The new environmental product declarations have come under the magnifying glass of the ICDLI, the association comprising some of the leading manufacturers of industrial laminates. Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) provide quantitative, verified and objective information on the environmental impact of a product based on clearly defined parameters. For the high-performance materials Hpl and Hpl-Compact, EPDs based on life cycle assessments have already been available for several years, which consider the complete life cycle (raw material extraction, production, transport, installation/use, recycling). Now an update of the declaration for the next five years has been published, which once again confirms the low environmental impact of Hpl and Hpl-Compact.
Especially in the building sector, environmental product declarations are used by architects, planners, engineers and builders to prove and guarantee the most sustainable construction possible in tenders. The new environmental declaration for Hpl and Hpl-Compact maps the environmental impact of the surfaces over their entire life cycle and also describes their functional and technical properties.
“In the new EPD, several life cycle assessment criteria, for example on production and transport and for more transparency, were split up“, explained the ICDLI. “Once again, the low ecological footprint of the products became apparent, for example in the area of Global Warming Potential: the production of one square metre of Hpl emits only 1.26 kg of CO2 equivalent”.
Generally speaking, the greatest environmental advantage of Hpl is its long service life. The material is easy to clean, hard-wearing and resistant and scores with a long service life. During the use phase, 0.29 kg of biogenic carbon corresponding to 1.06 kg of CO2 equivalents are stored in the Hpl. “The ICDLI is currently working together with the Fraunhof Institute/WKI on a European end-of-life study on Hpl, which will provide information on how the boards are recycled at the end of the use phase“.
The verified environmental declaration on Hpl is based on the international standards ISO14025 and EN15804 and is published by the Institut Bauen und Umwelt e.V. (Institute for Building and Environment). It is valid for five years and is publicly accessible. It can be used to compare and select different building components, construction methods and options according to ecological criteria already in the design phase.
The comprehensive LCA data and information contained in EPDs are compactly summarised in a uniform format on a few pages. The EPD of the ICDLI is a European average declaration in which data from Hpl manufacturers from all over Europe were collected and evaluated.
Since 2012, consistently representative information on the average environmental profile for Hpl and Hpl-Compact has been available.
The ICDLI offers an exclusive report in English on its website with explanations on the EPDs: for example, on the value of these sustainability reports and a summary of their most important statements. Read more
