Outcomes, Green Building Rating Scheme credits & data assurance levels

The 'Outcomes' and 'Rating Scheme Credits' search options provide an outcome-oriented search tool to query the products database. Often in a project a product will be sought with particular qualities, and this is what the 'Outcomes' search is designed to assist.

For example Outcomes could be used to:

• Search for all products that facilitate a particular eco or health outcome, e.g. 'water conservation'
• Refine a search, e.g. for 'floor coverings' to return only those that contain 'reduced embodied energy'
• Find products with Enhanced Content [ECG] analysis for a Green Building Rating tool, e.g. LEED New Construction, LEED Commercial Interiors and in future, BREEAM, the Abu Dhabi Green Building Rating Tool etc.
• Look for products with similar data assessment levels

General Eco 'Outcomes' Categories

The general 'Outcomes' search options allow the user to search by more familiar sounding search queries that directly addressing the assessment criteria. These are:

Energy & Greenhouse

• Reduce energy and greenhouse
• Energy-efficient in use
• Renewable energy content
  
• Reduced embodied energy

Protect Habitat, Land and Water

• Preserve habitat, land and water
• Habitat degradation
• Water conservation
• Water quality management
• Reduced nutrient loads

Preserve Resources

• Preserve resources
• Reduced waste in production
• Reduced waste in use/disposal
• Resource efficiency
• Rapidly renewable
• Locally produced

Enhance Human Health (Indoors)

• Human health
• Indoor environment
• Air quality management
• Low electromagnetic radiation
• Low/non-toxic material
• Promotes safety & security

Reduce Pollution (Outdoors)

• Reduced embodied pollution
• Low pollution over life

Data Assurance Level

• Has ecolabel:  Product has been awarded a Type 1 ecolabel or equivalent (see Introduction to ecolabels)
• ISO 14001:  Manufacturer has an ISO 14001 certified Environmental Management System
• Independent product LCA:  Product has a third-party undertaken full Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
• Independent verification documents:  Product has been assessed by reference to third party test or researched source data 
• Document manufacturer claim:  Product application received with ecospecifer questionnaire declared by a Director or Authorised Person as 'True and Correct'. A breach of this declaration is likely to be considered 'misleading and deceptive conduct' under National and/or International legislation
• Expert judgement by ecospecifier:  Using known Australian and international standards, codes, eco-labels, Life Cycle Assessment methodologies, and Green Building Rating Schemes as well as independent test data, third party research

Rating Scheme Credits

This option is offered for 'LEED NC v2.2+ and LEED CI v2.0+' credits and an expanding list of National and International Rating Scheme credits.

A product is not attached to a LEED or other Rating Scheme Credit Search Function unless the ecospecifier International Product Research Hub has sighted appropriate documentary evidence from accredited third parties that the product has been correctly Certified to an appropriate Standard and meets the LEED Reference Guide Criteria.