"Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results." - Andrew Carnegie 

Inspired by our vision to ‘do good,’ Milliken and our associates are constantly looking for new ways to promote a healthy environment through responsible practices. Just as teamwork often produces new and exciting innovations, so too we have found that partnerships promote collaborations to achieve greater goals. We’re excited to share some of our partnerships devoted to sustainable practices.

Healthy Seas

Associates based in our European office of the Milliken floor covering division support a unique approach to cleaning the world’s oceans. Healthy Seas teams up with divers, fisheries, governments, communities, and recycling and production companies to remove fishnets and other marine litter from the water; they, then, take the process one step further and turn waste nets into regenerated Aquafil ECONYL® nylon yarn, a high-quality, sustainable substance with a number of textile applications, such as modular carpet and even apparel.

Responsible Energy Use

We want to consider all aspects of environmental stewardship – from product development to daily production. We work to help extinguish the flame at the Wellford landfill from our activities in Upstate South Carolina. We have partnered with Spartanburg County since 2011 to help power Milliken manufacturing and help remove a harmful greenhouse gas from the atmosphere in our local community.

CARE

In addition to supporting organizations doing good for the environment, we also support initiatives connected directly to our innovations. Developing solutions for the recycling and reuse of post-consumer carpet, Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) helps divert used floor covering from ending up in the landfill. Milliken, along with other affiliates and industry members, have teamed up with CARE to divert more than 4.6 billion gross pounds of carpet from the landfill since 2002.

For every 250,000 yards of carpet that is diverted, we are saving more than 5,500 cubic yards of landfill space. To that end, Milliken works with its customers to promote reusing or recycling.

We also are proud to impact the CARE organization through leadership. Philip Ivey, Strategic Sustainability Leader for the Milliken floor covering division, currently serves as assistant vice chair on CARE’s Board of Directors.

Milliken Arboretum

One of the largest corporate green spaces in the Southeast, the over 600-acre arboretum at Milliken’s headquarters is a tangible reminder of Milliken’s long-term commitment to sustainability. Once a former peach orchard, Roger Milliken guided the creation of the arboretum, transforming the orchard into vistas of open fields, groves, and trees, with a variety of decorative fountains and natural ponds.

The Milliken Arboretum was developed through collaborations with many experts in the field of botany – including Dr. Michael A. Dirr, an endowed horticulture professor at the University of Georgia. Milliken’s relationship with Dr. Dirr continues today as we work together to ensure the arboretum is a living and evolving landscape.

Environmental stewardship requires deep partnerships both within and outside of an organization. We’re grateful for our associate, community, and industry partnerships that have a forward-thinking outlook on protecting our world.