By Melissa Donovan
Wallcovering materials are used in a number of environments, for the long and short term. We discuss this in detail in the June issue of Digital Output magazine, see here. For customers with critical environmental and human health requirements in relation to their digitally printed wallcoverings, print service providers need to be aware of certifications/standards.
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Based on the vendors interviewed for the June article, we gathered some of the more applicable standards/certifications affecting digitally printed wallcoverings.
ASTM E84-21 is a standard test method for surface burning characteristics of building materials. It discovers how the material might contribute to flame spread in the event of a fire. The test reports the Flame Spread index and Smoke Developed index of the tested product.
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Standard Method for the Testing and Evaluation of VOC Emissions From Indoor Sources Using Environmental Chambers is an expanded standard for what is commonly known as California Specification 01350. This standard evaluates building and interior products for low chemical emissions. Materials are prepared according to standard usage instructions and conditioned for ten days prior to chamber testing. Data reports include emission rates for the product and predicted indoor concentrations in various environments, such as in the office, classroom, and residential areas.
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) chain of custody certification verifies that FSC-certified material has been identified and separated from ineligible and unacceptable material as it makes its way along the supply chain from the forest to the market. FSC chain of custody certification covers a variety of situations and entities, ensuring that many organizations can demonstrate their commitment to FSC’s requirements. The material used in the FSC chain of custody can come from a variety of sources. While the majority comes from FSC-certified forests, the FSC chain of custody requirements also allow the introduction of reclaimed material that would otherwise go to waste, and material that has been assessed as a low risk of coming from unacceptable sources.
The Health Product Declaration (HPD) Open Standard provides a rigorously-defined specification for a standard format and instructions to accurately, reliably, and consistently report the material contents of a building product, and associated health information. Since its initial release as HPD Open Standard v1.0 in 2012, the Standard is voluntarily adopted by the majority of leading green building rating and certification programs, with the goal of harmonizing the reporting of the data encompassed within the Standard across all industry programs.
Proposition 65 requires businesses to provide warnings to Californians about significant exposures to chemicals that cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm. These chemicals can be in the products that Californians purchase, in their homes or workplaces, or that are released into the environment.
REACH or Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals, aims to improve the protection of human health and the environment through the better and earlier identification of the intrinsic properties of chemical substances. This is done by the four processes of REACH, namely the registration, evaluation, authorization, and restriction of chemicals. REACH also aims to enhance innovation and competitiveness of the European Union chemicals industry. REACH establishes procedures for collecting and assessing information on the properties and hazards of substances.
The Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS) are rules in Europe restricting the use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment to protect the environment and public health. The main law is the RoHS Directive, which currently restricts the use of ten substances—lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers, bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, butyl benzyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, and diisobutyl phthalate.
STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX is one of the world’s best-known labels for textiles tested for harmful substances. It stands for customer confidence and high product safety. The test is conducted by independent OEKO-TEX partner institutes on the basis of the extensive OEKO-TEX criteria catalog. The test takes into account numerous regulated and non-regulated substances, which may be harmful to human health.
Products that have achieved UL GREENGUARD Certification are scientifically proven to meet some of the world’s most rigorous third-party chemical emissions standards, helping to reduce indoor air pollution and the risk of chemical exposure. There are two tiers of certification, GREENGUARD Certification and GREENGUARD Gold Certification.
UL also is a leader in Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). The document tells the life cycle story of a product in a single, comprehensive report. The EPD provides information about a product’s impact upon the environment, such as global warming potential, smog creation, ozone depletion, and water pollution. An EPD from UL can also include other product impacts, such as land use changes, potential toxicity risks, or corporate environmental initiatives that are of particular interest to the discloser.
US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a series of rating systems aimed at increasing the environmental and health performance of buildings’ sites and structures and of neighborhoods. LEED covers the design, construction, and operation of all types of buildings. The certification process involves LEED points awarded on a 100-point scale, and credits are weighted to reflect their potential environmental impacts. Ten bonus credits are available, four of which address regionally specific environmental issues. A project must satisfy all prerequisites and earn a minimum number of points to be certified. Third-party certification is required.
WELL is a leading tool for advancing health and well being in buildings globally. Register an office, building, or other space to leverage WELL’s flexible framework for improving health and human experience through design. Projects pursuing WELL Certification can earn points based on performance outcomes for various policy, design, and operational strategies and can achieve one of four certification levels—bronze, silver, gold, or platinum.
Looking to learn more about digitally printed wallcoverings and the well-being of the humans that interact with them? Catch our webinar, register here.
Jun2022, Digital Output
