The Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, together with the Healthy Building Network, Health Product Declaration Collaborative, and Clean Production Action, have announced a collaborative effort to further transparency and optimization of building product ingredients.
Supported by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the Harmonization Task Group will offer marketplace benefits, including consistent messaging, simplification, elimination of redundancies, and creation of more accurate, faster and, less costly assessments.
The cross-program platform will allow for a variety of pathways for improvement depending on a manufacturer’s goals and readiness, while increasing the rigor of product ingredient information, improving the knowledge of product ingredients in support of optimization, accelerating manufacturer participation by simplifying the ability to get started on the material health path, automating health hazard assessments, and providing a clear progressive path toward optimization.
“This is an opportunity to align efforts and share knowledge to accelerate material health and product innovation,” said Scot Horst, Sr. Vice President of LEED. “The Institute is an important part of this ecosystem, bringing the visionary Cradle to Cradle Certified Products Program to scale over the last several years. We are convinced we can get further faster by supporting product innovation and material health with a unified community.”
The Harmonization Task Group builds on the conclusions and recommendations from the Material Health Evaluation Programs Harmonization Opportunities Report published by the USGBC on August 30, 2013. The report found substantial overlap in the methodology and best practices used by leaders in the material health ecosystem. The Task Group plans to coordinate efforts by synchronizing the inventory, screening, and hazard assessment protocols to streamline the process for manufacturers.
“The USGBC is unique in its ability to pull together the leading voices in safer materials and products,” said Bridgett Luther, President of the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute. “We are very excited to be included in this ‘dream team.’ Working together will make it easier for manufacturers to improve their products, remove chemical hazards, and chart a path towards positive materials.”
The Health Product Declaration (HPD), GreenScreen, and Cradle to Cradle Certified Products Program are currently undergoing multi-stakeholder revisions processes, which provide an opportunity for further alignment. The Harmonization Task Group supports each organization in facilitating its own revision process and enables cross-organizational participation in each other’s revisions processes.
Related Stories
| May 1, 2012
Gilbane to build $100 million cranberries manufacturing facility
Gilbane to provide design build services for a new Lean manufacturing facility for Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc., beverage products.
| May 1, 2012
Construction is underway on MLK ambulatory care center in L.A.
Featuring a variety of sustainable features, the new facility is designed to achieve LEED Gold Certification.
| Apr 30, 2012
Summit Design + Build completes build-out for Office Concepts
The project is seeking LEED ID Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.
| Apr 30, 2012
HSA Commercial selected as consultant for Orland Park’s Main Street Triangle project
HSA will be responsible for designing an overall mixed-use merchandise plan, attracting a unique retail tenant mix and completing leases with prospective tenants.
| Apr 30, 2012
Gilbane to manage retrofit of the Fraunhofer CSE R&B structure
Building is a first-of-its-kind research and demonstration building for sustainable technologies in Boston's Innovation District.
| Apr 30, 2012
KBE Building completes renovation at the ConnCAT
The $1.2 million project consisted of a 16,000-sf interior renovation.
| Apr 27, 2012
APA launches wood design web portal for building and design pros
Design professionals who are members of APA’s Professional Associates are automatically enrolled in the APA Designers Circle program.
| Apr 27, 2012
China Mobile selects Leo A Daly to design three buildings at its new HQ
LEO A DALY, in collaboration with Local Design Institute WDCE, wins competition to design Phase 2, Plot B, of Campus.
| Apr 26, 2012
USGBC announces inaugural Green Apple Day of Service
On Sept. 29, 2012, participants from all over the world will volunteer to make the schools and campuses in their communities healthier and more sustainable.
| Apr 26, 2012
Gensler's Leiserowitz: Employs holistic philosophy to foster clients' creativity, comfort
Leiserowitz became regional managing principal in Chicago for San Francisco-based architecture and design giant Gensler a little more than a year ago.
