Clearview National February 2020 - Issue 219 | Page 38

PROUD SPONSOR OF DOORS & WINDOWS DOORS&WINDOWS First sustainability mark for PVC windows » WITH THE SUSTAINABILITY programme Vinyl2010 and VinylPlus® launched in 2010, the European PVC industry set the standard that the system houses operate by for the most part. The newly introduced VinylPlus® Product Label for PVC windows is representative of this. Both programmes were borne of an open dialogue between industry, consumers, NGOs, and politics maintained as a voluntary commitment. Just the approximately 100 million EUR that have been invested in the programme thus far is a testament to the determination with which the companies involved have approached the matter. Funds have been used to develop and implement the recycling concept, particularly through technical projects. Another focus of the programme was the exchange and replacement of stabilizers containing heavy metals, which was completed in 2015 as planned. Here the programme supports first and foremost sustainable acquisition and responsible handling of additives and auxiliary materials. In addition to new materials, VinylPlus partners also work with recycled PVC. For window profiles, for example, a special production process called coextrusion is used to inject recycled materials into the core of the profile. This technique is increasingly being used to produce very high-quality window profiles, giving rise to a kind of symbiosis between ecological and economical uses. 38 » F EB 2020 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M With the product label, a mark is also available that brings together the requirements of the sustainability programme in a single graphic symbol. It essentially represents the sustainable procurement of raw materials and materials and was issued for the first time for PVC window profile systems. Together with the RAL quality mark, this introduces a designator to the market that signifies a sustainable production process, high durability, a high percentage of recycled materials used in the end product, as well as strict quality and resource management. The concept is based on BES 6001, a programme of the Building Research Establishment (BRE) for sustainable acquisition, which has been expanded here to include PVC-specific requirements. This must be verified in an audit. These are the criteria companies must fulfil in order to use the product label: ©VinylPlus Progress Report 2019 EPPA • Be a partner of VinylPlus • Have established management systems • Meet specific logistics requirements • Engage in consistent recycling of used PVC windows (controlled loop) • Obtain PVC from sustainable production • Use additives responsibly • Reduce energy and resource consumption • Get employees, customers, and consumers excited about sustainability If you would like to know more, please contact VinylPlus – [email protected] (vinylplus.eu) – or EPPA – [email protected] (eppa-profiles.eu).