GreenSpec+Pharos Partnership Gives Users Competitive Advantage in Specifying Green Building Products

(3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) CHICAGO, IL - NOVEMBER 17, 2010 - Architects, designers, engineers and others who need an affordable, comprehensive, flexible tool for specifying green building products will benefit from the strategic partnership announced today by BuildingGreen and the Healthy Building Network (HBN).  The two organizations will link their web-based green building research sites - GreenSpec and the Pharos Project - to provide one trusted, authoritative, independent source for specifying green building products, information and research.

“Feedback from the community has clearly indicated that there is an information gap we can fill by joining forces with HBN,” stated Nadav Malin, president of BuildingGreen.  “Through our products - Environmental Building News, GreenSpec and LEEDuser - BuildingGreen has been a trusted source, on the leading edge of green product innovation for 20 years. HBN’s Pharos Project adds a new level of in-depth exploration of the healthfulness and other aspects of these products.  Our customers have asked to see these capabilities in one place, and we believe this strategic partnership is the best response to their needs.”

The partners unveiled a new website, www.GreenSpecPharos.com, for immediate access to GreenSpec and Pharos from one location, and updates on joint efforts.  Users can sign up for an online tour and free trials for both products.  Customers who purchase both products together, or upgrade from one to both, will be afforded a more attractive, combined pricing structure.

By mid-2011 the partners will offer joint memberships in the two sites, allowing push-button access to the combined product research of the two organizations.  The combined capabilities will provide the most comprehensive solution for specifying green building products, from getting a simple answer to building a customized “approved” list, and communicating product preferences directly to manufacturers.

“Accelerating the transition to healthier, more sustainable and more equitable building products and materials is our mission,” said Bill Walsh, founder and executive director of the Healthy Building Network.  “Our partnership with BuildingGreen will enable us to increase the scope and scale of our research: to provide unsurpassed transparency about building material choices, and dramatically enhance our ability to communicate these results to a much broader public.”

The partners also announced the formation of a research collaborative, which will be led by Walsh and focus its work on accelerating the pace of independent research on product toxicity. 

Alex Wilson, founder of BuildingGreen, remarked, “From the beginning 20 years ago, we understood that our commitment to establishing and maintaining our independence from paid advertising and manufacturing sponsorships would be a financially challenging path.  The community has rewarded us with their trust.  HBN has been on this same journey.  Together we are committed to ensuring that there is a strong, independent resource for specifying green building products - today, tomorrow and for the future.  This will be even more important as the number of green products and environmental claims continue to grow exponentially.”

About Building Green LLC
BuildingGreen has been creating knowledge to support practice since 1992. Building professionals gather around BuildingGreen’s rich array of media and information resources, including the award-winning Environmental Building News, BuildingGreen Suite of online tools, GreenSpec directory of products, and LEEDuser web tool, so they can work smarter. Not harder. www.buildinggreen.com.

About the Healthy Building Network
Since 2000, HBN projects have directly resulted in the introduction of new, healthier building materials into commercial markets, shifting over $4 billion in materials purchases from toxic materials to healthier alternatives that are comparable in both price and performance to the materials they have replaced. HBN played a key role in establishing precedent-setting green building guidelines for health care facilities, demonstrating well-built, healthy and green modular homes to the affordable housing market in the Gulf States region and developing the first, on-line evaluation tool for building materials - the Pharos Project. www.healthybuilding.net.

Copyright © 2010 Building Green LLC and the Healthy Building Network.  All rights reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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