home ::
services ::
about ::
contact
There is a great deal of interest in green building
information. To date, most of the building and construction industry
talk about sustainability has focused on the goal of reducing energy
consumption in new and existing buildings. However, effective
environmental sustainability is also about selecting building products
that reduce the negative environmental impacts that arise from
building construction and renovation.
While majority of us are worried about the negative
impacts of our buildings on the environment, how many of us are
willing to pay more for building products to reduce the negative
impact?
Therefore, it is critical in selecting products
whose environmental performance is balanced against their economic
performance. Even the most environmentally conscious designers and
builders must ultimately weigh environmental benefits against economic
costs.
It is relatively straightforward to select products
based on minimum life-cycle economic impact because building products
are brought and sold in the marketplace. The key is including
life-cycle environmental impacts into the decision making process.
The most appropriate method of measuring the
economic performance is life-cycle costing. Typical performance data
is readily available and there are established methods of economic
evaluation.
A difference between environmental and economic
performance is their time periods. The environmental performance
period typically starts from raw material acquisition and ends with
product end-of-life. However, economic performance is usually a fixed
period starting from purchase and installation of the product and
ending at some point in the future, not necessarily at the same time
as the product end-of-life. This is usually when investment decisions
are made and costs occur.
Thus, in accessing a product’s overall
sustainability performance, you need to consider both environmental
and economic factors and evaluate both of their scores in selecting
the right product.
Cetec has developed rational and systematic
techniques for helping designers and builders to select
environmentally-friendly, cost-effective sustainable building
products. Our models are aimed at helping product manufacturers
develop green products that surpass the requirements of the various
green building rating tools used today. If you would like more
information on how to develop and select truly sustainable products,
talk to us at
Cetec. |
|
