Life Cycle Assessment

SPRA funded independent research by Building Research Establishment (BRE) in 2006/7.

• Manufacturers of PVC and FPO submitted detailed raw material, energy and production information.
• International experts on the environment independently set a priority against a wide range of 13 environmental impacts (e.g. energy use, waste, water use).
• Manufacturers’ data was set against these criteria.
• Manufacturers can obtain individual Ecopoints assessments which can be used to produce Green Guide ratings in a given specification. The generic assessment is generally reduced to allow for the range manufacture that was not included in the research.
• ‘Ecopoints’ assessments for generic PVC and FPO were produced.
• The rating for PVC was 14.3; the rating for FPO was 11.4. This equates to a difference of 25% in a product which is just 1.2 or 1.5mm thick, so it is hardly significant in the full system.
• SPRA plans to review this data to take account of improved manufacturing technique since 2006 and to include a wider range of polymer types.