A tape may use less material and still create more waste if its liner cannot be recovered, its backing disrupts recycling or poor durability forces early replacement. Adhesive performance is only one part of the equation. The environmental profile of the finished product is shaped by every layer around the bond and by the way those layers are coated, converted and used.
Mativ [NYSE:MATV] approaches sustainable adhesion as a materials-system problem. Its Sustainable & Adhesive Solutions portfolio spans industrial tapes, release liners, specialty papers, packaging materials and healthcare adhesives. These products are supported by advanced coating, paper and natural-fiber processing, lamination, embossing and converting capabilities. That breadth allows the company to examine the adhesive, carrier, liner and manufacturing route together rather than optimize one component in isolation. A lower-impact material must still withstand the application, run consistently through production and preserve the quality expected from the finished product.

The Construction Starts Before the Bond

Adhesive development often begins with tack, peel strength, temperature resistance or durability. Sustainability brings forth bigger questions. How much carrier material is needed? Can a paper or natural-fiber substrate replace a conventional backing? Can the release liner be lighter, contain recycled content or enter an established recovery stream?

Mativ’s position across adhesives, papers, liners and converting gives its teams a broader design field. Material combinations, coating weights, layer count and end-use requirements can be considered before the construction reaches full production. The objective is not simply to attach a sustainability claim to an existing tape. It is to determine where material can be removed, replaced or redesigned without weakening the function the customer requires.

Mativ approaches sustainable adhesion as a connected system of chemistry, substrates, release liners and manufacturing decisions.

That discipline guards against simplistic substitutions. A thinner backing offers little value if it tears during converting. A recyclable liner may create more waste if unstable release performance slows the line and increases rejects. A durable bond may reduce replacement, repair and product loss over a longer service life. Every decision has to work within the complete construction.

Through Scapa Industrial, a Mativ brand, the company develops adhesive tapes, films, foams and tailored bonding solutions for automotive, cable, building and construction, and specialty manufacturing applications. Its production capabilities include formulation and mixing, coating, lamination, calendering, slitting, laboratory testing and research and development. These applications place very different demands on an adhesive. Cable products may require insulation, mechanical protection or resistance to difficult environments. Construction tapes can face moisture, movement and temperature variation. Automotive components need to remain bonded through vibration and prolonged use.

Changing chemistry or reducing material without accounting for those conditions can transfer the environmental burden from production to early failure.

Scapa Industrial works with customers, raw-material suppliers and equipment partners to develop application-specific products. Its research and development teams support pilot-scale testing and commercialization, helping customers evaluate whether a new construction can deliver the required performance before it reaches full manufacturing scale. This creates room to reduce material without relying on a fixed sustainability template.

The Layer Intended to Be Removed

Release liners rarely remain in the final product, yet they influence material use and production efficiency throughout the adhesive value chain. They carry the adhesive through coating, converting, storage and application before being separated and discarded or recovered.

ITASA, Mativ’s release-liner business, manufactures silicone-coated paper and film liners for tapes, labels, medical products, personal care, industrial specialties and food packaging. Its work emphasizes control of release force, caliper and lay-flat performance, all of which affect how reliably the liner moves through customer equipment.

The Futura Liners portfolio extends that engineering into material reduction and circularity. It includes lighter-weight liners, constructions using recycled raw materials, recyclable options and substrates containing up to 100 percent post-consumer-recycled fibers. Coating choices include lower-impact and non-fossil-based silicone technologies.

The value lies in combining those material choices with dependable processing. A lighter liner that breaks frequently or releases inconsistently can erase the benefit through scrap and downtime. ITASA’s approach keeps sustainability tied to the conditions under which the product will be coated, converted and applied.

A liner may be temporary, but its weight, fiber source, coating chemistry and processing behavior remain part of the adhesive system’s overall footprint.
Proving the Construction Before Scale

Material changes become expensive when problems emerge after commercial production begins. A different backing may stretch under tension. A new silicone system can change the release force. A lighter liner might perform well in a laboratory but create difficulties on a high-speed converting line.

Mativ’s manufacturing platform provides access to coating, saturation, lamination and converting technologies that can be used to study these interactions. ITASA’s CoLab innovation hub adds pilot coating and rapid prototyping for small-scale customer verification, supported by quality-control and assurance processes designed to maintain traceability. This allows the construction to be tested as a connected system. Adhesive chemistry, substrate, liner and processing conditions can be adjusted together instead of being passed between unrelated suppliers. Customers can examine whether a proposed solution runs on existing equipment, maintains tolerances and delivers the expected bond before committing to a larger production run.

Manufacturing precision also contributes to sustainability in less visible ways. Stable coating weights limit excess material. Consistent caliper and release force reduce rejects. Better converting control can lower trim loss and rework. These improvements may not appear as a new environmental claim, but they influence how much material is consumed to produce every usable roll or component.

Different Uses Require Different Trade-Offs

No single adhesive chemistry or backing can satisfy every sustainability objective. Industrial products prioritize long service life and environmental resistance, while packaging applications may place greater emphasis on paper compatibility, recycled content and liner recovery. Healthcare products add another constraint because the adhesive interacts directly with the patient’s skin.

Scapa Healthcare brings medical adhesive formulation, coating, precision cutting, converting and assembly into Mativ’s broader platform. Its technologies include acrylics, silicone gels, hydrogels and hydrocolloids used in wound care, consumer wellness and medical-device fixation. The appropriate choice depends on wear duration, breathability, repositionability and skin sensitivity. In this setting, sustainability cannot be judged from the material source alone. A fixation product that performs for the intended period may reduce repeat applications, replacement components and additional packaging.

Mativ stands out as a sustainable adhesive solutions provider because it can work through these trade-offs across the full construction. Its materials science and manufacturing capabilities connect the bond, backing, liner and production method rather than treating sustainability as a change to one layer.

The result is not one universal sustainable adhesive. It is a disciplined way to reduce material impact while preserving the performance, manufacturability and quality that make the solution usable at scale.