UL Environment Releases Industry Wide Sustainability Requirements For Doors

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Sep 29, 2011, 11:17 ET

ASSA ABLOY Trio-E Certified to Robust Criteria For Materials, Energy and Water Use, Manufacturing, Performance and Product Stewardship

NORTHBROOK, Ill., Sept. 29, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- UL Environment, Inc., a business unit of UL (Underwriters Laboratories), announces today that it is releasing a new set of standard requirements, UL ISR 102, which will help gauge the environmental and human health impacts of door slabs, including those that are meant to swing, hang or glide and that the ASSA ABLOY Trio-E door is the first to be certified to these sustainability requirements.

UL ISR 102 provides detailed requirements with which to evaluate the environmental impacts related to producing a variety of door types. The life cycle impact of doors is measured throughout the materials management, energy use, water use, manufacturing and operations, health and environment, product performance, product stewardship and innovative practices of production. These new guidelines will help architects, designers and LEED-APs select environmentally preferable swinging door slabs.

"Every element of a building contributes to creating healthier work environments. Doors are an important feature that impacts not only the indoor air quality and fire susceptibility of a space, but the overall impact of the resources used to collectively build the structure," said Steve Wenc, president of UL Environment. "With the release of UL ISR 102, Sustainability for Swinging Doors, UL Environment hopes to provide a clear path for door manufacturers who are genuinely interested in manufacturing environmentally preferable products. Those who commit to meeting the standard through third party certification also demonstrate their commitment to leading the industry forward, and add a level of trust specifiers prefer when selecting better products."

Properly-developed sustainability requirements establish the basis for differentiating environmentally superior products and services, allowing businesses and consumers to make environmentally-preferable choices more easily. A door slab does not include the hardware or associated elements, but focuses on what the door itself is made of and its associated impacts.

"We are pleased to have worked closely with UL Environment and to be the first manufacturer of door opening solutions to qualify for UL ISR 102 and attain silver level," says Dan Glover, product manager for ASSA ABLOY Door Group. "Achieving the UL Environment silver level label is a significant milestone in our pursuit of energy efficient and sustainable solutions. Seeing, hearing and understanding customer needs to support and promote development of energy efficient innovative products is a core strategy in our road map for growth at ASSA ABLOY."

UL Environment's interim sustainability requirements relied on input from numerous stakeholders, including members of a Standard Technical Panel (STP) comprised of stakeholders representing a variety of interests, such as manufacturers, government entities, consumer interest groups, product installers, users, distributors and testing organizations. UL ISR 102 sets minimum environmental requirements and creates a progressive and tiered approach allowing sustainability leaders to highlight their achievements.

The UL standards development organization, which has been developing standards for more than a century and is actively maintaining more than 1,400 safety standards globally, played an active role in helping develop the sustainability requirements released today.

About UL Environment

UL Environment supports the growth and development of sustainable products, services and organizations in the global marketplace through standards development, educational services and independent third-party assessment and certification. Specific environmental solutions services UL Environment provides include environmental claims validation, sustainable products certification, organizational sustainability guidance, environmental product declarations and advisory services. Additional information about UL Environment can be found at ulenvironment.com. Or follow UL Environment news and education tips on Twitter @ulenvironment.

About UL

UL is a premier global safety science company with more than 100 years of proven history. Employing more than 7,000 professionals in over 100 countries, UL is evolving the future of safety with five distinct business units – Product Safety, Environment, Life & Health, Verification and University – to meet the expanding needs of customers and the global public. For more information on UL services, visit UL.com

SOURCE UL Environment, Inc.