Elmo Leather Eco-Friendly Leather for the Aerospace Industry

Elmo Leather is a leading manufacturer of high-grade leather used for commercial and private aircraft seats.

The company’s specially designed eco-friendly Endurance collection meets the high standards of aircraft interiors through its durable, fire-resistant and weightless quality, and has been tested to ensure it has the highest technical properties available to the aerospace industry.

Fire-resistant leather for aircraft cabins and cockpits

To make certain its products are particularly suitable for the aircraft environment, Elmo repeatedly treats and dyes its leather during the production stage. Not only does this process strengthen the material, it also makes it resilient to dirt, allowing for easier cleaning and increased performance for the demanding conditions endured in aircraft cabins and cockpits.

Important safety regulations are also met through the leather’s fire-resistant properties. The leather is produced specifically for the aviation sector and meets the requirements of this rapidly growing industry through its surpassing of international standards such as ABD0031 certifications.

Elmo’s leather is also lightweight, weighing just 700g/m².

Sustainable leather materials for the aerospace industry

For decades, Elmo Leather’s tannery has focused on the important environmental aspects of manufacturing its materials.

Elmo developed an industry benchmark that focused on the entire process of producing leather, placing particular importance on minimising the amount of chemicals in wastewater, as well as in the leather.

For the leather manufacturer, producing its products in an environmentally friendly way highlights its core values while adding to its industrial success.

Ecological leather manufacturing services for airline cabins

Elmo’s team has worked hard to develop the company’s position as a leading sustainable tannery and have moved away from discharging tannery wastewater to a treatment plant. Originally, the majority of water going into the treatment plant came from Elmo, causing problems for the company’s production process and business development.

Filtering methods also involved reducing the amount of water used to produce the leather. Elmo now takes water from the neighbouring river, then cleans and returns it to the source in an even cleaner condition. A regional cleaning facility then turns the liquid into public drinking water.

To aid in Sweden’s decision to cut back on nitrogen discharge to rivers and lakes, Elmo’s challenge was to reduce its pollution levels by introducing a new treatment process for the tanning business.

Elmo has used its knowledge and resources to dramatically decrease nitrogen pollution in its wastewater and become one of the most ecological tanneries for the aerospace industry.

Minimising nitrogen in leather cleaning

In 2004, the company invested €5m and hours of research in a new cleaning facility. Investing a substantial amount of time and money into the project enabled the company to discover a new filtering process that aided it in achieving its reduction goals.

The new process included replacing certain chemicals, which helped to lower nitrogen levels by 94%. The release of chromium pollutants was also deduced by 99.6%, while biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) levels dropped by 99.9%. Elmo also found that chemical oxygen demand (COD) levels were down by 99.1%.

With its unique filtering system, Elmo is now considered one of the greenest tanneries in the world and the EU LIFE Fund recognised the company as one of the 22 best LIFE-Environment projects in Europe in 2005 and 2006. The EU LIFE-supported development has highlighted that the leather industry is able to economically reduce its nitrogen pollution levels by more than 94%.

About Elmo

Elmo is one of the leading manufacturers in the world of high-quality yet eco-friendly, sustainable leather. Over the years, the company has grown to become one of the six largest providers of leather to the rail, automotive, airline, marine, and furniture industries.

Globally, Elmo operates in around 45 various markets, forcing it to evolve its products and processes to stay ahead in a competitive market, while keeping its commitment to the nature and the planet.

Elmo has around 120 employees based at Elmo in Svenljunga, Sweden.