GREEN IT

EU Labelling of Energy Efficient Construction Products

BRE and other European partners are currently involved in an EU-funded action to raise the awareness of EU labelling schemes and to encourage the application of energy efficient construction products. This project will utilise best practice in the construction products manufacturing sector and aims to accelerate the EU market towards regulated energy efficient buildings and the use of improved energy products with eco-design specifications.

The project aims to research the possibility for creating a voluntary labelling scheme for construction products within the European market. This action should motivate EU industry to produce more efficient construction products and facilitate the implementation of new EU Directives at practice level.

The EU project has nine partners from across Europe including:

• CRES (Greece)
• BRE (UK)
• Cenergia (Denmark)
• CSTB (France)
• Ecofys (Germany)
• INETI (Portugal)
• NAPE (Poland)
• SBi (Denmark)
• VTT (Finland)

The proposed labelling scheme will identify the energy performance characteristics of materials and products used in construction throughout Europe. These characteristics will not be ranked and the label will be a source of product information only. A catalogue of European building materials and products has been developed by BRE during this work and this will form the basis of the information to be contained within the GREEN-IT label.

Having the ability to identify the energy performance characteristics of a large number of materials and products will have many benefits to various aspects of the construction industry. Specifiers and designers will be able to identify suitable products by appraising energy characteristics, and post-completion energy audits will be more easily completed where labelled products have been used. These are examples of how a GREEN-IT labelling scheme could benefit the construction industry in the UK and throughout Europe.

BRE has formed a UK GREEN-IT Club to allow the views of the UK industry to be represented in the EU project. This has attracted manufacturers, trade associations and Government-funded organisations. The Club has been actively involved in the development of the project and has made invaluable contributions that have influenced the progress of the EU GREEN-IT work.

New members to the UK GREEN-IT Club are welcome and issues relating to the project and its development are disseminated through regular workshop events.