The Emerging Market of Sustainable Workspaces and Buildings: Part 2
Amy Musanti- Director of Sustainability
Why Product Ingredients and Third-Party Certifications Matter
A very progressive network of customers helps to drive companies like ours to make advancements in sustainability, and that includes integrators and dealers as well as architects and end users. We love to encourage them to think differently about what contributes to a secure and sustainable built environment. The good news is they can have security, sustainability, and convenience without sacrificing one over another.
Many building products are obvious choices for sustainability – HVAC, lighting, etc.; however, sustainable door security solutions may not be so immediately apparent.
Therefore, developing sustainability acumen needs to include an understanding of which door and hardware products qualify, and why the ingredients and processes that go into them matter.
How a manufacturer backs up its claims about sustainability also matters, especially when the attributes of a product aren’t clearly recognizable. Third-party certification is the most effective way to pass that test. It is one of the reasons door security integrators and providers look to manufacturers that have sustainability programs of their own that put products through rigorous independent testing.
While we pride ourselves on being completely transparent about product energy efficiencies, recyclability, reusability, and embodied carbon reduction, we understand it is not enough for customers to simply take our word for it. That’s why we enlist third party organizations like Green-Circle Certified to audit and validate our claims, and seek Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), Health Product Declarations (HPDs), and Declare Labels to reinforce transparency and build trust.
EPDs and material ingredient reporting through HPDs and Declare Labels contribute to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) points. EPDs show the entire lifecycle of a product and factor in recyclability and reusability.
HPDs look at the potential health hazards of a product by comparing ingredients to a set of priority lists. They also help products qualify for WELL and Living Building Challenge certification – important factors for end-users striving to keep occupants of their buildings healthy and happy.
These documents are what end-users, architects, integrators, and contractors truly care about and depend on to readily identify the best sustainable door and door hardware materials for their projects. They want to know they’re working with a manufacturer that takes a comprehensive approach to its product lineup – from the impacts of raw material extraction, transportation, and manufacturing to packaging, installation/use, and product end of life.
Whether it is the sustainability of a door lock, electric strike, automatic operator, or access control card reader – or whether specialty doors feature insulation with no harmful chemical off gassing – all these considerations factor into the choices that are leading us to better greenbuilt environments.
Target Verticals
Higher education and the U.S. government are two of the biggest sectors charging full steam ahead with ambitious energy-reduction and footprint-reduction goals for the many buildings and campuses that they are planning. Other institutions, businesses, and facilities are following suit, albeit at different scales.
All have a massive number of openings that will require door security products designed to promote energy savings, take less labor and materials to install, feature more compact profiles – solutions that are made more efficiently with safer ingredients, recyclability, and reusability fully in mind. Add in the increased demand for sustainable aesthetic design and energy-conscious deliveries, and you see how much potential there is for everyone involved – systems integrators and other security specialists included.
Further evidence of the growth of sustainability programs has shown up in the increasing number of large and mid-sized companies that have committed to the ambitious Science-based Target initiative (SBTi). While SBTi may not be practical for every business, and non-participation won’t dampen the necessity and energy behind robust sustainability programs on tap or already in place, there are more than 2,000 companies now committed to SBTi and taking company-specific action to further reduce greenhouse gases. This is positive news for a low-carbon future.
Resilience
Complementing sustainability is the expanding emphasis on resilience – the ability for organizations, buildings, and their occupants to rebound successfully from storms, fire and other forces that can greatly impact lives and livelihoods.
Customers from all sectors are more focused than ever on the safety and wellness of those they employ, teach, heal, and house within their walls. Ensuring facilities are built with materials made with sustainable healthier ingredients, extra durability, and extended lifecycles will go a long way in helping businesses and institutions bounce back stronger than ever – just like sustainability efforts and science-based targets are helping our planet to do.
These are golden green opportunities we should all seize.
Discover more about ASSA ABLOY's commitment to sustainability and the five pillars that support this initiative. Also, you can learn more about embodied carbon, what it is, why it is important and how it is calculated in our white paper.
This article originally appeared in Security Business.
Amy Musanti is the Director of Sustainability for ASSA ABLOY. Amy joined ASSA ABLOY in 2007 and has held a variety of positions across numerous divisions in customer service, marketing, sales, and sustainability. She is responsible for ’greening’ the group’s products and processes, by supporting business opportunities for ASSA ABLOY solutions that contribute to energy efficiency and wellness in the commercial and institutional construction industry. Amy has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication with a minor in Information Technology from Monmouth University in NJ and a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership from Quinnipiac University in CT, where she currently works as adjunct faculty for the School of Business.