by Shane Henson — October 19, 2011—Building managers concerned about the health impact of building products used in the construction or renovation of their properties now have another reason to turn to Construction Specialties, a manufacturer of commercial architectural products, for their products.
The company and Perkins+Will, a leading design firm, recently released the industry’s first building product transparency label. The label details the complete make-up of a product, highlighting critical lifecycle information and potential human health impacts. According to Construction Specialties officials, this intensive effort is a collaborative step toward market transformation through increased disclosure on the part of building product manufacturers.
C/S and Perkins+Will identified the industry need for such a product label based on the belief that chemicals generally harmful to humans, animals, and the environment should be avoided in building products when there are reasonable alternatives. To that end, the team sought to create a means to allow people to make informed decisions when they fabricate, specify, install, use and dispose of building products.
Designed to make environmental and health disclosure easier for any manufacturer who chooses to adopt the template, the label offers a forthright declaration of the make-up of a product and its potential impacts, in multiple formats. The label identifies general product information, product content, ecological benchmarks, packaging information, the design process that went into the product, and information on the product’s recyclability.
