Sustainability E-News
Building Product Manufacturing
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From The Editor
Happy New Year! This edition starts our new year with a focus on building products manufacturing. The Health Product Declaration (HPD) Collaborative has partnered with US Green Building Council (USGBC) to release a number of
resources
for designers and manufacturers related to product transparency and LEED. You can read more about these efforts in the article under
CODES and STANDARDS NEWS
. A number of companies are taking steps to reduce the carbon emissions of cement - a key element in masonry construction. And smart companies are embracing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to improve both their communities and their bottom line.
This edition marks the beginning of our 12th year of publishing Sustainability E-News! What began as a Pilot Project of TMS has evolved into a sponsored publication that reaches thousands of subscribers directly and more as it is shared and re-shared by our readers. A special THANK YOU to all of our renewing 2020 Sponsors and a warm welcome to our newest Platinum Sponsor, the International Masonry Institute! It's not too late to join their ranks! We are at about 80% of our funding goal.
Contact the TMS office
for more information.
Christine "Tina" Subasic, PE, LEED AP
CSubasicPE@aol.com
NOTE: Inclusion in this newsletter is not an endorsement of the products and materials featured, nor have these products been evaluated by TMS or the editor. Furthermore, the views expressed in the articles featured are those of the article authors.
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GREEN BUILDING NEWS
As the articles below indicate, 2020 will likely increase the focus on carbon emissions and steps to reduce the effects of climate change. ~Tina
Canada's first Zero Carbon Building Standard projects certified
CAGBC.ORG
The Canada Green Building Council has certified 10 projects through its Zero Carbon Building program, which was created to ensure Canada reaches its 2030 international emissions targets. The first projects include The Joyce Centre for Partnership and Innovation at Mohawk College and a number of other offices, schools and warehouses.
Read more
.
New Buildings Institute zero carbon building database reaches 628
BUILDING DESIGN + CONSTRUCTION
The New Buildings Institute is looking for commercial buildings to add to its Getting to Zero Buildings Database, which is intended to show that zero energy and zero carbon outcomes are realistically achievable. The database now includes 628 buildings, an increase of over 30% since the organization released its 2018 update. Read more
here
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A call to action for engineers on climate change
ENR.COM
Figuratively and literally, engineers have taken a seat at the table to discuss climate change. At the United Nation’s climate talks in Madrid, Spain, which ended Dec. 15, engineers were represented at the public sessions and in closed-door meetings. It’s the first time they have been actively involved in the political and technical discussions surrounding the way the world can mitigate and adapt to climate change, according to
this article
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Beyond green building to resilience and adaptation—GreenerBuilder 2019
USGBC.ORG
This year’s (regional) GreenerBuilder conference raised a number of important issues for the future of sustainability approaches to green building. Although the conference was primarily focused on the impacts of climate change on our buildings and human health, one session in particular, “Creating Resilient Design and Operations in an Era of Climate Change” offered some interesting insights into building resilience and adaptation.
Read a recap
of the session here.
NGBS Certifies 200,000th Home
NAHBNOW.COM
The National Green Building Standard (NGBS) Certification Program hit a major milestone in certifying its 200,000th home.
This article
asked a builder and verifier for their perspectives on consumer interest in green building and the value of green certification in today's market.
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CODES and STANDARDS NEWS
The Health Product Declaration (HPD) Collaborative has been quite busy lately, developing some new tools to help with LEED compliance and also looking for new Technical Committee members. Read more in the links below. ~Tina
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USGBC Equity
USGBC.ORG
This new initiative is designed to highlight the broad spectrum of work that USGBC does around social equity, and will include the 2020 launch of an Equity Leadership Committee, which will work to integrate and advance social equity across the organization.
Learn more
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HPD Collaborative and USGBC introduce new material health resources for the building industry
HPD COLLABORATIVE
Building on their strategic partnership announced in 2018, U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and HPD Collaborative (HPDC) are announcing new capabilities for advancing and scaling the practice of transparent material health in the building industry. According to
this article
, these new capabilities improve education and information tools to make product transparency more meaningful and transformative – enabling project teams and manufacturers to meet LEED v4.1 material transparency and optimization credit requirements with ease.
Call for Technical Committee members
HPD COLLABORATIVE
The Health Product Declaration Collaborative (HPDC) is seeking applicants for membership on the HPDC Technical Committee.
The deadline for applications is Friday, January 17, 2020 at 5 pm PST
. The HPDC Technical Committee is a 17-member group that takes the leadership role in setting and driving HPDC's technical agenda, working together with the HPDC Board of Directors and HPDC Staff team. Composed of a diverse set of senior industry experts, the Committee directs the maintenance and evolution of the HPD Open Standard and associated technical deliverables. In support of these critical outputs, the Committee will establish and maintain processes and procedures under which such technical work is conducted and governed. Learn more
here
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GREEN PRODUCT MANUFACTURING
This section includes news on manufacturing advances as well as recommendations for improving the sustainability of your business. ~Tina
New limestone could offset CO2 emissions
CONCRETE PRODUCTS
Blue Planet and Kamine Development have partnered to develop a concrete-grade, synthetic limestone that could offset carbon dioxide emissions associated with Portland cement production. "Blue Planet's technology has the capability to help reverse climate change on a global level," said Kamine Development CEO Hal Kamine in
this article
.
LEILAC project reduces CO2 emissions
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
A pilot cement plant in Lixhe, Belgium, has successfully implemented carbon capture technology to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The European Union-funded LEILAC project "enables pure CO2 to be captured . . . as the furnace exhaust gases are kept separate," according to
this article
.
The benefits of a CSR program
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS OWNER
Though it might not be a high priority, a corporate social responsibility program helps contractors generate business, improve customer loyalty, raise brand awareness, and support recruitment and employee engagement,
writes Jim Arabia
, vice president of marketing at BigRentz. Successful CSR programs align with business goals and local communities, he adds.
Why forward-looking companies need an integrated energy strategy
WBCSD.ORG
Earlier this year, WBCSD developed guidelines to help companies make their transitions to clean energy. An integrated energy strategy sets out how a company can achieve its energy-related financial and environmental objectives across its entire value chain. This
new insight
explains what makes developing and implementing such strategies a challenge and describes how companies can benefit from the transition.
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EDUCATIONAL NEWS
TMS has several
new webinar
offerings for 2020, including one on LEED as noted below. And it's not too early to start making your plans to attend the TMS Spring Meetings in Charlotte, NC this year. ~Tina
Upcoming Webinar: What’s New in LEED v4.1
THE MASONRY SOCIETY
The latest version of LEED, LEED v4.1, was released in early 2019 proved a challenge to many designers and manufacturers. The Materials and Resources credits were particularly problematic. This new webinar explains how LEED v4.1 attempts to address these issues by adding incremental achievement levels and revising the thresholds and criteria in many of the credits. To register for this April 9, 2020 webinar,
click here
.
The Masonry Society Spring Meetings
MASONRYSOCIETY.ORG
Registration is now open for the TMS Spring Meetings to be held in Charlotte, NC April 30 - May 2, 2020. For more information on the upcoming meeting and TMS Committee activities,
visit the TMS website
.
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TMS Sustainability
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