An ongoing push for sustainability in design and architecture is reshaping how materials are sourced, produced, and displayed. One standout innovation in this movement is recycled PET, a material derived from post-consumer plastics that’s now being repurposed into high-performance products, including optically clear window films.

So, what is recycled PET, and why should designers and businesses care?

What Is Recycled PET?

Recycled PET (rPET) is polyethylene terephthalate that has been reclaimed, cleaned, and repurposed from post-consumer plastic products (e.g. discarded water bottles). Each time a plastic bottle is recycled, it avoids becoming waste and instead has the potential to take on a second life in a wide variety of applications. Textiles, packaging, and now, eco-friendly building materials like printable window films are all made with recycled PET material. The goal here is to achieve “circularity” so that plastics are returned to service in new forms rather than piling up in landfills.

The recycling process includes:

• Collection of post-consumer PET (usually from bottles)
• Washing and contaminant removal
• Shredding into flakes and melting
• Reprocessing into high-clarity film-grade substrates

There’s a video of the inside of a recycling plant here that gives a great look at what the process is all about. This transformation is not so much melt-and-reuse as it is a complex process of precision filtration, molecular reengineering, and clean-room processing. All of that is necessary to help recycled plastics achieve the same virgin-plastic optical clarity that’s preferred and required in commercial display-grade products.

Unlike earlier recycled materials that tended to show degradation in quality, high-end rPET can now meet or exceed the visual and mechanical standards of virgin PET. In the case of window films, our recycled PET line (the ECO series) at LINTEC of America demonstrates just how far the material has come in clarity, durability, and printability.

Why Recycled PET Matters in Sustainable Design

A manufacturer’s choice to use recycled PET material reduces our economy’s dependency on virgin petroleum-based plastics and helps close the loop on plastic waste. The environmental benefits are both immediate and long-term:

• Less landfill waste: Recycling 1 ton of PET saves 7.4 cubic yards of landfill space.
• Lower energy use: rPET production uses up to 60% less energy than producing virgin PET.
• Fewer greenhouse gas emissions: Manufacturing with rPET results in 79% fewer greenhouse emissions and less energy than Virgin PET, and has under a quarter of the carbon footprint of Virgin PET.
• Less water pollution: The production of rPET generates 60% less water pollution than the production of virgin PET.

Products made at scale with rPET have a major cumulative environmental impact. Consider that 481.6 BILLION plastic bottles are used worldwide in a single year. America’s demand for plastic water bottles alone uses over 17 million barrels of oil annually — enough to fuel 1.3 million cars for a year. Redirecting even a small fraction of that waste stream into recycled window film production diverts millions of bottles from landfills and drastically cuts resource consumption and carbon emissions. 

Why Eco-Friendly Materials Are Gaining Ground

Public expectations have shifted; today’s audiences are increasingly eco-aware. Your choice of materials matters not only in how your graphics perform but in how they’re perceived.

A joint study by McKinsey and NielsenIQ found that products with environmental or social responsibility claims saw significantly stronger sales growth with an average of 28% cumulative growth over five years compared to 20% for products without such claims. Consumer sentiment backs this up: in a 2020 McKinsey survey, over 60% of U.S. consumers said they’d pay more for sustainably packaged products, and NielsenIQ reports that 78% say living sustainably is important to them.

In other words, it’s not just what you print — it’s what you print it on. Recycled PET films provide a sustainable, high-quality medium for everything from retail storefronts to branded office partitions that customers can see and connect with. Designers, sign shops, and building owners can opt for eco-friendly building materials like recycled PET as a concrete way to communicate environmental responsibility.

Architects and print professionals are turning to materials like recycled PET to:

• Meet LEED project requirements and green building standards
• Reduce waste in short-term graphics or seasonal campaigns
• Create standout visuals that also tell a sustainable story

Even in competitive bids or brand presentations, specification of eco-friendly building materials can be the difference-maker. Recycled graphic materials can align with ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) performance and sustainable sourcing goals as a matter of corporate strategy.

Recycled PET films are also helping organizations future-proof their operations against stricter environmental regulations. As governments and municipalities begin to require disclosure of materials used in construction and signage, a clear record of responsible sourcing (through materials like rPET) positions your team ahead of the curve.

Designers, Brands, and Installers Make an Impact With LINTEC

If you’re looking for a sustainable solution for your next window graphic or commercial display, recycled PET offers clarity, strength, and credibility. Your message stays vibrant and clear. At the same time, your material choice helps reduce plastic waste and conserve energy, which reflects positively on your brand’s values.

LINTEC offers a full line of recycled polyester window films that align with sustainability goals and support eco-conscious storytelling. The ECO series recycled window films are already in use in everything from high-visibility retail campaigns to branded office spaces. Use our films for stunning storefront displays, corporate signage, museum graphics, and interior architectural applications.

The full visual fidelity of these films is what makes them stand out. This matters in projects that involve crisp typography, translucent effects, high-contrast photographic elements, or other delicate graphical considerations. Our 100% rPET films offer the resolution and consistency required by today’s high-end UV-curable printers. Because they’re scratch-resistant, they also hold up in interactive or high-touch environments like healthcare settings, retail windows, and glass dividers.

Interested in exploring the performance and visual quality for yourself? You can request a sample roll or ask for printed swatches to test how your designs appear on different rPET films. Many designers are surprised by just how crisp and vibrant their prints turn out, even on a fully recycled base.

They’re ready to ship, with no added tariffs, stocked right here in the U.S. Request a sample or a quote today!