Carpenter Strengthens Its Sustainability Efforts Through Solar Power

For decades, Carpenter has been a sustainability leader in the flexible polyurethane foam industry, demonstrating a strong commitment to environmental stewardship. The company's initiatives have focused on reducing waste, improving circularity to help keep products out of landfill at the end of their useful life, and developing innovative approaches to recycling materials. The company evaluates its operations to identify new ways to support the communities in which it operates and to protect the environment.

One of the company's largest initiatives is using renewable solar energy at their manufacturing facilities in Wetteren, Belgium; Tranås, Sweden; Ichtershausen, Germany; and Glossop, United Kingdom, to reduce carbon emissions and enhance sustainability.

Wetteren’s solar installation was completed in December 2009, when the facility was owned and operated by Recticel N.V. In 2023, Carpenter acquired Recticel’s Engineered Foams Division, including its Wetteren operations. Solar panels were installed on the roofs of the operational buildings to capture energy from sunlight and convert it into electricity. The electricity generated is either used on-site or exported to the public grid.

Under ideal conditions, the installation has a maximum output of 829.13 kWp (kilowatts-peak). In the past year, it generated more than 770,000 kWh of electricity, of which almost 95,000 kWh was exported to the grid. On a site basis, the solar array reduces Carpenter’s annual carbon emissions by more than 117,000 kg.

A large solar park bearing Carpenter’s name was completed in Tranås in March 2024. Visible to everyone entering the city, the solar park generates approximately 75% of the facility’s annual electricity requirements. Last year, the installation produced approximately 1,400,000 kWh of electricity, of which 336,517 kWh was consumed on-site, while more than 900,000 kWh was exported to the grid.

The array’s total production capacity is 1 megawatt, which will produce about 1,025,000 kWh per year – enough to power more than 350 homes – and reduce annual carbon emissions by roughly 287,000 kgs.

Bringing solar power to Glossop was a challenge. Carpenter worked with regulatory bodies in advance to ensure that the solar installation wouldn’t harm the local ecosystem.

Installation of the 1,666 solar panels was completed in April 2026. The array’s total production capacity is 1 megawatt, which will produce about 1,025,000 kWh per year – enough to power more than 350 homes – and reduce annual carbon emissions by roughly 287,000 kgs.

Source: Carpenter Co.