Today, almost 1 million acres of forest vanish per week. This alarming rate
of deforestation has forced many world economies to rethink their business and
manufacturing practices. A sixty-foot tree cut for market takes 60 years to
replace. Meanwhile, a sixty-foot bamboo cut for market takes 59 days to replace*
(*International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR)).
Bamboo is officially recognized as the world's fastest growing plant and has
a tensile strength comparable to steel.
In response to figures like these, in early 2005 a new bamboo flooring company
was born in Washington, DC. Ambient
Bamboo Products Inc. brings the next generation in building materials to
the market – high quality bamboo flooring. Driven by the ever-growing consumer
demand for environmentally friendly products, Ambient introduces several bamboo
flooring products to the market that appeal, aesthetically and practically,
to a wide variety of consumers.
“It’s an exciting venture,” said Will Latta, Ambient Bamboo
Product’s Director of Sales. “As one of the few companies in the United
States specializing only in bamboo flooring, we are proud to be among the leaders
in environmentally responsible building materials “. Ambient works closely
with carefully selected manufacturers in Asia to provide only the highest quality
bamboo flooring products. All products are made with Moso species bamboo, which
is widely regarded as the sturdiest of bamboo species. All of the bamboo used
in Ambient’s flooring has reached a maturity of 5 years, and all resins
used in the manufacturing process meet stringent European E1 low formaldehyde
emissions standards. All products have a minimum 25 year residential warranty
and are made with industry leading finishes such as Klumpp and Treffert.
"We will ship around the planet"! Ambient has filled orders in the
United States, Canada, and Mexico and offers shipping to anywhere in the world.
Ambient’s geographical proximity to the booming Washington DC real estate
market offers local consumers an eco-friendly alternative to traditional wood
flooring types, often at lower prices and even lower shipping costs.
Ambient believes strongly in its company philosophy, “Flooring For The
Future”. This philosophy is based on important ecological findings:
*Bamboo is the fastest growing plant on earth. It is known to produce greater
biomass and 30% more oxygen than a hardwood forest of comparable size, while
improving watersheds, preventing erosion, restoring soil, providing sweet edible
shoots and removing toxins from contaminated soil. Ecologists tout bamboo as
a renewable source of food and building material. Many promote bamboo planting
for erosion prevention, and even to reverse the effects of global warming.
*Bamboo helps reduce carbon dioxide gases blamed for global warming. Some bamboo
sequesters up to 12 tons of carbon dioxide per hectare, which makes it a highly
efficient plant, and conducive to fresh air. Bamboo can be selectively harvested
annually and regenerates without replanting.
*Bamboo is a natural water control barrier. Because of its wide spread root
system and large canopy, bamboo greatly reduces rain run off, prevents massive
soil erosion and keeps twice as much water in a watershed. Bamboo helps mitigate
water pollution due to its high nitrogen consumption, making it a solution for
excess nutrient uptake of wastewater from manufacturing, livestock farming and
sewage treatment.
*Bamboo can restore degraded lands. It is a pioneering plant and can be grown
in soil damaged by overgrazing and poor agriculture. Proper harvesting does
not kill the bamboo plant, so topsoil is held in place. Because of its dense
litter on the forest floor it feeds topsoil, restoring healthy agricultural
lands for generations to come.
Typical hardwood lumber trees, such as the ones used in conventional wood flooring,
take 30-50 years to regenerate. In the meantime, there is less oxygen produced,
less carbon dioxide consumed, and more soil runoff in the spot where that tree
was harvested - all producing negative environmental effects. Our biosphere
is suffering from resource depletion, habitat loss, species extinction, and
ecosystem pollution. Ambient believes that suggesting sustainability is not
enough.
Ambient specializes in Distressed and Strand Woven bamboo flooring. Distressed
flooring, also known also as 'antique' or hand scraped, is hand crafted by factory
workers so that each plank has a texture and personality all its own. A plank
of hand scraped flooring takes 12 times longer to produce than a plank of traditional
wood flooring. This flooring has experienced a surge of popularity in Italy
and the Middle East, where the older architecture demands a refined, warm, classical
look.
Ambient’s Fortec Strand Woven bamboo flooring is a relatively new product
that is gaining industry-wide accolades for its durability and aesthetic appeal.
Strand bamboo floors are made using a unique manufacturing process that is different
from all other bamboo flooring types - by heating long strips of bamboo, weaving
them together, then laminating them under extreme pressure. This bamboo strand
manufacturing process produces flooring that is twice as hard than traditional
bamboo flooring, which is already one of the hardest wood flooring products
available. It is made with a non-toxic, water-resistant resin that allows for
use in kitchens and bathrooms. It has a unique grain that is a mix between traditional
wood floors and regular bamboo flooring.
Posted 22nd May 2006
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