CertainTeed® CedarBoards® Insulated Vinyl Siding Becomes First Product Available With New GreenCircle Certified, LLC Third-Party Multi-Attribute Certification
(Valley Forge, Pa.) – Demonstrating further commitment to product transparency, CertainTeed Corporation is the first building materials manufacturer to achieve the new GreenCircle Certified, LLC multi-attribute, third-party certification. The new Certified Environmental Facts™ (CEF) label is now available on CedarBoards® insulated vinyl siding packaging. Much like a nutrition label, it details vital environmental information in a straightforward manner, providing sustainable product attributes and key manufacturing impact reductions. Products with the CEF certification can be easily evaluated to identify the most sustainable option for remodeling and new construction projects.
“The value of this new certification is that it provides an upfront, concise explanation of the total sustainability of a product and a higher level of transparency,” says Brian Kirn, product manager for CertainTeed Siding Products Group. “It also provides us with targets for advancement, identifying specific impact categories to allow us to develop better products and more efficient processes.”
As the first product to receive the CEF label, CedarBoards insulated siding is an especially pertinent choice. Molded from real cedar boards and backed with polystyrene insulation, it can increase overall thermal performance – which helps to reduce heating and cooling costs. It is also the first vinyl siding to be evaluated with an independent, third party verified life cycle assessment (LCA).
Founded in 2010, GreenCircle has established the ‘Gold Standard’ for green product certifications. As a leading third-party verifier of environmental claims, GreenCircle validates each aspect of the new multi-attribute certification label for total transparency.
“After nearly 30 years in the industry, I have seen other third-party certifications deliver unclear, misleading validations,” says Tad Radzinski, co-founder of and certification officer for GreenCircle. “The development of the Certified Environmental Facts label meets crucial market demand and assists our clients in distinguishing their brand.”
As the North American leader in siding products, CertainTeed offers Freedom of Choice™ that no other manufacturer can provide, with the most comprehensive spectrum of profiles and colors of polymer shakes, fiber cement siding, insulated siding, vinyl siding and trim for finishing touches. The company actively pursues strategies to reduce environmental impact and is the first siding manufacturer to issue and publish third-party validated life cycle assessments (LCA) for its vinyl and fiber cement siding product lines. The LCA carefully examines all environmental impacts—from raw materials and manufacturing, transportation and use, to disposal and/or recycling—gaining an accurate view of true product sustainability. For more information, visit www.certainteed.com/freedomofchoice.
About CertainTeed
Through the responsible development of innovative and sustainable building products, CertainTeed, headquartered in Valley Forge, Pa., has helped shape the building products industry for more than 100 years. Founded in 1904 as General Roofing Manufacturing Company, the firm's slogan "Quality Made Certain, Satisfaction Guaranteed," quickly inspired the name CertainTeed. Today, CertainTeed® is North America’s leading brand of exterior and interior building products, including roofing, siding, fence, decking, railing, trim, foundations, pipe, insulation, gypsum, ceilings and access covers.
A subsidiary of Saint-Gobain, the world’s largest building products company, CertainTeed and its affiliates have more than 6,000 employees and more than 60 manufacturing facilities throughout the United States and Canada. Recognized as a 2009 and 2010 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, CertainTeed earned the 2011 and 2012 ENERGY STAR Sustained Excellence Award, the highest level of recognition for outstanding contributions to protecting the environment through energy efficiency. The group had total sales of approximately $3.2 billion in 2011. www.certainteed.com
About GreenCircle Certified, LLC
GreenCircle Certified, LLC was established to ensure specificity in third-party certification after encountering many misleading or unsubstantiated sustainability claims in the green marketplace. Manufacturers, suppliers, regulators and consumers can be assured that products labeled with the “GreenCircle Certified” label have undergone rigorous examination and their claims verified. GreenCircle offers claim validation for carbon footprint reduction, closed loop product, life cycle assessment (LCA) optimized, rapidly renewable resource content, recyclable material, recycled content, renewable energy use, and sustainable manufacturing practices. A list of certified products can be found on the GreenCircle website. www.greencirclecertified.com
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