Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) are the standard to communicate meaningfully and effectively the environmental impacts of your products. They are widely used in the construction and building materials sector.
Comprised in an EPD document the product data is scientifically sound, factual and unbiased summarized in a uniform format – a kind of ecological ID for the construction product. In addition to the LCA performance, the EPD also provides general information on the product characteristics and technical specifications. Therefore, the quantitative information contained in EPDs is suitable for distribution, technical support as well as sales and marketing purposes.
EPDs for building materials and construction products are an official source for the sustainability assessment of buildings and components. They permit ecological aspects to be included and therefore are recognised by Green Building Certification systems such as DGNB, LEED, BREEAM and BNB.
They are increasingly being used as a requirement in tenders, enhancing not only the market position of construction product manufacturers but also the access to publicly-advertised construction projects.
The Life Cycle Assessment is the core of an EPD, analysing a product over its entire lifespan: from raw material extraction, the manufacturing process throughout its installation up to the end-of-life stage and disposal. All material and energy supplies required for the production of the construction material are recorded and analysed. The results provide projected and actual environmental impacts of the product.
With over 1300 EPDs, the construction sector is taking a leading role regarding the disclosure of environmental impacts of its products. As a pioneer of EPD application, the buildings industry is already shaping the future towards a sustainable construction. The industry takes responsibility for increasing demand of resources and energy as well as the generated emissions and waste.
As experienced LCA experts, we have been specialised in the creation and implementation of environmental product declarations for many years. We accompany you reliably from the initial consultation to the finished EPD.
