,” says Branch Manager Doug Thrasher. “If we’re cognizant of what we are doing today and how to improve it, then we’ll help impact the future endeavors of L&P.”

Environmental Affairs: Preserving the Planet We Call Home

For our Environmental Affairs team, business as usual means “saving the world.” They collaborate with our branches worldwide to ensure compliance with environmental regulations and to build a companywide environmental sustainability program. Their work often exists in the details – the parts per million, the gallons of liquid, the kwh of electricity – but has big impacts on our planet and our people.

Our Planet

Environmental compliance for all Leggett & Platt branches around the world means ensuring that air emissions, wastewater discharges, waste handling, and chemical use and storage are in full compliance with all local, state, and federal government regulations. At L&P, environmental compliance is not voluntary or just a good idea; it is mandated by the L&P Board of Directors.

To support that mandate, Environmental Affairs works hard to provide our branch operations managers the resources they need to develop and maintain their site-specific environmental compliance programs. Continue reading