Seat Fabric In New Ford Focus Electric Made From Waste

The new Ford Focus Electric features seat fabric made of recycled material that includes the equivalent of more than twenty plastic bottles per car. The fiber, called Repreve, is made from a hybrid blend of recycled materials and manufactured by Unifi, Inc. a sustainable textile company. Unifi officials say twenty-two plastic, sixteen-ounce water bottles are used in the seat fabric of a single Focus Electric.

The figure is based on the amount of Repreve branded fiber used in the production of fabric in each vehicle.

"Not only does the use of this fabric in Focus Electric help reduce waste, it also helps to offset the need to produce new raw material from crude oil – a process that consumes precious energy and natural resources," said Carol Kordich, Lead Designer of Sustainable Materials for Ford.

Focus Electric runs solely on battery power alone, requiring no gasoline and producing zero carbon dioxide emissions.

In 2009 Ford mandated that fabric suppliers use a minimum of twenty-five percent recycled content for all 2009 and beyond model year vehicles. Since then, thirty-seven different fabrics meeting the requirements have been developed and incorporated into the company's vehicles.

Kordich said the company is taking it a step further by mandating that fabric be one hundred percent sustainable in vehicles with eco-conscious powertrains like Focus Electric.

Ford’s "Reduce, reuse and recycle" commitment is part of the company’s broader global sustainability strategy to reduce its environmental footprint while at the same time accelerating the development of advanced, fuel-efficient vehicle technologies around the world.

Over the past several years the company has concentrated on increasing the use of nonmetal recycled and bio-based materials whenever possible, provided these materials are environmentally favorable in the specific application. Examples include soy foam seat cushions and head restraints, wheat straw-filled plastic, castor oil foam in instrument panels, recycled resins for underbody systems, recycled yarns on seat covers, and natural-fiber plastic for interior components.

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