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My column on emerging international standards for green labels drew an enthusiastic response from Bekaert Specialty Films (BSF) and its president, Christophe Fremont.
BSF, the U.S. based subsidiary of a Belgian parent, manufactures a variety of window films for commercial, residential and automotive markets across the world.
The films, which are retrofitted to the inside of glass surfaces, allow sunlight to penetrate windows while reducing solar heat gain. In commercial buildings and homes, the films can help to reduce energy costs and maintain more comfortable interior temperatures. The films also help car interiors to maintain more comfortable temperatures, while reducing interior fading of upholstery.
The market for BSFs solar film products is propelled by concerns about energy efficiency and the release of greenhouse gasses. In recognition of that fact, BSF recently completed a climate declaration -- the greenhouse gas emission portion of an environmental product declaration (EPD), a lifecycle assessment of a product's environmental performance -- for its Solar Gard and Panorama architectural solar control window film lines.
The climate declaration analyzed 32 window film lines, finding that, when installed, the films prevented more GHGs from entering the atmosphere over time than was expended in their manufacture, shipping, installation and expected end of life disposal and recycling. The films are typically carbon neutral after having been used for a year, and -- over their useful life post-installation -- prevent, on average, 1001 times as much greenhouse gas emissions from entering the atmosphere than is used or created in their manufacture, for a designation as carbon negative.
Why did BSF go to the trouble and expense of completing a climate declaration?
"First, we wanted to walk our talk," says Fremont.
BSF's marketing emphasizes energy efficiency and CO2 emission reductions, and BSF wanted to ensure that its practices and products were in fact carbon neutral or carbon negative. To this end, BSF has invested over $1 million in environmental programs.
Next Page: What it takes to produce a climate declaration.
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Climates encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elements in a given region over long periods of time. Climate can be contrasted to weather, which is the present condition of these same elements and their variations over periods up to two weeks. To know more about the climate changes, you may visit pdfpal.org for more information.