PRESS RELEASE
XX June 1995
Recyclable environmental lighting
does away with PVC parts

Swedish based manufacturer of home lighting products, Artilux AB has recently released a new luminary called Ecolight which is made entirely from recyclable and bio- degradable materials. The product
is the first in a planned series
of PVC-free, low-energy wall and table lamps which, the company
says, is a necessary step towards reducing the environmental impact
of home interior products.

The decision to phase out PVC meets one of the require- ments of Agenda 21, the environmental programme defined at the 1992 Rio Conference. It also follows a submission from the Swedish Parliamentary Committee on Recycling which recommended that PVC material should no longer be used in Sweden after the year 2000.

Completely replace PVC
“We have noted an increased interest from our customers for an alternative to plastic lamp shades as the trend moves towards more environmentally friendly products”, comments Jörgen Hurtig, marketing manager at Artilux. ”After producing paper and textile lamp shades for a number of years we know that the materials can completely replace PVC. Paper is superior to PVC from an environ-mental stand-point as oil is not used in manufacturing. Further more it won’t melt if it comes in contact with the light source nor does it release harmful gases should it catch fire. For the consumer, paper is easier to recycle than PVC and is less expensive to use. It is also aesthetically attractive and is, therefore, finding more and more uses in interior design.”

Chlorine free paper
The 90 tons of PVC materials used by the company each year will be replaced with around 60 tons of chlorine free paper stiffened using potato starch and made from renewable forest resources. Artilux’s paper supplier, Assi Domän, says that this craft line paper is as environmentally friendly as other ”green” papers on the market today. By using paper rather than PVC, the company’s annual road transport requirements will be reduced by approximately 30 per cent.
Another environmentally friendly product in the Artilux range is its biggest seller, a ball table lamp made from metal sheeting left over from vehicle panel manufac- turing. These lamps are colour-coated using a solventless paint process and, like the Ecolight, feature craft line paper shades. Some 700,000 Ball luminaries are produced annually.
Artilux AB manufactures luminaries for home use. The company’s turnover in 1994 was SEK 30 million, 60 per cent of which was earned through export sales. Annual production amounts to approx. 1 million luminaries which are made in accordance with ISO 9002 quality standards.


Caption:
The new Ecolight from Artilux is made mainly from re-cyclable and biodegradable materials. The luminary is the first in a whole series of PVC-free, environmentally friendly wall and table lamps.


For further information contact:
Artilux
Jörgen Hurtig
BOX 158
334 23 Anderstorp
Sweden
Tel: +46 371 160 00
Fax: +46 371 172 60