Clemson, S.C.—The Tile Council of North America (TCNA) revealed its Material Ingredient Guide at Coverings 2021. The Material Ingredient Guide—the first of its kind by any building product industry—provides information about the material ingredients used industry-wide by North American tile, mortar and grout manufacturers, in-depth health assessments of the materials and is a resource for manufacturers to provide the content and chemical makeup of products or material ingredient transparency, according to the TCNA.
Seventeen manufacturers collaborated on the largest crowdfunded collection of GreenScreen Assessments to date for two purposes: First, to obtain GreenScreen Benchmark Scores (listed within the guide) for the vast majority of material ingredients used by ceramic tile, mortar and grout manufacturers; and second, to facilitate referencing benchmark scores and associated GreenScreen Assessments when developing Manufacturer Inventories (MI) and/or Health Product Declarations (HPD) that qualify for contribution to green and healthy building optimization credits, the TCNA said.
“Product ingredient disclosure is in high demand,” said Dan Marvin, senior vice president of operations for Ironrock and chairman of TCNA’s Green Initiative Committee. “Through development of the Material Ingredient Guide, the tile industry is committed to thoroughness, consistency and transparency in reporting information about the materials from which our products are made.”
Authored by Tennessee-based WAP Sustainability, they worked with multiple organizations while creating the guide to bring clarity and structure to the subject of material ingredient transparency, the TCNA said. Resulting from the TCNA’s and its members’ investment in disclosing industry-wide material ingredient information, suppliers and users of ceramic tile, mortar and grout will have a more thorough and uniform understanding when specifying products in accordance with green and healthy building standards, the council added.
With a consistent, thorough and transparent approach to material ingredient reporting and the compilation of referenceable GreenScreen Assessment Benchmark scores on industry-wide materials, TCNA members aim to have the largest number of fully assessed material ingredient reports in the market. The fully assessed reports will make ceramic tile, mortar and grout products eligible for contribution to LEED, WELL and Living Building Challenge optimization credits, the TCNA said.
“Following the Material Ingredient Guide’s suggested steps and referencing industry-wide GreenScreen Assessments not only facilitates product compliance with green and healthy building certification programs but also enhances brand trust with customers,” said Bill Griese, TCNA’s director of standards development and sustainability initiatives.
According to the TCNA, its Material Ingredient Guide initiative amplifies the North American ceramic tile industry’s message of health and environmental sustainability through initiatives such as industry-wide Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and Green Squared product certification.
“The result of this collaboration within the tile industry will push the market forward and spark even greater innovation and consideration for healthier indoor environments,” said Wes Sullens, director of LEED for the U.S. Green Building Council. “This work provides the marketplace with key information needed by those pursuing LEED green building certification as they select products.”
Mark Rossi, executive director of the non-profit organization, Clean Production Action, and co-founder of GreenScreen, added, “We applaud the TCNA for demonstrating industry leadership in chemical and material health with their sector-wide approach to GreenScreen Assessments. This is a model for how other industry sectors can effectively pool resources to compile GreenScreen Benchmark scores of chemicals in their products and optimize products for material health.”
The following participating manufacturers contributed to the reporting:
- Ardex
- Arto Brick
- Bostik
- Crest
- Crossville, Inc.
- Custom Building Products
- Dal-Tile Corporation
- Florida Tile
- Florim USA
- Interceramic USA
- Ironrock
- Laticrete
- Porcelanite-Lamosa
- Portobello America
- Schluter Systems
- StonePeak Ceramics, Inc.
- American Wonder Porcelain