What Is FloorScore Certification?

You cannot see or smell most of what off-gasses from a new floor, which is exactly why a certification like FloorScore exists. It puts a lab test behind the label so you are not taking a manufacturer's word on air quality.

What FloorScore actually measures

FloorScore is an indoor air quality certification for hard-surface flooring and its adhesives. It confirms that a product releases very low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) — the carbon-based chemicals that evaporate from many building materials and can linger in the air of a closed room. Rather than rating durability or looks, it checks one thing: what the material adds to the air you breathe.

The program was developed by the Resilient Floor Covering Institute and is administered by SCS Global Services, an independent third-party certifier. That independence matters. A brand testing its own product and publishing its own pass is not the same as a recognised body running the samples and putting its name on the result.

The CDPH Section 01350 test method

FloorScore is built on the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Standard Method, commonly called Section 01350. A sample sits in a sealed environmental chamber, and the air is measured over a set period — usually 14 days — for a list of individual VOCs that have established health guidelines.

The pass criteria are tied to modelled exposure in real rooms, such as a classroom or a private office, not an abstract number. If the concentrations a person would breathe in those spaces stay under the health-based limits, the product qualifies. This is the same emissions method referenced by green building programs like LEED and WELL, which is why architects recognise it on a spec sheet.

Why low VOCs matter at home

We spend most of our lives indoors, and flooring is one of the largest continuous surfaces in any room. High VOC levels have been linked to headaches, eye and throat irritation, and stuffier air in tightly sealed, energy-efficient buildings where fresh air turnover is low. Homes with children, older adults, or anyone with asthma feel the difference first.

A FloorScore label does not promise zero emissions — no real material hits zero. It tells you the product was tested against a strict public-health method and stayed under the limits. For a floor that might cover a bedroom or a nursery, that evidence beats a vague 'eco' claim on the box.

Is MILAT FloorScore certified?

Yes. MILAT's SPC flooring is FloorScore certified through SCS Global Services, alongside CE marking under EU Regulation 305/2011 and a set of ISO management-system certifications. For specifiers exporting into North America or building to green standards, that documentation is often a requirement rather than a nice-to-have.

How to verify a FloorScore certificate is genuine

A logo on a brochure is a claim, not proof. Every valid FloorScore certificate is listed in the certifier's public database, searchable by company name, and the certificate itself carries a number, the certified product lines and a validity period. When a supplier sends you their certificate, check three things: the company name matches the entity actually selling to you, the product family named on the paper matches the product you are buying, and the certificate is current. This takes minutes and filters out the surprisingly common trick of borrowing a certificate that belongs to a raw-material supplier or an unrelated product line.

Where FloorScore shows up in project specifications

In commercial work, FloorScore is often not a nice-to-have but a line in the spec. Architects writing flooring sections for schools, healthcare buildings, offices and public projects routinely require certified low-emission flooring, and green building schemes credit it. For a contractor, this means the certificate belongs in the submittal package alongside the CE Declaration of Performance and technical data sheet, before material is ordered. For a distributor, it means stocking certified product opens the specification market, while uncertified product quietly disqualifies you from tenders you never even hear about.

What FloorScore does not tell you

The certification answers exactly one question: does this floor emit volatile organic compounds below the required limits. It says nothing about wear resistance, slip rating, waterproofness, acoustic performance or click-joint quality. A floor can be certified and still be the wrong product for your traffic class. Treat FloorScore as one column in a wider evaluation table.

• Emissions and indoor air: FloorScore
• Mechanical performance and structure: CE Declaration of Performance to EU 305/2011
• Factory process discipline: ISO 9001 and its sister management standards
• Fitness for your specific space: wear rating, acoustic data and waterproof construction

Certification is a habit, not an event

Passing the emissions test once proves a sample was clean; staying certified proves the factory is. FloorScore involves ongoing surveillance, so the manufacturer's raw-material choices and process controls are checked over time, and a factory that swaps in cheaper inputs risks its listing. This is why the certificate is a useful proxy for supplier discipline in general. At MILAT, the same logic runs through the whole quality stack: FloorScore for emissions, and ISO 9001, 10002, 14001, 27001 and 45001 for how quality, complaints, environment, information and safety are managed year round.

A buyer's script for the emissions conversation

You do not need to be a chemist to buy clean flooring; you need three questions. Ask which certificate covers the exact product and thickness you are ordering. Ask for the certificate document and check it against the public database. Ask whether accessories sold with the floor, such as adhesives for glue-down formats or profiles, carry their own emissions documentation. A supplier who answers all three promptly, in writing, has told you as much about their operation as any factory tour would.