Regenerative Manufacturing at a Tipping Point

PITTSBURGH, September 11, 2018 /3BL Media/ - Since its release in 2014, the Living Product Challenge has scaled across industries, products categories, and whole product portfolios at leading manufacturing companies, enabled by a growing network of partners who are helping to make good on the promise of “healthy products for everyone.”  The Living Product Challenge (LPC) 2.0 was released today at the Living Product Expo in Pittsburgh, an annual gathering of visionaries and pioneers who are together creating the future of manufacturing. Hosted by the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), the conference is attended by hundreds of designers, procurement executives, specifiers, and experts in green chemistry, toxicology, materials health, biophilic design and materials of the future. The Expo is held at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, September 11-13.

"The Living Product Challenge 2.0 raises the bar for manufacturers, to more directly address the critical issues of climate change, human health and equity,” said James Connelly, Vice President of Products and Strategic Growth for ILFI. “We added criteria for carbon sequestering products, we are increasing transparency by asking companies to look at their supply chain risk in terms of ethical sourcing, human rights and equity, and finally we are asking companies to document not only their environmental impact but also the social impact of their decisions–including job creation, community health and social co-benefits, through Handprints.”

Living Product Challenge 2.0 also ensures that healthier products for everyone truly means everyone–that access to cleaner products is not limited to only those who can afford them. ILFI has made significant progress in promoting transparency and toxic chemical avoidance across the building industry, through the growth of Declare, the ingredients label for building products. This program has been widely adopted, and there are currently more than 800 products with active Declare labels. ILFI also has a major affordable housing initiative to ensure these sustainable products are used by communities that historically have been most affected by toxic products.

Other highlights and conference announcements include:

• Manufacturer’s Visionary Award, presented to Superior Essex. Superior Essex is one of the first manufacturers to achieve the Living Product Challenge and is a major advocate of transparency and materials optimization. The company is helping to guide the direction of the manufacturing industry as a leading member of the LP50, and are walking the talk in their own operations
• Armstrong World Industries achieved Living Product Imperative Certification for its TECTUM® Ceiling and Wall Panels, which use FSC-certified wood fiber and provide significant acoustical benefits. TECTUM is the first ceiling and wall tile to achieve LPC Certification, and the 21st product in the program, more than doubling the number of certifications in 2018.​

New or expanded partnerships are catalyzing this shift to healthy products:

Toxnot has been selected by ILFI as a scalable software solution for the creation of Declare Labels. Toxnot’s platform enables manufacturers to quickly and easily produce Declare labels across their entire product portfolio, at scale, by tying to their companies Enterprise Resource Management software.

ILFI, NRDC, and Healthy Building Network have released a report, Making Affordable Multifamily Housing More Energy Efficient. Funded by The JPB Foundation, the report is part of the Energy Efficiency for All program, which is dedicated to linking the energy and housing sectors in order to tap the benefits of energy efficiency for millions of low-income families.

Enterprise Green Communities and ILFI have partnered to scale programs for healthy, sustainable development into the Green Communities Criteria. With the development of the next generation of Enterprise’s Green Communities Criteria, Enterprise and ILFI will be crafting guidance for building material selection to improve resident health outcomes. The two organizations are committed to incorporating best practices and learnings from ILFI’s Declare label, Red List, and other ILFI programs within the Materials category of the Green Communities Criteria.

About the Living Product Challenge and Expo

The Living Product Challenge re-imagines the design and construction of products to function as elegantly and efficiently as anything found in the natural world. The creation of this program kicked off a groundbreaking new event that brought together leading minds in the product industry to inspire a revolution in the way materials are designed, manufactured and delivered: the Living Product Expo. At Living Product Expo 2018 participants will share and discover disruptive new ideas and technologies that are reshaping the materials landscape, accelerating the pace of innovation and making Living Products possible.

About the International Living Future Institute

The International Living Future Institute is an environmental NGO committed to catalyzing the transformation toward communities that are socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative. ILFI is premised on the belief that providing a compelling vision for the future is a fundamental requirement for reconciling humanity’s relationship with the natural world. ILFI operates the Living Building Challenge, the built environment’s most ambitious performance standard. It is a hub for many other visionary programs that support the transformation toward a living future.