BRE Global has signed a mutual recognition agreement with the German based Institute of the Built Environment (IBU), an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) scheme operator with customers across Europe. The agreement was announced at architects trade fair BAU2017 in Munich. It means that companies who have BRE verified EPD and are listed on https://www.greenbooklive.com can also be registered on IBU’s approved listing and vice versa*. This collaborative move will advance more widespread usage of EPD for the advantage of the built environment. The benefits to product manufacturers include more exposure to larger markets. Dr Shamir Ghumra, BRE Director of Sustainable Products said ‘As leading organisations for the provision of third-party-verified EPD to EN 15804, this is a significant step forward. Industry can now have EPDs verified by BRE or IBU with the assurance that their EPD can be recognised in either the BRE or IBU listing service. We look forward to developing our relationship with IBU over the coming years.’ An EPD is a standardised way of assessing the environmental impact of a product through its lifespan from raw materials and manufacturing to application, use and disposal. Credible EPD, such as that offered by BRE Global and IBU, are independently verified to strict standards to ensure the underlying data, data handling and the EPD itself are consistently reliable. This credibility gives specifiers and architects peace of mind that they are specifying products in keeping with environmental standards such as BREEAM. The agreement with IBU is a significant milestone for the EPD programme at BRE and further developments will be announced over the coming months. For further information please contact Linda McKeown, BRE, email pressoffice@bregroup.com NOTES TO EDITOR * Due diligence will be carried out for all mutual listings BRE Global BRE Global Limited (incorporating LPCB & BREEAM) is an independent third party approvals body offering certification of fire, security and sustainability products and services to an international market. BRE Global’s product testing and approvals are carried out by recognised experts in our world renowned testing laboratories. BRE Global Limited is custodian of a number of world leading brands including: LPCB for the approval of fire and security products and services, listed in the Red Books. BREEAM the world’s leading environmental assessment method for buildings, sets the standard for best practice in sustainable design and has become the de-facto measure of a building’s environmental performance. BRE Global is owned by the BRE Trust, a registered charity. The Trust uses the profits made by the BRE companies to fund research and education that advances knowledge of the built environment. For more information, visit www.bre.co.uk